What work atmosphere feels most productive? Do you need complete silence, or are you drawn to mild cafes with the sound of an espresso machine and muffled conversations in the background? Do you prefer windows or would they be too distracting because you’ll want to stare out of them all the time? Maybe it depends on the kind of work you’re doing? Do you have any distractions you would call necessary, that help you work?
Most people tell me they like absolute silence when they have to work alone, and that they prefer to be physically alone like in a library study cubicle. The ones in our library have a tiny window on the door usually facing away from the person inside, so I’m not sure why the window is there. A handful of people tell me they prefer cafes where they can drown out the noise with earphones if it gets too loud, where there may be few people walking about, where you can choose a view with a window or not, you can sit forever and there’s always coffee. They also tell me that they usually only come out to a café when they feel stuck in their work or need a change of scene to regain focus. So, the café is not their primary work space but rather a reprieve from it. My random pool of knowledge comes from informal conversations with undergrads, graduate students, teachers/professors, artists, and writers. I clearly spend a lot of time wondering about people’s work practices. I myself like to use the general library ‘talking is allowed’ area less than often, and the restricted talking floor even lesser. I work better in the library when my friend Marga shares my table and we can think aloud to each other as we work; I find that it helps process thoughts better to say them out loud. I like cafes for a work space when I can afford it. When I’m sitting by a window and know that I can look up after this paragraph and see a few trees, I’m content and focussed and work better. Sometimes I force myself to sit in my windowless lab with Radiohead on low, a soft yellowish lamp, and write. It helps, but soon enough, I realise I need windows. I also like moderately noisy spaces like bars or a house party with a bunch of friends sitting around and enjoying themselves, maybe a beer in my hand, looking up to smile at someone or laugh at a joke before writing another sentence. I remember writing most of my thesis in a friend’s hostel room, small like the other rooms and cozy with the sounds of nine or ten people, laughter and music, short intense discussions in the corner about regression analysis and synonyms for “study”, “understand”, and “investigate”. There are days when I take my lawn chair to sit and work on the porch outside, watching sparrows and robins hop around as I type, thoughts moving through the bird sounds that fill my head. I get so much done before the mosquitoes arrive. I also pick up my phone while I work, sometimes after every other sentence, sometimes after twenty minutes. I’m pretty good at ignoring texts. Sometimes all I do is pick it up, unlock, swipe my homescreen left and right, keep it back down, and start working again. I think I look at my phone more often when I’m in the library or my quiet lab space, than in the café-type atmosphere. I forget about it entirely for hours when I have windows or friends around. The only social media I’m on for now is Instagram, I browse through it some days more than others, and I see and learn so much. So yes, I check my phone often while I work and I used to tell myself it wasn’t good practice, that I should be more disciplined and just turn it off. But now I think maybe I need that distraction to stay focussed. I don’t have an agenda with the phone, it seems to happen without thought. And for now, I let it. Windows, ambient sounds, a phone or an object to play with, and a few friends. These are my necessary distractions. What are yours?
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