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It looks ridiculous, but this could be of real use to me. Three things in an open office distract me: conversations, glare, and motion in my peripheral vision.

It looks ridiculous, but this could be of real use to me. Three things in an open office distract me: conversations, glare, and motion in my peripheral vision. My inability to ignore things other people seem to be able to ignore really disrupts my ability to focus - to the point where literal blinders are at least worth serious considerations.

anigbrowl 7y ago
The point isn't that these don't serve a purpose - of course they do. The point is that you're being encouraged to spend money on solving a problem that your employers inflicted upon you.
- ALittleLight 7y ago
  It's really a problem my employer is inflicting on themselves. I've had my own office and worked in an open space. I feel I'm vastly more productive behind a closed door. At the end of the day, my employer pays full price for my productivity and I deliver the fraction of it I can come up with in an open office. I also make small talk with coworkers and dial in to meetings from my desk and complain about the open office at every opportunity.
  - deathanatos 7y ago
    The productivity hit, sure. But[1], > A systematic survey of research upon the effects of open-plan offices found frequent negative effects in some traditional workplaces: high levels of noise, stress, conflict, high blood pressure and a high staff turnover. The blood pressure and stress likely translate into the non-work portions of your life. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_plan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_plan
    - yellowapple 7y ago
      You're assuming that employers actually care about your well-being :)
      - deathanatos 7y ago
        They don't have to care about their workers in this case. Studies also say that such work environments are also hugely detrimental to both employee retention and productivity, and health. Corporations have incredibly difficultly a. not following short term fads (Facebook did this so it must be good) and b. not trading long-term losses (productivity, sickness, retention) for short-term gains (less real-estate == cheaper) that get outweighed by those losses.
  - anigbrowl 7y ago
    my employer pays full price for my productivity This implies your employer negotiated a price for what you imagined was the limit of your productivity, and is getting somewhat less than that. But your employer knew all about working conditions and their impact on productivity when they hired you. Have you considered the possibility that their offer was based on a much lower expectation of what you would deliver than your imagination of what you could deliver?
afarrell 7y ago
If it would help you, then you should spend the £25 on it. https://www.intershoot.co.uk/acatalog/ahg-Anschutz-Hat-325C-294.html https://www.intershoot.co.uk/acatalog/ahg-Anschutz-Hat-325C-...
ncr100 7y ago
Sony xm3 headphones, plus rotate your multiple monitors to block most peripheral vision. Bliss will return. You're a species evolved to be concerned about its environment. "Inability" is the wrong word, own your hyperattention, instead.

anigbrowl 7y ago

The point isn't that these don't serve a purpose - of course they do. The point is that you're being encouraged to spend money on solving a problem that your employers inflicted upon you.

ALittleLight 7y ago
It's really a problem my employer is inflicting on themselves. I've had my own office and worked in an open space. I feel I'm vastly more productive behind a closed door. At the end of the day, my employer pays full price for my productivity and I deliver the fraction of it I can come up with in an open office. I also make small talk with coworkers and dial in to meetings from my desk and complain about the open office at every opportunity.
- deathanatos 7y ago
  The productivity hit, sure. But[1], > A systematic survey of research upon the effects of open-plan offices found frequent negative effects in some traditional workplaces: high levels of noise, stress, conflict, high blood pressure and a high staff turnover. The blood pressure and stress likely translate into the non-work portions of your life. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_plan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_plan
  - yellowapple 7y ago
    You're assuming that employers actually care about your well-being :)
    - deathanatos 7y ago
      They don't have to care about their workers in this case. Studies also say that such work environments are also hugely detrimental to both employee retention and productivity, and health. Corporations have incredibly difficultly a. not following short term fads (Facebook did this so it must be good) and b. not trading long-term losses (productivity, sickness, retention) for short-term gains (less real-estate == cheaper) that get outweighed by those losses.
- anigbrowl 7y ago
  my employer pays full price for my productivity This implies your employer negotiated a price for what you imagined was the limit of your productivity, and is getting somewhat less than that. But your employer knew all about working conditions and their impact on productivity when they hired you. Have you considered the possibility that their offer was based on a much lower expectation of what you would deliver than your imagination of what you could deliver?

afarrell 7y ago

If it would help you, then you should spend the £25 on it. https://www.intershoot.co.uk/acatalog/ahg-Anschutz-Hat-325C-294.html https://www.intershoot.co.uk/acatalog/ahg-Anschutz-Hat-325C-...

ncr100 7y ago

Sony xm3 headphones, plus rotate your multiple monitors to block most peripheral vision. Bliss will return. You're a species evolved to be concerned about its environment. "Inability" is the wrong word, own your hyperattention, instead.