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How to be productive while waiting for meetings to start


How to co-ordinate working hours for a team distributed across time zones?Am I right to consider workload when new good ideas are suggested by my team?Time management strategies for reading policy or technical documentation at workHow do you deal with co-workers who respond to your emails without reading the whole thing, or don't read them at all?Auditing time while waiting for tasksHow to handle being late






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12















The problem: I cannot work normally when I know I will be interrupted any minute.



Example:



  • My manager say we have a team meeting (all 12 members) with the big boss in 14:30.

  • In 14:27 I am already in a standby mode and cannot continue working normally, because I expect to be called any minute.

  • It's 14:35 nothing happens, everyone keeps on working. I text them in our skype chat "Aren't we supposed to go to the meeting already?", The response is "Why are you in a hurry? They will call us soon."

  • It's 14:50 - nothing happens.


  • 15:30 - we are finally called to the big meeting!

  • We sit in the conference room and another coworker (Tom) comes in and say "we need to talk about something important". Our meeting is called off and we return to our desks.

  • The meeting with Tom is over after 5 mins. Again we are on a standby to start our meeting.

  • 16:50 - nothing happens. Our managers do not inform us what is going on, are we having a meeting soon or not.

This is just one example. I was in situations like this many times and still can't cope with it and continue my work stressless. The pressure of being called just now is distracting me from thinking about my tasks. Sometimes is 5 min wasted, but sometimes it can be an hour.



Measures taken by now: I talked with my managers, they don't get me seriously and say "Don't think about it, just continue working". They are not willing to change this process, while the only thing I want is to be informed what's going on (Do I have to wait 5 mins or 1 hour for example)



Question: Since nothing can be done from their side, I want to ask what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How to continue working normally and not waste time waiting? Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?



Update: This meeting was about our team performance and our salary raises depending on that. I couldn't stay careless as I kept repeating in my mind what I would say about my projects.










share|improve this question
































    12















    The problem: I cannot work normally when I know I will be interrupted any minute.



    Example:



    • My manager say we have a team meeting (all 12 members) with the big boss in 14:30.

    • In 14:27 I am already in a standby mode and cannot continue working normally, because I expect to be called any minute.

    • It's 14:35 nothing happens, everyone keeps on working. I text them in our skype chat "Aren't we supposed to go to the meeting already?", The response is "Why are you in a hurry? They will call us soon."

    • It's 14:50 - nothing happens.


    • 15:30 - we are finally called to the big meeting!

    • We sit in the conference room and another coworker (Tom) comes in and say "we need to talk about something important". Our meeting is called off and we return to our desks.

    • The meeting with Tom is over after 5 mins. Again we are on a standby to start our meeting.

    • 16:50 - nothing happens. Our managers do not inform us what is going on, are we having a meeting soon or not.

    This is just one example. I was in situations like this many times and still can't cope with it and continue my work stressless. The pressure of being called just now is distracting me from thinking about my tasks. Sometimes is 5 min wasted, but sometimes it can be an hour.



    Measures taken by now: I talked with my managers, they don't get me seriously and say "Don't think about it, just continue working". They are not willing to change this process, while the only thing I want is to be informed what's going on (Do I have to wait 5 mins or 1 hour for example)



    Question: Since nothing can be done from their side, I want to ask what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How to continue working normally and not waste time waiting? Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?



    Update: This meeting was about our team performance and our salary raises depending on that. I couldn't stay careless as I kept repeating in my mind what I would say about my projects.










    share|improve this question




























      12












      12








      12








      The problem: I cannot work normally when I know I will be interrupted any minute.



      Example:



      • My manager say we have a team meeting (all 12 members) with the big boss in 14:30.

      • In 14:27 I am already in a standby mode and cannot continue working normally, because I expect to be called any minute.

      • It's 14:35 nothing happens, everyone keeps on working. I text them in our skype chat "Aren't we supposed to go to the meeting already?", The response is "Why are you in a hurry? They will call us soon."

      • It's 14:50 - nothing happens.


      • 15:30 - we are finally called to the big meeting!

      • We sit in the conference room and another coworker (Tom) comes in and say "we need to talk about something important". Our meeting is called off and we return to our desks.

