Open Office Is Giving You Secondhand ADHD
8 days ago
- #productivity
- #focus
- #remote work
- The author tracked their coding patterns for a month using FlouState and found they were 3x more creative at home than in the office.
- In the office, only 18% of time was spent creating new code, compared to 56% at home.
- Office days were marked by frequent interruptions, leading to 49% of time spent 'exploring' (re-reading code) instead of creating.
- Research shows it takes 23 minutes to refocus after an interruption, but office interruptions occur before recovery is possible.
- Average uninterrupted coding time at home was 87 minutes, compared to just 11 minutes in the office.
- The author's brain was constantly processing environmental stimuli in the open office, leaving only 30-40% capacity for coding.
- Presenting data to their manager led to a new schedule: deep work at home on Tue/Thu and collaboration in the office on other days.
- Some developers thrive in offices, highlighting the need for personalized work environments.
- Tracking tools like FlouState can help individuals and teams understand and optimize their productivity patterns.