One of my birthday presents from Mrs. M was noise canceling headphones from Bose. It is really an amazing piece of technology - the sound quality for music is so good that I actually thought someone was behind me when an unexpected voice occurred in my Master and Commander sound track and the sound reduction is pretty nifty too. It’s not total silence but pretty good.
Currently I’m working in an open office, which is damn noisy most times. Whether it be people talking to hear themselves or legitimate conversations its hard to concentrate on writing or various work items without either some type of white noise (classical music for instance) or the new headphones. As expected, the Bose headphones have been great, but wearing them has brought unexpected benefits.
I’m not certain just yet why it occurs, but people seem to think a second time before bothering me with a question if I’m wearing them. It’s as if wearing headphones causes them to analyze their question one more time before not only interrupting my work but also causing me to remove my headphones. Once I noticed it happening, I started to watch people out of the corner of my eye if they started toward me with the I have a question it’s time to bother Al look and walk. And, surprisingly about 1 out of 3 starts were aborted. 33% more productivity from just wearing a piece of equipment - yeha!
Lots of take-aways:
1. For everyone when deciding to ask a question, imagine that person is wearing headphones - and then make your decision
2. The Bose equipment is pretty amazing, to misquote Ferris Bueller - if you have the means, I highly recommend them
3. This trick doesn’t require Bose technology, it only needs you wearing headphones at work
This rif has been a service of the SADFQ Institute