      • The meeting with Tom is over after 5 mins. Again we are on a standby to start our meeting.

      • 16:50 - nothing happens. Our managers do not inform us what is going on, are we having a meeting soon or not.

      This is just one example. I was in situations like this many times and still can't cope with it and continue my work stressless. The pressure of being called just now is distracting me from thinking about my tasks. Sometimes is 5 min wasted, but sometimes it can be an hour.



      Measures taken by now: I talked with my managers, they don't get me seriously and say "Don't think about it, just continue working". They are not willing to change this process, while the only thing I want is to be informed what's going on (Do I have to wait 5 mins or 1 hour for example)



      Question: Since nothing can be done from their side, I want to ask what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How to continue working normally and not waste time waiting? Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?



      Update: This meeting was about our team performance and our salary raises depending on that. I couldn't stay careless as I kept repeating in my mind what I would say about my projects.










      share|improve this question
















      The problem: I cannot work normally when I know I will be interrupted any minute.



      Example:



      • My manager say we have a team meeting (all 12 members) with the big boss in 14:30.

      • In 14:27 I am already in a standby mode and cannot continue working normally, because I expect to be called any minute.

      • It's 14:35 nothing happens, everyone keeps on working. I text them in our skype chat "Aren't we supposed to go to the meeting already?", The response is "Why are you in a hurry? They will call us soon."

      • It's 14:50 - nothing happens.


      • 15:30 - we are finally called to the big meeting!

      • We sit in the conference room and another coworker (Tom) comes in and say "we need to talk about something important". Our meeting is called off and we return to our desks.

      • The meeting with Tom is over after 5 mins. Again we are on a standby to start our meeting.

      • 16:50 - nothing happens. Our managers do not inform us what is going on, are we having a meeting soon or not.

      This is just one example. I was in situations like this many times and still can't cope with it and continue my work stressless. The pressure of being called just now is distracting me from thinking about my tasks. Sometimes is 5 min wasted, but sometimes it can be an hour.



      Measures taken by now: I talked with my managers, they don't get me seriously and say "Don't think about it, just continue working". They are not willing to change this process, while the only thing I want is to be informed what's going on (Do I have to wait 5 mins or 1 hour for example)



      Question: Since nothing can be done from their side, I want to ask what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How to continue working normally and not waste time waiting? Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?



      Update: This meeting was about our team performance and our salary raises depending on that. I couldn't stay careless as I kept repeating in my mind what I would say about my projects.







      time-management process






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      edited 15 mins ago









      Dukeling

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          6 Answers
          6






          active

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          18
















          I'm assuming that advising you "just go on working" won't have much effect. The best compromise might be to try and find short, low-attention jobs that you can do around meeting time so you can instantly break off when you're called to the meeting and it won't matter if your mind isn't totally on the job.



          These might be mundane administrative or housekeeping tasks (anything from cleaning your desk to sorting your email inbox or deleting unused files and documents), or other one-off tasks (conducting online research, interactions with nearby people, putting things in nearby places). If you can't easily think of these jobs, you could make a to-do list of such tasks in whatever format is quickest and easiest to access, and either tick them off as you do them, or if you don't have time after each task, revisit it in an idle moment and update the to-do list.



          An alternative would be just to slack off around meeting time and search the web or play with your phone or chat with neighbors till you're called. If you're not going to get any work done, you may as well not try.






          share|improve this answer




















          • 6





            One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

            – DaveG
            10 hours ago











          • I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

            – Alex M
            3 hours ago


















          5
















          Don't pay attention on all this meetings times at all. Since even management is so unprofessional, that they don't care, why you should? Concentrate on your stuff and only when meeting actually comes, you come in.






          share|improve this answer


































            3

















            ... what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How [can I] continue working normally?




            As your manager said, "Don't think about it, just continue working."




            Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?




            Yes.

            1. Know by experience that this type of meeting is fluid, rather than in stone.

            2. Know that it has nothing to do with you.

            3. Make notes (questions/comments/suggestions) in your phone.

            4. You don't have to worry about forgetting them, because... #3

            5. There is no pressure because nothing you say (no question or comment) will change the outcome, because...

            6. The outcome is already decided. The big boss is just announcing it.



            Nothing from you should indicate that "the big boss" is wasting your time.

