Most of us keep an open door for the best reasons—we want to be present, responsive, and human. Still, there’s a quiet cost to being “always on.” When access has no boundaries, deep thinking gets spread thin, and the quality of our decisions can drift.
The Math of Interruptions
Research commonly cites that it can take about 20–25 minutes to regain full focus after an interruption. If a manager experiences even 5–6 true focus breaks a day, that adds up to roughly 10–12 hours a week of fragmented attention. Even if you cut that estimate in half, it’s still a significant portion of your leadership bandwidth—time that should be reserved for strategy, coaching, and thoughtful decisions.
This isn’t about being less caring. It’s about being intentionally accessible so your best thinking—and your team’s—can breathe.
Models for Availability
1) Create access windows
Think of these as predictable “open door” times that make it easier for people to get what they need—without sacrificing deep work.
Office hours: 2–3 recurring blocks each week (e.g., Tue/Thu 1–2 PM) to set healthy boundaries. You’re fully available to address questions or decision making opportunities but keep other dialogue in this time.
Focus blocks: 90–120 minutes, 1–2× daily. Treat these like meetings with your most important stakeholder: Your work. Your work and time is important too.all of the starts and stops can add up.
Using your favorite calendar, adding an appointment or AutoReply helps set some rigid boundaries. A note can look like:
Focus Time
I’m heads-down on [priority] so I can serve you well. If something is truly time-sensitive (safety, client outage, revenue at risk today), please call. Otherwise, I’ll respond after this block or during Office Hours (Tue/Thu 1–2 PM).
2) Agree on “DM vs email vs meet”
Setting a clear communication guide helps everyone stay focused, reduce stress, and avoid message overload. Here’s a quick guide you can pin in Teams:
DM/Chat/TXT: For short messages (under 3 sentences) that need a same-day reply or help remove a blocker.
Email: For non-urgent topics or when more context is needed. Expect a response within 24–48 hours. Add helpful tags like:[Decision] – Needs a choice or approval. [FYI] – For awareness only; no action needed.[Blocker] – Something is preventing progress and needs attention.
Meeting: Best for conversations that need many voices or more than 10 minutes of back-and-forth. Share a short summary or question to start thinking about
Pin-able message: Add this your status or signature
Reaching me
DM/TXT for short, same-day questions.
Email for context or non-urgent topics (24–48 hr. reply).
Meeting if we need live discussion—please include a brief + options.
Office Hours: Tue/Thu 1–2 PM for anything that benefits from real-time.
3) Practice compassionate boundaries
Boundaries aren’t walls; they’re pathways. A little bit of gentle scripting helps everyone know what to expect.
When someone stops by during focus time:
“I want to give this the attention it deserves. Could you drop the gist in an email or hold it for office hours? I’ll circle back as soon as this block ends.”
“Hey! I’m in a focus block right now, but I really want to give this my full attention. Can we chat at [specific time] instead?”
“I’ve got a focus window until [time], but I’ll come find you right after.”
“I’m wrapping up something that needs my full focus right now — could you drop me a quick note or come back around [time]? I’ll make sure we connect then.”
Team reset (try this at your next Huddle or Stand-up Meeting):
“I want to stay accessible while also protecting time for focused work — the kind that helps me support our team best. I’m trying a small change: setting office hours twice a week, adding daily focus blocks, and using a simple DM/email/meeting guide. If something’s truly urgent, please call. My goal is to make it easier for us to connect, communicate clearly, and make decisions faster together”
Team Two-week Experiment
Week 1: Add two focus blocks and two office-hour blocks to your calendar. Share the channel rubric and invite feedback.
Week 2: Keep the structure, notice what changes (response times, meeting quality, your own energy), and adjust the windows as needed.
Week 3: Reflect, Refine, and Reinforce
Gather quick feedback from your team — what’s helping, what still feels unclear, and what tweaks might make communication smoother.
Review your own experience, Did you feel more focused or less rushed? Were decisions faster or more thoughtful? Did your availability feel more balanced?
Adjust and commit: Keep what works, tweak what doesn’t, and re-share your “office hours + communication guide” as the new normal.
Celebrate the wins: Acknowledge any improvements in flow, fewer interruptions, or calmer days — reinforcing that structure supports everyone’s best work.
In conclusion, accessibility is leadership. Accessibility with boundaries is sustainable leadership. When we set gentle, consistent guardrails, teams don’t lose us—they gain our best thinking. And the work gets better: fewer frantic pings, clearer choices, and a calmer path to results.
Final Thoughts
Staying accessible is part of good leadership—but staying constantly available can quietly drain focus, creativity, and decision quality. The goal isn’t to close your door; it’s to open it with intention.
By setting predictable access windows, using clear communication channels, and practicing compassionate boundaries, you create space for deeper thinking and calmer collaboration. Teams don’t lose your presence—they gain your best attention.
Start small: try two focus blocks, two office-hour blocks, and a shared communication guide. Notice how the energy shifts—fewer interruptions, better conversations, and more thoughtful results.
Accessibility builds trust.
Accessibility with boundaries builds sustainable leadership.
