Focus Time

When did people start having to put “Focus Time” on their calendars?  It may not be a thing everywhere, and there are probably a few variations.  It’s basically a meeting with yourself so you can get things done.  (also known as work) The intent is that people will treat it as a moat and leave you alone during that time, but it doesn’t always work.  There are a few glitches in the implementation.

What Calendar Do You Use?

Let's assume a common, O365-based environment.  Calendars should intermingle freely and be conscious of one another.  I wish.  First, there are permissions.  Depending on how you have your calendar setup, people around you may or may not be able to actually see what is going on in your day.  Scheduling can just look like a more or less continuous line with the occasional gap.  And that’s probably something that the person forgot to schedule.  Trying to schedule a meeting ends up being more like someone banging on your door screaming, “I know you’re in there.”

If you are lucky enough to actually be able to see what is happening on someone’s calendar, is “Focus Time” fair game for a meeting?  Now you are into cultural norms.  Is it safe to violate the sanctity of this sacred time, or is scheduling during this time a career-limiting move?  In some cases, you have to touch the burner to see if it’s hot.  Not a great system. 

Who Makes the Rules?

Then there is the executive assistant who doesn’t look at available time and sends meeting invites based on the executive’s availability.  Everyone adjusts accordingly.  What does this do to the existing meetings?  Or Focus time?  Does any of it matter?

We try so hard to inject control into a system where it doesn’t exist.  This creates a vicious cycle of scheduling and rescheduling around other people’s priorities.  Eventually, we get to a point where we have to schedule the time we should be working because there are too many meetings.  This should be a red flag to any organization.

The New Norm

But much like frogs in a pot getting boiled as the temperature slowly goes up, we don’t pay attention to the warning signs.  It becomes normal.  Absurd, but still normal.  It’s also not sustainable.  Aside from the constant rescheduling, people become less productive because they are constantly shifting tasks.  When it takes the average person 20 minutes to get back into a product state from doing something different, this can be a losing battle, depending on the length and frequency of meetings.  Eventually, the system breaks, or the people break.

Pressing the Reset Button

For many companies, the jump in remote work during covid was a reset button.  They realized they had to do something different, and they made changes accordingly.  Work became more asynchronous, and meetings were reevaluated and, in some cases, eliminated.  The free time on people’s calendars was once again when they were working.  It wasn’t just unclaimed space waiting for someone to schedule a meeting. 

Not everyone got the memo.  They viewed the transition to remote work as a temporary blip.  It was something to be tolerated until people could get back to being productive in the office.  This is a flawed perception, but not uncommon.  Just because people are 4% more productive and 11% happier with a flexible work environment, why cloud the issue with facts?

For those who are back to business as usual, with calendars that only an AI agent can navigate, something is eventually going to break.  It might be the system, but more likely it will be a person or two.  Everyone has their breaking point.  It could be that they get sick more, disengage, or worse.  Maybe they just have had enough and quit. 

If you have any control over how your organization works, take time for a reset if you haven’t done one recently.  If the only way you can get work done is by putting “Focus Time” on your calendar, you have a problem.  Start taking away meetings until people don’t feel they have to block their time.  What you are left with isn’t an empty calendar.  It’s you doing work.