            Those are what I'd call "career limiting".



            You've already mentioned this to your boss, which is fine.

            But, don't mention it to your boss again - once is more than enough, since they're already aware.




            One more piece of advice:

            If the big boss asks for questions/comments/suggestions, limit yourself to either zero or one.

            Especially zero (see #6 above).






            share|improve this answer
































              1
















              Just filter out the time from the message.



              In fact you might as well filter out the complete message, since in your workplace "we have a meeting at 14:30" seems to mean "we may or may not have a meeting sometime today/this week/next year."



              When you do finally get called to the meeting, don't feel bad about taking as long as you need to "close down" what you are doing to a state you can recover from.



              If the meeting organizer complains that you are "late" for a meeting which actually started an hour late, simply reply "sorry, but your inability to organize your work schedule is not my problem."



              Final piece of advice: never set an alarm to remind you about things that might not happen on time.






              share|improve this answer
































                0
















                It may or may not be applicable in this particular case, but I've found it a lot less stressful to work for an indeterminate time if I know I'll be able to take a minute or so to ‘park’ the work before going off to something else.



                Especially if it's a task that involves a lot of thought, or juggling a lot of mental state, knowing I can spend a minute ‘dumping’ that to a piece of paper or text file lets me be much more productive and relaxed.



                Of course, that's not always possible.  But in my experience, if a meeting is at an indeterminate time or has been delayed, people are generally more tolerant and don't expect you to drop everything instantly.



                (Conversely, one of the most frustrating jobs I had was one where interruptions averaged every 10 minutes, and people expected me to drop everything and instantly be not only listening to them, but also remembering exactly what they were talking about…  This cartoon explains better than I can just how frustrating that can be!)






                share|improve this answer
































                  0
















                  If I was told there was a meeting about to start shortly, then I would probably do some small tasks until the time the meeting is supposed to start. If there is still no meeting going on, then I would continue with small tasks until ten minutes pass by. Once it is ten minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, I would probably start working on major task items until I am preempted by the team lead, manager, co-worker, etc. that the meeting is actually about to begin.






                  share|improve this answer








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                  Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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                    6 Answers
                    6






                    active

                    oldest

                    votes








                    6 Answers
                    6






                    active

                    oldest

                    votes









                    active

                    oldest

                    votes






                    active

                    oldest

                    votes









                    18
















                    I'm assuming that advising you "just go on working" won't have much effect. The best compromise might be to try and find short, low-attention jobs that you can do around meeting time so you can instantly break off when you're called to the meeting and it won't matter if your mind isn't totally on the job.



                    These might be mundane administrative or housekeeping tasks (anything from cleaning your desk to sorting your email inbox or deleting unused files and documents), or other one-off tasks (conducting online research, interactions with nearby people, putting things in nearby places). If you can't easily think of these jobs, you could make a to-do list of such tasks in whatever format is quickest and easiest to access, and either tick them off as you do them, or if you don't have time after each task, revisit it in an idle moment and update the to-do list.



                    An alternative would be just to slack off around meeting time and search the web or play with your phone or chat with neighbors till you're called. If you're not going to get any work done, you may as well not try.






                    share|improve this answer




















                    • 6





                      One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                      – DaveG
                      10 hours ago











                    • I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                      – Alex M
                      3 hours ago















                    18
















                    I'm assuming that advising you "just go on working" won't have much effect. The best compromise might be to try and find short, low-attention jobs that you can do around meeting time so you can instantly break off when you're called to the meeting and it won't matter if your mind isn't totally on the job.



                    These might be mundane administrative or housekeeping tasks (anything from cleaning your desk to sorting your email inbox or deleting unused files and documents), or other one-off tasks (conducting online research, interactions with nearby people, putting things in nearby places). If you can't easily think of these jobs, you could make a to-do list of such tasks in whatever format is quickest and easiest to access, and either tick them off as you do them, or if you don't have time after each task, revisit it in an idle moment and update the to-do list.



