There is a growing trend for open plan offices. They have significant advantages over closed plan or cubicle layouts in that they save space. The chances are, if you work in an office, it’s open plan.

One of the theories behind open plan offices (besides cost-saving) is that they are more efficient work spaces and provide greater opportunity for improved communication. However there are downsides to this type of layout. These are:

  1. Noise
  2. Distractions

Noise

I’ve worked in open plan offices for most of my working life. And there is one recurring theme: background noise. Your ‘tap tap tap’ on the keyboard is accompanied by the same sound coming from dozens of other workstations.

Added to this is telephone conversations, hubub from ‘breakout areas’ and your colleagues gossiping over who’s going to be next to leave the company.

I have a tendency to zone in and pick up on other people’s conversations. It could be my personality type but I find it hard to concentrate at the best of times so this can be a real killer for my productivity, especially if I’m chasing a deadline.

And then there are the voice carriers.

Voice carriers are people who, no matter where they are in the building, can be heard with disturbing clarity. There’s just something about their tone and pitch of voice that could easily be picked up by dogs across the street. Like a laser pointing at the moon, nothing short of a reflective surface can stop the sound.

If you’re on the phone or trying to concentrate, it’s game over. You’re not getting any work done until they zip it.

Distractions

Although noise can be distracting (see above), there are other situations that distract or detract from your day to day grind.

The chief distraction factor is interruptions. Alerts from email, phone, phone calls and co-workers asking you stuff all sap your valuable time. Some of these can be managed, others avoided to a considerable extent (more on this later).

Research into interruptions has shown:

  • You’re almost 30% more likely to be interrupted in an open plan office than in a closed plan or private office
  • You’ll be interrupted once every 11 minutes on average and it will take 25 minutes to refocus on what you’re supposed to be working on.
  • The estimated cost to the US Economy of interruptions is over half a billion dollars (Source)

What is certain is that if you’re to thrive in an open plan office, you need some way to manage and cope with distractions.

As I said, I find these types of distractions tough. It takes me a long time to refocus which is why I needed to find some way to cut down on distractions and interruptions. Keep reading to find out how it works and why it’s better for you and your co-workers.

this dad does sennheiser 449 HD headphones open plan office

Headphones and Music at Work

I started listening to music at work while working on a big project. I needed maximum focus as I typed and read documents for hours and hours. I quickly found that nothing was better than plugging in and getting my head into the work.

Although I started off listening to metal and hip hop (which I still love), I’ve discovered (after reading Gorilla Mindset and learning about different types of music for work) that there are three genre of music that help me to perform at my best:

1. House/Deep House

Until recently I hardly ever listened to EDM (Electronic Dance Music). I’ve done my fair share of clubbing and enjoyed dance music, especially in the gym however I’d never used it for work.

EDM is useful for blocking out background music as it disrupts ambient sounds – perfect for open plan spaces.

However house or deep house music is some of the most plentiful and useful music for listening to at work. There are literally hundreds of mixes on YouTube and Soundcloud. Here is my favourite YouTube mix. The tracks and beats ebb and flow almost inducing a trance like state:

2. Euphoric Trance

When I used to hit the clubs, trance was top of my list. But I’d hardly listened to any until recently when I started on my EDM kick for working and writing to.

Euphoric trance has uplifting chord progressions that can make you feel more up beat. You could combine with your favourite nootropic or stimulant for an extra productivity kick. I find euphoric trance is best when I need to do a lot of typing as my fingers skip over the keys in time to the fast paced beat.

Good trance mixes are less bountiful on streaming sites however this is one of the best I’ve found:

3. Classical Music

Before I listened to EDM, I’ve loved classics. I used to watch TV in the mornings over breakfast but switched a few years ago to the radio. I quickly found I couldn’t deal with pop music, especially early in the morning so switched to classics. (Pro-Tip – Classical music can have a calming effect on grumpy/hyper toddlers and their Dads)

Although I’m probably a little biased, I like British composers like Elgar or Holst (the latter being adopted British). Holst’s The Planets is truly impressive especially the ominous ‘Mars – The Bringer of War’ but it’s Elgar’s Enigma Variations that do if for me every time.

A word of warning – the audio can be poor on streaming sites for classical music. There are paid for apps that will give you high quality streaming classical music if you want to spend the money.

I find classical music very relaxing but it doesn’t have the disruptive qualities of EDM and so it’s better for relaxation and quiet working (I’m writing this it my kitchen, the kids are in bed and Wagner is playing).

Headphones

So you’ve got your music choices, now you need something to listen on. I personally use and recommend Sennheiser and recently bought these 449 HD ‘phones which are super comfortable and block out ambient noise well. They’re also pretty massive – I’ll come on to this a bit later.

If you’re going to be listening to a lot of music, it’s worth shelling out for good headphones. There are dozens of reviews of headphones online. I chose Sennheiser after speaking to friends and chatting to a few people on Twitter.

You can buy Sennheiser 449 HD headphones here (Amazon)

sennheiser 449HD headphones EDM at work productivity

How Big Headphones Change Co-Worker Habits

Ok, so I mentioned about buying big headphones. This was no accident. I went for as unsubtle a pair as I could find (within my budget).

Why? Because I didn’t want to just block out distractions, I also wanted to (gently) influence others’ behaviour.

Imagine this: You’re in the office sitting next to me. I’m engrossed in my work, my gigantic headphones are unmissable. You want to ask me a question but you don’t want to interrupt me and make me take off my cans to speak to you. So you Google the thing you were going to ask me (that I don’t know anyway): How many times have the Atlanta Falcons won the Super Bowl?

But it’s more than just a visual deterrent – it actually changes people’s behaviour. In a previous post, I wrote about the habit loop.

The habit loop here is:

Cue: Neil looks open to being asked a question about American football

Routine: I’ll ask him – he always knows this stuff

Reward: We had a long discussion about American football that wandered into politics and office gossip.

So if you change that cue – i.e. looking open to being asked questions, you can chance your co-workers habits and their behaviour and get more work done without offending anyone.

In Closing

Open plan offices aren’t going anywhere. They’re far too cost effective and trendy to be given the boot. So if you work in the ‘Office of the Future’, put on some massive headphones, turn up the house music and get some work done.

 

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P.P.S Know how many times the Atlanta Falcons have won the Super Bowl? Post a comment or send me an email.

 

About Neil M White

Neil has been writing for a number of years. He has worked as a freelance writer both in the UK and internationally and has worked on a number of high profile media projects. Neil spends his spare time hiking, in the gym or hanging out with his family.

2 comments add your comment

    • Hey Dylan, thanks for commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed this article. Do you ever listen to Anjunabeats on Soundcloud. Some of their mixes are great for working to.

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