In this insightful talk, Ståle Hansen from CloudWay shares his strategies for managing notifications and achieving a peaceful work-life balance. Discover how to take control of your digital life and ensure that your weekends are truly restful. Whether you’re heading to the cabin with your family or spending time with friends, Ståle’s tips will help you stay sane and focused.
1. Turn off unnecessary notifications: Learn how to disable notifications for chat messages and activity emails to reduce distractions.
2. Set quiet hours: Implement quiet hours in the Teams mobile app to avoid interruptions during personal time.
3. Communicate effectively: Inform your team about alternative ways to reach you, such as SMS or Signal, for urgent matters.
4. Use a smartwatch: Utilize a smartwatch to filter important notifications and stay connected without being overwhelmed.
5. Prioritize your mental health: Understand the importance of disconnecting from work and enjoying your weekends without the stress of constant notifications.
Full Transcript
Introduction – Living With Distraction (00:00 – 01:22)
I have a problem, and that is I’m easily distracted.
I want to talk about that, and how I’m coping with it, because I want to share some tips with you.
I have three examples that I want to share with you. Maybe you can pick up some of the tips. Some you might already have heard, because I’ve been talking about this for quite a while, but I also have some new tips that I really look forward to sharing.
I’ve been part of Teamsdagen for quite some time. This was last year. Being on stage was a fun and great moment, and I was happy to be part of the keynote. If you were there, I hope you had a good time.
Ville and I also had a session that’s recorded. We talked about Viva Insights, Copilot, and all that. I’ve also been part of virtual hybrid events. I’ve been talking about Skype for Business back in the days, when we talked about how to move toward modern meeting rooms.
It’s like a history lesson, really. Who talks about Skype for Business these days?
A Long History of Talking About Focus (01:22 – 02:59)
Well, it turns out there are still a few of them left.
But yeah, those were good times.
I think this was the first hybrid session where I talked about focusing. I’m actually going to show you this example again today. It’s still relevant. It’s still the same technique.
Things might change a lot, but also not, especially in terms of focus.
I also had the pleasure of attending the first Teamsdagen, where I talked about notifications about nothing.
Martin, you remember my sock puppet? Absolutely.
This was right after I had been doing some speaker coaching. What do you do after speaker coaching? Well, the best way to get remembered is to do something else on stage.
So that’s what I did.
It’s still a relevant session, and I have some elements from it today.
Meet the Dopamine Addict (02:59 – 04:46)
This is the same sock puppet I had that day. He has changed his name, though.
The name now is Dopamine.
Like literally. It’s like goldfish dopamine.
And that’s the struggle today.
Every time I struggle doing something, the dopamine addict creeps in.
This is me being the dopamine addict.
Like, “Hey, shouldn’t you be checking something?”
“And shouldn’t you check your phone?”
“Or shouldn’t you do something else rather than writing this hard email, Teams message, or report?”
Well, yeah, that happens a lot.
Every five minutes.
So while I’m struggling with that, and the dopamine addict visits me every five minutes, I need to use some very specific techniques to stay focused.
The Infinite Scroll Problem (04:46 – 07:25)
I want to show you part of my problem.
I recently fell into collecting. And I’m not just collecting by myself. I’m also sharing that on Instagram and other places.
I want to show you my routine, which I can go through every five minutes. Or I can continuously do it for 24 hours
This is my phone.
Let’s start with Instagram. This is my account. If you’re interested in books, you should check it out.
This book, for instance, is over 300 years old. I’m not going to dive into this, but I’m very passionate about it.
Some of these books are super influential in Scandinavian history, and in the history of Norway as well.
I’m not just collecting by myself, I also want to share it.
I found my tribe here. Sharing historical facts, beautiful pictures, and so on.
It’s quite addictive. I enjoy it, but it’s also very addictive.
Then I have a LEGO account as well.
I made a tensegrity stand-up Slave I, Boba Fett LEGO build. I have other LEGO pictures. I’m not that good at taking pictures, but it’s very fun.
I’m also a Star Wars fan. I love this lightsaber.
You’re starting to get the picture, right, of the problem I have?
Then of course, I need to be on the auction page. This is the Norwegian auction site for second-hand stuff. I need to pay attention. There might be something really cool there.
Then Etsy. On Etsy, I order custom-bound books. Right now, I’m working on a book about Diablo. Looking at the design and all that. I need to pay attention to that too.
Then eBay. Oh my God, I discovered eBay.
So much fun. It’s incredible what you can find there.
Like the first pressing of Star Wars from 1982. That’s on my list now. I need to pay attention if something shows up.
Then Facebook. Yes, I’m still on Facebook, people.
I post there as well. I’ve joined some groups. I’ve taken control of it, though, so I don’t get notified about everything.
I’m on YouTube as well. Yes.
I’m trying to reach 1,000 followers. For the past two years, I’ve been creating Diablo soundtrack mixes. These are views every 48 hours. About a thousand views. That’s cool.
This is my challenge.
And this is how I cope with it.
Phone Focus: Blocking the Noise(07:25 – 09:50)
On the iPhone, I use Focus. On Android, it’s called Digital Wellbeing.
I created a focus setting called Digital Wellbeing on the iPhone.