                    An alternative would be just to slack off around meeting time and search the web or play with your phone or chat with neighbors till you're called. If you're not going to get any work done, you may as well not try.






                    share|improve this answer




















                    • 6





                      One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                      – DaveG
                      10 hours ago











                    • I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                      – Alex M
                      3 hours ago













                    18














                    18










                    18









                    I'm assuming that advising you "just go on working" won't have much effect. The best compromise might be to try and find short, low-attention jobs that you can do around meeting time so you can instantly break off when you're called to the meeting and it won't matter if your mind isn't totally on the job.



                    These might be mundane administrative or housekeeping tasks (anything from cleaning your desk to sorting your email inbox or deleting unused files and documents), or other one-off tasks (conducting online research, interactions with nearby people, putting things in nearby places). If you can't easily think of these jobs, you could make a to-do list of such tasks in whatever format is quickest and easiest to access, and either tick them off as you do them, or if you don't have time after each task, revisit it in an idle moment and update the to-do list.



                    An alternative would be just to slack off around meeting time and search the web or play with your phone or chat with neighbors till you're called. If you're not going to get any work done, you may as well not try.






                    share|improve this answer













                    I'm assuming that advising you "just go on working" won't have much effect. The best compromise might be to try and find short, low-attention jobs that you can do around meeting time so you can instantly break off when you're called to the meeting and it won't matter if your mind isn't totally on the job.



                    These might be mundane administrative or housekeeping tasks (anything from cleaning your desk to sorting your email inbox or deleting unused files and documents), or other one-off tasks (conducting online research, interactions with nearby people, putting things in nearby places). If you can't easily think of these jobs, you could make a to-do list of such tasks in whatever format is quickest and easiest to access, and either tick them off as you do them, or if you don't have time after each task, revisit it in an idle moment and update the to-do list.



                    An alternative would be just to slack off around meeting time and search the web or play with your phone or chat with neighbors till you're called. If you're not going to get any work done, you may as well not try.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 10 hours ago









                    Stuart FStuart F

                    5871 silver badge7 bronze badges




                    5871 silver badge7 bronze badges










                    • 6





                      One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                      – DaveG
                      10 hours ago











                    • I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                      – Alex M
                      3 hours ago












                    • 6





                      One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                      – DaveG
                      10 hours ago











                    • I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                      – Alex M
                      3 hours ago







                    6




                    6





                    One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                    – DaveG
                    10 hours ago





                    One additional suggestion: if what the OP is concerned about is what he's going to say in the meeting about his projects, spend some time writing and organizing a summary of his projects. If it's down on a piece of paper, ready to go, that may open up some mental space for working on other things. Ideally boiled down to a short set of notes so he's not reading from it, just using it as a reminder as he talks.

                    – DaveG
                    10 hours ago













                    I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                    – Alex M
                    3 hours ago





                    I once had a boss who was habitually late to meetings he had organized, and this is what I would do too (it was somewhat of a programming role so I couldn't exactly "work normally" for an unknown, possibly brief period of time whether I had wanted to or not). Basically cleaned my desk, tidied my work area, organize my files, empty Downloads folders, etc.

                    – Alex M
                    3 hours ago













                    5
















                    Don't pay attention on all this meetings times at all. Since even management is so unprofessional, that they don't care, why you should? Concentrate on your stuff and only when meeting actually comes, you come in.






                    share|improve this answer































                      5
















                      Don't pay attention on all this meetings times at all. Since even management is so unprofessional, that they don't care, why you should? Concentrate on your stuff and only when meeting actually comes, you come in.






                      share|improve this answer





























                        5














                        5










                        5









                        Don't pay attention on all this meetings times at all. Since even management is so unprofessional, that they don't care, why you should? Concentrate on your stuff and only when meeting actually comes, you come in.






                        share|improve this answer















                        Don't pay attention on all this meetings times at all. Since even management is so unprofessional, that they don't care, why you should? Concentrate on your stuff and only when meeting actually comes, you come in.







                        share|improve this answer














                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer








                        edited 12 hours ago









                        Mister Positive

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                        76k44 gold badges245 silver badges294 bronze badges










                        answered 12 hours ago









                        Andrei SuvorkovAndrei Suvorkov

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                        2856 bronze badges
























                            3

















                            ... what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How [can I] continue working normally?




                            As your manager said, "Don't think about it, just continue working."




                            Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?




