Comments on: Turn Up the TV, I'm Working

By: Mike Noirca

Mike Noirca — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 13:51:27 +0000

I work in a fulltime position but also put in about 20 hours a week as a freelance consultant. I do have a dedicated office at home but find myself on weekday evenings perched on the couch next to my wife with my laptop on my knees watching the tube with her while I work.

It”s amazing how fast the time goes when couch multitasking (work & tube). It’s also surprising how long it takes to get something done as opposed to working on projects in my dedicated office…. and I bill by the hour… oops……

By: junger

junger — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:49:04 +0000

I’m always watching video podcasts (or TV, if I can) while working. Yeah, it can be a little distracting, but I’m only “watching” in the passive sense — if something calls out to me, I’ll shift my attention.

By: orklando » Blog Archive » Turn Up the TV, I’m Working

orklando » Blog Archive » Turn Up the TV, I’m Working — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:31:28 +0000

[...] all the details here [...]

By: Chris Coyier

Chris Coyier — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:21:42 +0000

I can’t even watch TV unless I’m doing something else as well. Otherwise it’s just wasted time and I can’t have that. I actually have an EyeTV on my Mac so I can stay caught up on shows while working on whatever.

By: Naomi Dunford

Naomi Dunford — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:40:01 +0000

What a great title!

I use two tricks… One, when I’m on the computer, my back is to the television. We have a fancy-pants new widescreen, so it’s easy to get sucked in. Two, I only have the TV on when I’m working if sports are on. Dialog distracts me completely, whereas football or hockey makes for good background noise but doesn’t get me emotionally involved. :)

By: Eric

Eric — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:26:42 +0000

I am constantly doing 10 things at once. Writing a paper, post, coding a web page, watching TV, listening to the radio, etc. A lot of things get really monotonous once you get into the same routine. I mean, coding a style sheet from scratch is “fun” the first few times, but after about a 100 or so, I loose interest. By keeping my mind on two things, I can push the same code out at a steady pace, while not getting bored and walking away from it. Thus, instead of getting bored, walking away, and coming back 30 minutes later going, where the heck was I? I keep chugging along, until I run into a problem. Then I turn everything off and concentrate.

By: pat

pat — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 13:31:08 +0000

I’m suffering from the same kind of obsession :-)
I’m mixing work and personal life at home on the couch. Rarely watching TV but listening to (web-)radio, talking with my wife and…enjoying the warm pleasure of the fire in the fireplace.