A printed sign is one way people stay productive when they’re working, but it doesn’t have to be the only one, as one Aussie invention tries a different tactic.
Whether you’re working from home or inside of an office, keeping on track and focused on productivity isn’t easy for everyone. Some people are perfectly capable of staying on target, and others just know they’re going to have something intervene. Life is like that, and the time you have to work can be complex.
You can set a schedule and attempt to work to it, but life doesn’t always keep to the same plan. In fact, between your computer, phone, and all the other distractions, it’s a genuine wonder how people get work done at all.
There’s even the option of sticking a sign on the back of your chair, warning people away because you’re working. It doesn’t work, but you can always try.
Fortunately, there are other ways to help keep people on target, such as the Pomodoro technique, a concept that breaks work time into 25 minute segments to provide structure for the work day. It’s one of the ways you can keep on track, and it’s something that is partly being used in a new gadget created by Australians to help keep people focused and on track.
Called the “TimeChi”, it’s a gadget for your desk that works with your phone and computer to basically provide a “do not disturb” on your work life when you need it. Running on a small battery, it’s a device that talks to iPhone and Android, as well as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari on the computer, plus a bunch of other apps, and when activated, lights up to tell you how much time you have left while telling those other apps that you won’t be touched.
Essentially, TimeChi acts as a bodyguard for your time and productivity, blocking out unnecessary distractions with a simple touch of a button. That button is the TimeChi device, and it activates the do not disturb feature on the devices and applications in your life, so those random questions, extra emails, and other distractions can’t penetrate until your working time block is complete.
While you’re working, TimeChi aims to tell others when you’ll be back, with the actual device lighting up with colours to signify how deep you are in your work. This basically means the blocking of time isn’t like an impenetrable wall, but more like a fence, and your colleagues can see when you’ll be coming up for air.
“TimeChi is the only solution in the market that allows for deep work and breaks, without sacrificing team collaboration.
“Unlike the old trick of putting on your headphones, TimeChi provides a polite way to signal others to come back when you’re on a break,” said Sean Greenhalgh, Co-Founder and CEO of TimeChi.
“When it takes an average of 11 minutes to regain focus after an interruption, it’s not difficult to see how online and physical distractions can have a significant impact on a business’s bottom line, and so we wanted to change that,” he said.
For those looking to see just how much TimeChi has made an impact, the gadget will also come with an analytics dashboard to help track patterns in working, allowing you to cite what’s working and what isn’t, and help change it.
It’s just the beginning, though, with this Aussie invention going to Indigogo for crowdfunding, ahead of a final release and ship date of early next year. You’ll find the TimeChi on Indiegogo now, available at prices lower than the expected recommended retail price of $186.