                            Yes.

                            1. Know by experience that this type of meeting is fluid, rather than in stone.

                            2. Know that it has nothing to do with you.

                            3. Make notes (questions/comments/suggestions) in your phone.

                            4. You don't have to worry about forgetting them, because... #3

                            5. There is no pressure because nothing you say (no question or comment) will change the outcome, because...

                            6. The outcome is already decided. The big boss is just announcing it.



                            Nothing from you should indicate that "the big boss" is wasting your time.

                            Those are what I'd call "career limiting".



                            You've already mentioned this to your boss, which is fine.

                            But, don't mention it to your boss again - once is more than enough, since they're already aware.




                            One more piece of advice:

                            If the big boss asks for questions/comments/suggestions, limit yourself to either zero or one.

                            Especially zero (see #6 above).






                            share|improve this answer





























                              3

















                              ... what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How [can I] continue working normally?




                              As your manager said, "Don't think about it, just continue working."




                              Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?




                              Yes.

                              1. Know by experience that this type of meeting is fluid, rather than in stone.

                              2. Know that it has nothing to do with you.

                              3. Make notes (questions/comments/suggestions) in your phone.

                              4. You don't have to worry about forgetting them, because... #3

                              5. There is no pressure because nothing you say (no question or comment) will change the outcome, because...

                              6. The outcome is already decided. The big boss is just announcing it.



                              Nothing from you should indicate that "the big boss" is wasting your time.

                              Those are what I'd call "career limiting".



                              You've already mentioned this to your boss, which is fine.

                              But, don't mention it to your boss again - once is more than enough, since they're already aware.




                              One more piece of advice:

                              If the big boss asks for questions/comments/suggestions, limit yourself to either zero or one.

                              Especially zero (see #6 above).






                              share|improve this answer



























                                3














                                3










                                3










                                ... what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How [can I] continue working normally?




                                As your manager said, "Don't think about it, just continue working."




                                Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?




                                Yes.

                                1. Know by experience that this type of meeting is fluid, rather than in stone.

                                2. Know that it has nothing to do with you.

                                3. Make notes (questions/comments/suggestions) in your phone.

                                4. You don't have to worry about forgetting them, because... #3

                                5. There is no pressure because nothing you say (no question or comment) will change the outcome, because...

                                6. The outcome is already decided. The big boss is just announcing it.



                                Nothing from you should indicate that "the big boss" is wasting your time.

                                Those are what I'd call "career limiting".



                                You've already mentioned this to your boss, which is fine.

                                But, don't mention it to your boss again - once is more than enough, since they're already aware.




                                One more piece of advice:

                                If the big boss asks for questions/comments/suggestions, limit yourself to either zero or one.

                                Especially zero (see #6 above).






                                share|improve this answer














                                ... what can I do from my side to cope with this problem. How [can I] continue working normally?




                                As your manager said, "Don't think about it, just continue working."




                                Are there any tricks to concentrate and ignore this standby situation?




                                Yes.

                                1. Know by experience that this type of meeting is fluid, rather than in stone.

                                2. Know that it has nothing to do with you.

                                3. Make notes (questions/comments/suggestions) in your phone.

                                4. You don't have to worry about forgetting them, because... #3

                                5. There is no pressure because nothing you say (no question or comment) will change the outcome, because...

                                6. The outcome is already decided. The big boss is just announcing it.



                                Nothing from you should indicate that "the big boss" is wasting your time.

                                Those are what I'd call "career limiting".



                                You've already mentioned this to your boss, which is fine.

                                But, don't mention it to your boss again - once is more than enough, since they're already aware.




                                One more piece of advice:

                                If the big boss asks for questions/comments/suggestions, limit yourself to either zero or one.

                                Especially zero (see #6 above).







                                share|improve this answer












                                share|improve this answer



                                share|improve this answer










                                answered 8 hours ago









                                J. Chris ComptonJ. Chris Compton

                                8,2141 gold badge20 silver badges42 bronze badges




                                8,2141 gold badge20 silver badges42 bronze badges
























                                    1
















                                    Just filter out the time from the message.



                                    In fact you might as well filter out the complete message, since in your workplace "we have a meeting at 14:30" seems to mean "we may or may not have a meeting sometime today/this week/next year."



