"Slack's chief technology officer, Parker Harris, said that when he needs to focus on a single task and remove distractions, he turns off the sound of his notifications "completely off." The CTO said he also flips his phone over so he isn't tempted to look at it. "I hate that knock sound or any other sound," Harris said about notifications in general. Harris said even outside those situations, he typically keeps his notifications on. However, he doesn't necessarily "jump straight" to addressing every individual message he receives, given he works in an "interrupt-driven" environment."
"EY's global chief innovation officer said if he has to do some "really deep thinking," which may include pondering strategy or preparing for a presentation, he'll often go for a walk or run outdoors. Depa said he also likes playing soccer and coaches his son's sports teams. The executive said getting outside removes him from his computer and other devices, and allows him to "just think." Depa said if he has too much back-to-back travel or too many interviews, his brain will "get fried.""
Turning off notification sounds and flipping phones prevents temptation and creates uninterrupted time for single-task focus. Keeping notifications on but delaying responses helps manage interrupt-driven workflows without constant context switching. Going outdoors for walks, runs, or playing sports removes people from screens and provides space for strategic thinking or presentation preparation. Changing physical location serves as a reset to restore concentration. Excessive back-to-back travel or frequent interviews overloads cognitive capacity and reduces ability to think deeply. Physical separation from devices and simple location changes consistently enable sustained deep work amid busy schedules.
Read at Business Insider
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