The Two-Edged Sword of Web 2.0
March 29th, 2007 (9:00am) Mike Gunderloy 32 Comments
As web workers, most of us are steeped in Web 2.0 throughout our working day (never mind that we can’t agree on what “Web 2.0″ means). Many of us have embraced online applications from Google, Yahoo, and elsewhere to do the bulk of our work, and we rely on a mishmash of social media sites to stay in touch with our peers and build our extended networks. But this connectivity comes at a cost: the internet is filled with bright, shiny distractions.
Content security firm Clearswift recently tried to quantify the magnitude of the problem with a survey of 827 employees in organizations of 1,000 people and up. Among their findings:
- 43% of office workers access social media sites from their work computers several times a day
- 51% spend an hour or more a week on the sites; 13% spend five hours or more
- 46% have discussed work-related issues on social media sites
- 46% regularly access Wikipedia during work hours
- 50% believe they have a right to use work computers for personal internet access
This survey puts numbers on what you probably already know: though we think of the web as a massive productivity enhancer, for some people it’s also a great time sink. This can leave some web workers caught in a contradiction: if you invest effort in the perfect system for getting things done and saving time, only to use up that time again in endless tours of blogs and chats and social sites, have you really gained anything?
Clearswift, of course, would like you to consider their range of policy-based filtering solutions to tackle this problem, and they’re a reasonable alternative for large corporations. But independents and those in small companies might want to think about setting their own personal acceptable use policy for the web. If you feel like your own life is turning into nothing more than an endless treadmill of chasing the latest online trends, consider these tactics:
- Set aside particular blocks of time for the more distracting activities in your day, instead of letting them intrude constantly. Do you really need to be in constant touch with your e-mail, RSS feeds, photostreams, and Twitter messages?
- If your day is broken up into major tasks, reward yourself for a task well-done with a session of goofing off. But no cheating: finish the task first!
- Remember that it’s OK to say no. You don’t have to sign up with the latest cool site just because all the cool kids are doing it.
- Take some time to evaluate the things you’re doing online “for fun,” and stop doing the ones that aren’t fun any more.
Not everyone who spends an hour surfing the web while at work has a problem, of course. Most of us can decide for ourselves whether we’d like to take back some of that time for other activities. But as with other parts of life, it’s good to make sure you examine your online habits from time to time, lest the internet take over your life without your even noticing.
How do you keep your web working hours productive? Or have you learned to stop worrying and love the social media?
32 Comments Post your own comment
ianmack says: March 29th, 2007 9:43am
While I agree many of these websites are eye-candy and continuous distraction, I think it comes down not to the hours spent goofing off, but whether you’re actually getting any work done. After hearing about Best Buy and Netflix having a lax policy for “in-office hours” it makes more sense to move to that model, thereby allowing employees to do their personal stuff online if they want, whenever they want, for as long as they want — but again, as long as they actually produce get their work done at some point.
mike says: March 29th, 2007 10:23am
I have to agree with this - although once you get a few great tools that really work for you then you can really alleviate alot of frustration in day to day work. I must say that the time that continues to be wasted is in researching the new tools that come along to make sure the old tools are still cutting it.
Amie Gillingham says: March 29th, 2007 11:06am
Does the fact that I literally said “yes” aloud to, “Do you really need to be in constant touch with your e-mail, RSS feeds, photostreams, and Twitter messages?” indicate that I have a problem? ;)
All kidding aside, I do find that my time browsing and playing online is sometimes procrastination, sometimes research, but most often, it’s used to let my brain rest from work tasks so that I return to my actual job feeling refreshed, inspired, and ready to go.
Marshall Kirkpatrick says: March 29th, 2007 2:08pm
I am lucky these days to get to spend time watching what’s in the news and on YouTube for a living. Go ahead and hate me :)
Jeremiah Owyang says: March 29th, 2007 2:52pm
Might as well hate me too, I get to blog, take pics, and do video too.
GigaOM » Is Web 2.0 a time sink? says: March 29th, 2007 3:39pm
[...] think of the web as a massive productivity enhancer, for some people it’s also a great time sink. Continue Reading Share/E-mail | Sphere | Print | Topic: Asides | Tags: google, Web 2.0, [...]
Darren Stuart says: March 29th, 2007 4:00pm
I totally agree but I would say its not the web 20 sites that distract me its forums and blogs.
