Constant Interruptions During Lunch Break

Question

At my job if we remain in our office during lunch we are expected to still be available for work related questions/calls/etc... I find this to be very annoying as my lunch break is a time that I use to recharge for the second half of the day. I wouldn't mind it if I weren't interrupted multiple times every day, it just spoils the time to recharge. Many people take their lunch breaks at different times since we have a flexible start and end time during the day, so some people work while others are at lunch.

My current strategy is to leave the office during my break to eat lunch at a park right down the street, go on a walk, or to do some shopping or minor errands in the area if possible. This works fine for now, I am enjoying getting outside during lunch. Come fall and winter though I will need to remain inside and we don't have a designated break area for my department, everyone just uses their office.

Anybody have suggestions for creative solutions for this problem? I can't always get out of my office for lunch, but I want to preserve my break if possible. It may sound selfish but it helps me to stay focused during the day if I get an uninterrupted break in the middle to relax.

To clarify, I do not have to actually do any work during lunch, unless something urgently needs done that minute (rare) but I just want to stop the interruptions.

EDIT: Am I being reasonable to not want any interruptions during lunch? Or should I just be more tolerant of the fact that this will probably be an ongoing battle at my particular job?

Answer 1

I certainly know how you feel... And I think interruptions during a break should be avoided to give you the chance to recharge and clear your head. After all, that is the purpose of a break.

I definitely advise you to speak with your colleagues (and maybe include your manager) and agree on some common rules. Some rules that worked well for me in the past are:

• Whoever is having a break should not take phone calls. Either someone else takes the call and tells the caller to try again later or the call is not accepted at all.
• Whoever is having a break has the right to tell colleagues to come back later. Estimate a time when your break ends so people don't come back in 5 minutes or have to wait longer than necessary.
• You could agree on some sign or item that acts as a "do not disturb" sign. That way colleagues are aware of your taking a break before bothering you with their problem. It could be dishes and cutlery on your desk or a literally "do not disturb" sign hung on the back of your monitor / on your desk.
• When all colleagues around are currently having a break but a problem cannot wait, the one who already finished eating should try to take care of it until everyone else finished eating. This could mean a "quick and dirty" temporary solution or getting rid of pestering customers.
• If you have to interrupt your break, you should be justified to continue it afterwards in order to rest for the amount of time you are entitled to.

Obviously you have to ask your colleagues and manager whether these rules are acceptable or if they have different ideas. But I think it's very reasonable to not want lunch break interrupted and you should be able to explain your arguments easily.

Answer 2

1) Are you actually being interrupted or is this a hypothetical? If it's a hypothetical, then it should probably be left a hypothetical until it becomes not a hypothetical.

2) When faced with these interruptions, kindly ask the requester: "Can this wait until xxx time? I'm on lunch right now." where xxx time is when you're finished your lunch break. You said that you don't have to do work during lunch unless something "urgent" comes up, so simply clarifying with the requesting person if their request is urgent should solve most problems. Eventually people will get to know that during lunchtime, if they need to request something of you, don't bother unless it's urgent.

3) Since you have an office (you mentioned everyone at your company has an office), can you put a sign on your door that says "on lunch, do not disturb" or something like that?

Answer 3

office during lunch we are expected to still be available for work related questions/calls/etc

This means you don't have lunch break. You just can eat at workstation.
If you are expected to take "free" time and just be available for emergencies then you can have one way of reaching you with said emergency.

What you can do is to block your lunch time. If you use Outlook in company or any service that have calendar feature you can mark time you're "OUT". For anyone checking you will be seen as busy. No phone calls can be made (if you have services connected). usually also closed doors means "do not interrupt".
If the emergency arise people will interrupt you anyway.

You can also use "smiley face/sad face" tactics. So a smily face means your in and can be bothered. Sad face is when you're working on something (or just taking a nap) and shouldn't be interrupted.

Also you should take at Eisenhower box/matrix

It will help you, and your colleagues, decide what is really urgent and important and what can wait those 30 minutes.

Answer 4

If you stay in your office the office consensus is that you're expected to answer your phone. Pushing against that seems a bit like you're unmotivated/committed to your job and willing to create some drama rather than handle it like everyone else. Attempting to make your colleagues support what might be construed as personal laziness as others suggest isn't a great look.

My suggestion is find what is inexpensive, indoors and nearby to relax in. I used to go to the library every lunchtime because it cost nothing. But there should be plenty of options if you look for them, internet cafe's, gym etc,. or look for somewhere within the building, all you need is enough room to sit down undisturbed.

Or just unplug your phone.

Answer 5

One option might be to wear earphones/headphones.

That provides a clear visual signal that your attention is elsewhere, and a barrier that people need to cross (attracting your attention and asking you to remove your phones) before you can attend to spoken questions. Depending on your workplace culture, that may dissuade interruptions, or at least the less important ones.

Of course, that also means you can listen to music (or audiobooks, or soothing noises), which might help you recharge! But it can still deter interruptions even if they're not connected.

In some workplaces you might also be able to do this during the working day at times when you particularly need to concentrate on something.

Answer 6

You can use my current strategy for getting out / getting work done at times, by going to a nearby cafe, store, library, or other indoor space.

Not something that will be too much money if done regularly, of course. As an example, you can browse a store without buying anything.

Answer 7

For the winter, when you don't want to leave your office, just make a sign that says "Out on lunch" in big letters and put it up on your desk for exactly 30 minutes (or however long your lunch break is). Reading a book, or taking knitting needles out is also a good indication that you are on a break. Don't take phone calls, and if someone comes to your desk you wait a bit until you take the nose out of your book and point at the sign.

If there is something important and urgent, then you do it, and the 30 minutes timer for lunch break restarts.

Answer 8

Maybe you're not a good fit for this company. They obviously want people who are reliable and responsible for the work. Do the company a favor and move on, let someone who wants to do the job do it and find yourself another company where you can "recharge".