From there, I can block notifications. I am the only one deciding when I access those apps.
It’s on all the time.
Instead of going into hundreds of apps individually, I say, “I want notifications from these apps.”
Then I go into those apps and control them.
Don’t give me notifications about a notification for a notification I already saw.
Give me relevant notifications.
Instagram goes to sleep from 11:00 PM until morning. If a post goes viral, I won’t see it until the morning.
The most important reason I have this on all the time is badges.
There is no setting to turn off badges without using Focus.
Badges are super distracting.
And I have OCD, I guess, so I have to go in and remove them.
Now I won’t see them.
Out of sight, out of mind.
Sometimes notifications appear. I just clear them out. How easy is that?
The notifications I wanted to see, I already saw.
The rest is junk.
Blocking Apps When Willpower Isn’t Enough (09:50 – 11:00)
There’s one more app I use, and I paid for it.
It’s called Opal.
I needed it to block apps entirely.
Because every time dopamine hits, I pick up my phone and automatically go to Instagram, YouTube, whatever.
I don’t need that.
So I block them almost the entire day.
In the evening, during work hours, and on weekends between 3:00 and 8:00.
It’s not cheap, but I use it continuously, and it actually helps.
Even though I can break it at any time, I know there’s nothing important there.
That’s very important for me.
PC Focus: Windows Focus Sessions (11:16– 12:57)
Let’s look at the PC.
When I’m not in meetings, I need to follow my own agenda. That’s a problem.
So I use the alarm clock in Windows 11.
It’s beautiful. It works now. You should try it.
It has Focus Sessions.
You might recognize this. 20 minutes. 25 minutes. 15 minutes.
I use it mainly to jumpstart processes.
When the focus session starts, badges disappear. Pop-ups disappear. Notifications disappear.
You don’t need to see those while you’re focusing.
This is core.
Automating Focus With To Do, Teams, and Music (12:57 – 14:21)
I add a task in To Do called “20 minutes.”
That triggers a Power Automate flow.
It looks at my calendar and books a focus session.
In Teams, it sets me to Do Not Disturb, so my colleagues see that I’m focusing.
It uses focus time from Viva Insights.
It also opens Spotify.
I have a playlist for this. I need to prime myself.
Music without lyrics. The same music every time.
Sometimes I mix it up, but not too much.
It spirals me into focus.
People have found it useful.
Pomodoro, Flow State, and Resisting Dopamine (14:21 – 15:43)
This is basically the Pomodoro technique.
Set a time. Focus on one thing.
Every time dopamine hits and tells you to go to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit, or the news, don’t.
You forgot to grab a coffee. No.
It’s only five minutes left. You can do this.
The goal is to reach flow state.
Flow state takes between 10 and 21 minutes.
I think I can reach it in seven minutes.
But if dopamine hits every minute, I’ll never get there.
Measuring Focus With Viva Insights (15:43 – 17:00)
You can measure this.
Quiet time. Focus time.
I use the focus plan in Viva Insights.
At an organizational level, we can look at uninterrupted focus hours.
We can ask, how damaged are our employees?
How addicted are they to TikTok?
Should we help people learn how to focus?
This will only get harder.
You can also use Power BI to create more granular reports.
It helps you understand organizational culture.
Notifications Are the Real Problem (17:31 – 20:40)
Notifications behave like social media.
Apps notify you when you haven’t been there.
Teams works the same way.
You can get five notifications for the same thing. A pop-up, a sound, an email, an unread badge, and an unread chat.
That’s the struggle.
This is the number one skill for the 2020s.
Ask yourself three questions.
Why did I get this?
Was it useful?
How can I get it at the right time, or disable it?
People send Teams messages at 3:00 AM.
What the beep is wrong with you?
But if you get distracted at 3:00 AM, that’s your fault.
You need to take control.
You are not the center of the universe.
People don’t know if you’re asleep, working, or on vacation.
Configuring Teams and Protecting Your Time (20:40 – 24:53)
In Teams, configure notifications manually.
When Windows is in Do Not Disturb, mute everything except calls and meetings.
Sound on chat messages? Are you crazy?
Activity emails? We live in Teams now.
Turn off chat notifications.
They have their own feed.
Replies to channel posts, show in activity, not pop-ups.
Meetings, yes. Notify me if I’m late.
Picture this. It’s Friday.
You’re done with work.
At 9:00 PM, you open your phone.
21 emails. 40 Teams messages.
Fight or flight mode.
You open Teams, and it says, “Can you do this on Monday?”
And now you’re stressed for nothing.
So use Quiet Time in the Teams mobile app.
From 5:00 PM to 9:00 AM.
I also use quiet days.
Every day is a quiet day for me now.
If something is urgent, people know how to reach me.
SMS or Signal.
Those go straight to my wrist.
Measuring After-Hours Work and Closing (24:53 – End)
We can measure after-hours work in Viva Insights.
Zero to three hours per week is what we want.
Anything above that needs attention.
I’m going to release you back to your dopamine rush now.
Check your emails. Check Teams.
But hopefully, I’ve shown you a few techniques to stay sane.
I’m trying.
I’m not sure I’m succeeding.
You tell me.
Thank you.