                                    When you do finally get called to the meeting, don't feel bad about taking as long as you need to "close down" what you are doing to a state you can recover from.



                                    If the meeting organizer complains that you are "late" for a meeting which actually started an hour late, simply reply "sorry, but your inability to organize your work schedule is not my problem."



                                    Final piece of advice: never set an alarm to remind you about things that might not happen on time.






                                    share|improve this answer





























                                      1
















                                      Just filter out the time from the message.



                                      In fact you might as well filter out the complete message, since in your workplace "we have a meeting at 14:30" seems to mean "we may or may not have a meeting sometime today/this week/next year."



                                      When you do finally get called to the meeting, don't feel bad about taking as long as you need to "close down" what you are doing to a state you can recover from.



                                      If the meeting organizer complains that you are "late" for a meeting which actually started an hour late, simply reply "sorry, but your inability to organize your work schedule is not my problem."



                                      Final piece of advice: never set an alarm to remind you about things that might not happen on time.






                                      share|improve this answer



























                                        1














                                        1










                                        1









                                        Just filter out the time from the message.



                                        In fact you might as well filter out the complete message, since in your workplace "we have a meeting at 14:30" seems to mean "we may or may not have a meeting sometime today/this week/next year."



                                        When you do finally get called to the meeting, don't feel bad about taking as long as you need to "close down" what you are doing to a state you can recover from.



                                        If the meeting organizer complains that you are "late" for a meeting which actually started an hour late, simply reply "sorry, but your inability to organize your work schedule is not my problem."



                                        Final piece of advice: never set an alarm to remind you about things that might not happen on time.






                                        share|improve this answer













                                        Just filter out the time from the message.



                                        In fact you might as well filter out the complete message, since in your workplace "we have a meeting at 14:30" seems to mean "we may or may not have a meeting sometime today/this week/next year."



                                        When you do finally get called to the meeting, don't feel bad about taking as long as you need to "close down" what you are doing to a state you can recover from.



                                        If the meeting organizer complains that you are "late" for a meeting which actually started an hour late, simply reply "sorry, but your inability to organize your work schedule is not my problem."



                                        Final piece of advice: never set an alarm to remind you about things that might not happen on time.







                                        share|improve this answer












                                        share|improve this answer



                                        share|improve this answer










                                        answered 3 hours ago









                                        alephzeroalephzero

                                        4,0801 gold badge11 silver badges20 bronze badges




                                        4,0801 gold badge11 silver badges20 bronze badges
























                                            0
















                                            It may or may not be applicable in this particular case, but I've found it a lot less stressful to work for an indeterminate time if I know I'll be able to take a minute or so to ‘park’ the work before going off to something else.



                                            Especially if it's a task that involves a lot of thought, or juggling a lot of mental state, knowing I can spend a minute ‘dumping’ that to a piece of paper or text file lets me be much more productive and relaxed.



                                            Of course, that's not always possible.  But in my experience, if a meeting is at an indeterminate time or has been delayed, people are generally more tolerant and don't expect you to drop everything instantly.



                                            (Conversely, one of the most frustrating jobs I had was one where interruptions averaged every 10 minutes, and people expected me to drop everything and instantly be not only listening to them, but also remembering exactly what they were talking about…  This cartoon explains better than I can just how frustrating that can be!)






                                            share|improve this answer





























                                              0
















                                              It may or may not be applicable in this particular case, but I've found it a lot less stressful to work for an indeterminate time if I know I'll be able to take a minute or so to ‘park’ the work before going off to something else.



                                              Especially if it's a task that involves a lot of thought, or juggling a lot of mental state, knowing I can spend a minute ‘dumping’ that to a piece of paper or text file lets me be much more productive and relaxed.



                                              Of course, that's not always possible.  But in my experience, if a meeting is at an indeterminate time or has been delayed, people are generally more tolerant and don't expect you to drop everything instantly.



                                              (Conversely, one of the most frustrating jobs I had was one where interruptions averaged every 10 minutes, and people expected me to drop everything and instantly be not only listening to them, but also remembering exactly what they were talking about…  This cartoon explains better than I can just how frustrating that can be!)