I have a minor rss addiction and constantly check my email.
I find my self checking them more when I am bored with the task at hand or am putting it off for one reason or another.
my one rule about working from home is simple. Get it done and get it done before the deadline.
Matt Motherway says: March 29th, 2007 5:34pm
Time Drain… you can take things out of sinks.
Web 2 is simply the proliferation of internet technologies. The more internet we have, the more informed we are to make decisions, to take action if we want to. It’s a double edge sword like nuclear technology: for the most part it’s a good thing.
Andrew Mitry says: March 29th, 2007 6:58pm
I’ll have to agree with IANMACK that getting work done is the most
important part. There is a great article in the NY Times on multitasking
and the importance of minimizing distractions. For me, I try to set
aside times when I am connected and times when I go dark and get stuff
knocked out.
BitSignals » La Web 2.0 y el desempeño laboral says: March 29th, 2007 8:55pm
[...] | The Two-Edged Sword of Web 2.0 Ver más de: Web 2.0 Trackback a este post Esta entrada fue escrita el: Jueves 29 de [...]
TheWebpreneur.com - Everything web and business. By Nick O'Neill » On Being a Productive Worker and Blogger says: March 29th, 2007 9:50pm
[...] websites that aren’t work related, productivity has decreased for many. Last night the Web Worker Daily released statistics on the topic. Surprisingly (or not), just over half of workers spend an hour or more a week on [...]
Pamela says: March 29th, 2007 10:12pm
It’s up to the people to decide whether they wanna use a resource, in the right sense or misuse it, I judicially allot my time for work and personal surfing. I take utmost care that I do not end up waisting extra time at places not required. I believe it all has to do one’s effectiveness to work and still play around in Web2.0 and yet be updated and satisfied with it. I have to draw a line between what I feel is important and ‘must do’ as against what is not required. I work for 10 to 12 hours a day and that too much of time for everything on this earth.
Well for me definitely it’s not a time sink.
and yes its a competitive world out there! if you don’t grab the opportunity its someone else, so if life has become endless treadmill of chasing the latest online trends, let it, cause there cannot be a better mind exercise than this.
Damon Billian says: March 29th, 2007 11:12pm
I think the hardest thing is trying to figure out which information on the web is actually valuable to one’s job. There’s also this feeling of loathing if you miss out on some piece of news that you should’ve found before anyone else (that’s why I read GigaOm).
Personally: I’ve tried to limit things that I think are too distracting, such as IM and Twitter. Email still works for 99% of the things I do & adding another tool/contact method could create information overload.
bdeseattle says: March 29th, 2007 11:24pm
Great perspectives here Mike. I can certainly relate to many of your points. While I gain immense benefit from my arsenal of web2.0 tools that are part of my daily routine and hyper-productive online existence, I thought I’d share some of the sites that I would consider to be my biggest web2.0 time sinks:
del.icio.us popular
digg swarm
originalsignal buzz
explore flickr
technorati popular
youtube top favs today
Startup Meme » Web 2.0 is a Great Time Sink says: March 30th, 2007 2:38am
[...] Webworker Daily has a very nice post regarding the double edged sword of Web 2.0, original research for which was carried out by Clearswift. Our lives are now filled with shiny distractions in the form of Youtube (for the video viewers), Flickr (for the photo addicts), Facebook and MySpace (for the young aspiring daters and people trying to stay in touch), Digg (for the geeks) and what not. So no matter who you are and what your taste is Web2.0 has something in store to make you a lazy and unproductive fellow. The key findings of the research are: [...]
Adicción 2.0 « Cosas sencillas says: March 30th, 2007 3:04am
[...] es nada. En el blog donde lo he visto concluyen que Internet puede ayudar a mejorar la productividad… pero que también es una pérdida de [...]
Sundarlal Chuddha says: March 30th, 2007 6:49am
The GigaOmniMedia Network has proven a time-sink for me. I read everything, everything that is written on the network. And I am slow reader
Bob Walsh says: March 30th, 2007 7:10am
Excellent post - I use a large display digital timer to block my day into 48/12 work hours (48 minutes work, 12 minutes slack). It’s a very sustainable approach to both concentrating on getting serious work done and limiting interaction on the web. ( GTD SOP#2)
The Big Secret’s Out (I Guess): People Use the Internet at Work ¦ Online Media Cultist says: March 30th, 2007 8:45am
[...] Worker Daily (which uses the coolest Soviet-looking font ever in its header) provides some good and practical tips for laying off the ADD-vortex of the Internet, including setting aside blocks of time for e-mail, [...]
