The Struggle to Find Time for Thinking amid Meetings and Messages at Work

Many people feel overwhelmed by the amount of communication they have to deal with at work, often leaving them with little time to think or innovate, according to a new study by Microsoft. Analysis of the company’s 365 applications revealed that email, chat and meetings take up 57% of users’ time, leaving 68% with too little opportunity for uninterrupted focus. Over 60% of leaders said a lack of innovation or breakthroughs among their teams was a concern. Joe Ciolli, writing for Insider, pointed out that US productivity has fallen steeply over the past several quarters, while companies are still hiring, creating a potential major economic issue of falling output. Microsoft’s survey also identified what it saw as the top obstacles to productivity, including inefficient meetings, too many meetings, a lack of clear goals and difficulty finding the information needed to make decisions.