                                              share|improve this answer



























                                                0














                                                0










                                                0









                                                It may or may not be applicable in this particular case, but I've found it a lot less stressful to work for an indeterminate time if I know I'll be able to take a minute or so to ‘park’ the work before going off to something else.



                                                Especially if it's a task that involves a lot of thought, or juggling a lot of mental state, knowing I can spend a minute ‘dumping’ that to a piece of paper or text file lets me be much more productive and relaxed.



                                                Of course, that's not always possible.  But in my experience, if a meeting is at an indeterminate time or has been delayed, people are generally more tolerant and don't expect you to drop everything instantly.



                                                (Conversely, one of the most frustrating jobs I had was one where interruptions averaged every 10 minutes, and people expected me to drop everything and instantly be not only listening to them, but also remembering exactly what they were talking about…  This cartoon explains better than I can just how frustrating that can be!)






                                                share|improve this answer













                                                It may or may not be applicable in this particular case, but I've found it a lot less stressful to work for an indeterminate time if I know I'll be able to take a minute or so to ‘park’ the work before going off to something else.



                                                Especially if it's a task that involves a lot of thought, or juggling a lot of mental state, knowing I can spend a minute ‘dumping’ that to a piece of paper or text file lets me be much more productive and relaxed.



                                                Of course, that's not always possible.  But in my experience, if a meeting is at an indeterminate time or has been delayed, people are generally more tolerant and don't expect you to drop everything instantly.



                                                (Conversely, one of the most frustrating jobs I had was one where interruptions averaged every 10 minutes, and people expected me to drop everything and instantly be not only listening to them, but also remembering exactly what they were talking about…  This cartoon explains better than I can just how frustrating that can be!)







                                                share|improve this answer












                                                share|improve this answer



                                                share|improve this answer










                                                answered 4 hours ago









                                                giddsgidds

                                                1,0271 silver badge8 bronze badges




                                                1,0271 silver badge8 bronze badges
























                                                    0
















                                                    If I was told there was a meeting about to start shortly, then I would probably do some small tasks until the time the meeting is supposed to start. If there is still no meeting going on, then I would continue with small tasks until ten minutes pass by. Once it is ten minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, I would probably start working on major task items until I am preempted by the team lead, manager, co-worker, etc. that the meeting is actually about to begin.






                                                    share|improve this answer








                                                    New contributor



                                                    Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                    Check out our Code of Conduct.

























                                                      0
















                                                      If I was told there was a meeting about to start shortly, then I would probably do some small tasks until the time the meeting is supposed to start. If there is still no meeting going on, then I would continue with small tasks until ten minutes pass by. Once it is ten minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, I would probably start working on major task items until I am preempted by the team lead, manager, co-worker, etc. that the meeting is actually about to begin.






                                                      share|improve this answer








                                                      New contributor



                                                      Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                      Check out our Code of Conduct.























                                                        0














                                                        0










                                                        0









                                                        If I was told there was a meeting about to start shortly, then I would probably do some small tasks until the time the meeting is supposed to start. If there is still no meeting going on, then I would continue with small tasks until ten minutes pass by. Once it is ten minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, I would probably start working on major task items until I am preempted by the team lead, manager, co-worker, etc. that the meeting is actually about to begin.






                                                        share|improve this answer








                                                        New contributor



                                                        Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                        Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                                        If I was told there was a meeting about to start shortly, then I would probably do some small tasks until the time the meeting is supposed to start. If there is still no meeting going on, then I would continue with small tasks until ten minutes pass by. Once it is ten minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, I would probably start working on major task items until I am preempted by the team lead, manager, co-worker, etc. that the meeting is actually about to begin.







                                                        share|improve this answer








                                                        New contributor



                                                        Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                        Check out our Code of Conduct.








                                                        share|improve this answer



                                                        share|improve this answer






                                                        New contributor



                                                        Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                        Check out our Code of Conduct.








                                                        answered 1 hour ago









                                                        Gary DrocellaGary Drocella

                                                        43 bronze badges




                                                        43 bronze badges




                                                        New contributor



                                                        Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                        Check out our Code of Conduct.




                                                        New contributor




                                                        Gary Drocella is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                                        Check out our Code of Conduct.

































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