Yahoo Finance How to Stay in Work Mode During March Madness
As bracket season is upon us, it's easy to get swept up in March Madness. Plus, if you're talking about it at work, it's one sure way to build camaraderie. Another thing it's known for? Distraction. And it's not just one event; it's an ongoing daily occurrence, albeit for around two weeks. According to an OfficeTeam survey, professionals say they spend an average of 25.5 minutes per workday on sports-related activities in the office during the college basketball playoffs.
Here's how you can maintain your productivity during any sports tournament that can sometimes push your work (as well as your job search) to the sidelines.
[See: 14 Best Jobs for Work-Life Balance.]
Create self-imposed deadlines and set the clock. This applies to other distractions as well, such as social media, if your five minutes to quickly check your feed suddenly turns into 45. If you're working on a task, tell yourself you're going to detach from game scores and keep your head in the workspace. Your employer will thank you and your quality of work won't suffer. Break down tasks into mini milestones and time frames, such as 45-minute blocks. See what works best for you, but definitely set the clock and block out all distractions during that time (yes, email counts).
Then, if you need to, tell yourself you'll allow for mini breaks and instead of going for a 10-minute walk outside or getting coffee once you reach a few milestones (such as one five-minute break after each 45-minute block), you can check out scores and headlines on your phone. Set your phone's alarm clock for these breaks, and when it rings, you know the drill: Get 100 percent focused on work again.
Reframe that lost time. If you're spending 25.5 minutes each workday on outside distractions and wondering how fast the time flew by, when it's after hours (or any time that's not interfering with your employer's clock), think about how you can leverage 25.5 minutes for your job search. Yes, that too can fly by when you're focused, engaged and excited!
Set up job alerts and have opportunities land in your inbox. Spend a few minutes tweaking each resume so keywords from the job description are reflected in your resume. Update your cover letter as necessary and stay on top of an Excel spreadsheet or similar organizational tool so you can keep networking introductions, conversations and most importantly, follow-ups, moving forward. You'll realize even 20 minutes a day when used effectively can indeed move the job search forward.
[See: 10 Reasons to Quit Your Job Already.]
The same applies to your work. You can easily spend 20 minutes a day getting organized, creating folders in Outlook or following up with an internal contact to meet up for coffee to learn more about their department, and once you're into that habit, you'll probably need less than 20 minutes to stay efficient.
By seeing how fast time gets utilized when you're focused on something you enjoy, like March Madness, you can similarly see how small pockets of time on a daily basis, when used to further your career, can be effective in the long run.
Get schooled. So, what if you're not into the tournament whatsoever and fall beneath the 25.5 minutes per workday, perhaps letting resentment build when you see a co-worker constantly peeking at scores online while you're actually -- you know -- working? Focus on your lane, but while doing so, peruse the headlines on a daily basis.
This way, you won't be excluded from water cooler buzz and can contribute to the conversation. You'll be able to chime in with colleagues and not be left in the dark when office buzz centers around March Madness.
[See: 8 Ways Millennials Can Build Leadership Skills.]
Also, during job interviews this is precisely how you can ace small talk. Staying abreast of current events (non-political, non-heated matters) doesn't mean you need to be glued to the news 24/7. It just means you're in the know and can talk knowledgeably about it. Leverage March Madness as a good time to flex the small talk skill set! Simply scan box scores to read about any possible upsets, thrilling games and human interest angles (last year, for instance, Julia Louis-Dreyfus traveled to see her son play for Northwestern, which is also her alma mater).
Overall, think of it this way -- if you were managing a team that was mentally checked out of important work and swept up in brackets, you'd find it even more challenging to rally the troops. Set a good example, especially when leading a team, to not let yourself get completely distracted. Yes, you're human and likely curious about how your favorite teams are doing, but it's important to show that work can indeed get done during the tournament.
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