Our manager was recently talking about the importance of everyone being together in the office, for maximum real-time collaboration. He would be delighted to h

Our manager was recently talking about the importance of everyone being together in the office, for maximum real-time collaboration. He would be delighted to hear about OPs Slack situation. "Look at all the collaboration!" Anyway, similar in-person problems can also make it hard to focus. Even if you are not part of a conversation, you hear it nearby and tune in. (Yes, headphones can help.) At least Slack is easier to mute.