I work in an office with an open floor plan and I am distracted by noise around me. I am much less productive and less comfortable when people talk around me.
I'll outline the problem and then what I've tried so far.
Here are the details of the problem:
1- My productivity falls dramatically when there is noise around me.
2- I prefer to work with my ergonomic equipment, preferably at a desk.
3- My office has noise and my desk neighbor talks regularly.
Here is what I've tried as solutions:
1- I purchased custom ear plugs, noise canceling headphones and construction ear muffs.
2- I tried to work in a part of the office that is meant to be quiet.
3- I tried to get to work early before other people and stay later after other people.
I've tried #1 and the noise canceling is effective for loud sounds, but it does very little to prevent against conversations. I gave #2 a shot and it's better than working in a noisy environment, but I feel much more comfortable with my desk and gear. I tried #3 and that's my best solution, but it feels tiring and unsustainable.
I'm considering two other options. I work with engineers who are much more quiet and I could ask facilities to place a hotel desk in their area. I could also ask my desk neighbor to speak more quietly.
Please help me come up with a better solution.
Edit: It is not a duplicate of this question since it focuses on the problem of noise in an open office instead of the more general social dynamics in an open office where noise is a subset.