This post first appeared in Forbes on June 25, 2025 and was written by Prof. Dr. Lauren Howe, one of our research collaborators.
Work today is full of interruptions. The constant influx of emails, notifications, and questions from co-workers can slow individual progress and create a sense of frustration. After all, most people want to feel productive and work toward crossing off important goals from their to-do list.
But productivity is more than a one-person show: it’s a team effort. Recognizing this can help managers to make their teams more productive.
1. Signal Team Member Availability
One solution is to let team members know when they should avoid interrupting people, so that focus time is protected. To accomplish this, a team of researchers at the University of Zurich developed the “FlowLight,” a tool that detects when a worker is focused and signals availability for interactions to others. First, the tool measures whether workers are in a state of “flow,” detecting this through computer activity like keyboard and mouse usage. Then, the tool signals via a lightbulb mounted nearby whether now is a good time for interruptions. Like a traffic light, red signals that a person should not be interrupted as they’re in the midst of deep work, while green means go ahead.
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