Chris says: March 30th, 2007 1:53pm
Here is a refreshing switch, a Web 2.0 Tool that will actually increase productivity!
For all you business travelers out there, I encourage you to test drive http://www.tripsync.com Its a fee Web 2.0 travel booking tool that allows you to book, manage and change your travel plans right through Outlook. There is a great demo on the site and you can book and hold your reservation without paying for it for up to 24 hours.
Useful links for 30 March | Gino Cosme says: March 30th, 2007 5:34pm
[...] 43% of employees access Web 2.0 sites - A new survey by Clearswift confirms that today’s employees are using Web 2.0 sites multiple times during the work day. [...]
Bob Morris says: March 30th, 2007 9:05pm
Go to the apps you want when you want to, don’t leave them all running popping up in your face all day long. It works for me.
paralleldivergence says: March 31st, 2007 1:20am
There’s a lot more problems that time wasting with web 2.0 sites. Have a read of this extension article: http://paralleldivergence.com/2006/10/28/the-trouble-with-web-20/
Best of Feeds - 20 links - blog, development, programming, blogging, technology, hightech « //engtech says: March 31st, 2007 9:30am
[...] [GTD] The Two-Edged Sword of Web 2.0 « (webworkerdaily.com, 23 saves) [...]
omgh says: March 31st, 2007 9:08pm
43% of office workers access social media sites from their work computers several times a day
myspace rocks
lol
Keithpeter says: April 1st, 2007 10:56am
As a teacher, I have guaranteed time away from the Internet feeds with students. I have just had to advise a young adult to seek counselling for computer addiction - SecondLife - for the first time in a 20 year stint.
Perhaps we need to be teaching task focus skills and time management instead of blocking most Web 2.0 sites in Colleges.
Any suggestions for topics/skills to teach?
Gaurav says: April 1st, 2007 9:02pm
“All the work and no play,
Made Jack a dull boy.”
This is one of the most famous sayings I’m hearing since my school days. I think visiting Web 2.0 tools is not an Evil. Even during the working hours, when the pressure mounts, then we need some sort of ‘change’, and I feel this ‘change’ is a necessity. As I am working with a software firm on system software, I need to go to Wikipedia, Webopedia, HowStuffsWork etc to get some basic information about the latest technology that are not explained in the traditional computer science books.
The another isue that has been touched in the blog is ‘discussion of work-related issues on social media sites”. I don’t think it is dangerous or it will hamper the health of any firm, so far as the topic is not sensitive. There are thousands of discussion forums where people discuss their work releated complicacies. I myself visit such forums from where I can get the solutions of my code releted issues. I would like to put a question also, which of the following two options is good for work?
1) Not visiting the social forums for solutions and struggling for the solutions for long hours.
2) Getting that issue solved in few minutes and moving ahead for the new challenges.
I maintain that the Web 2.0 tools are not Evils, simultaneously I am also pretty concerned about the writer’s concerns. So, in my analysis after the long discusions with friends, I feel it strongly that ‘Self-Restrain’ is the solution……the ‘Balance’ is the answer.
Web Strategy by Jeremiah » Web Strategy Research, A Weekly Roundup says: April 2nd, 2007 3:39am
[...] Social media a time sink in the workplace. Why is this good and bad? Web Worker Daily indicates that Social Media is taking precious time from workers as they connect, share, and goof off. Is this a good thing or bad? For managers and companies, this is a mixed bag. Sharing may be good and even productive, but one has to question the value of some social networking sites (and blogs for that matter). The good news? Since the web is the number one used medium in the workplace, marketers now have a direct access channel to the White Collar and Business class from 9-5 using the web. [...]
Web 2.0 Hype « jonscottweaver design&communications says: April 5th, 2007 8:27am
[...] The Two Edged Sword of Web 2.0, Web Worker Daily http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/03/29/the-two-edged-sword-of-web-20/ [...]
Good Advice: Five Steps To Get Yourself In A Mood To Work « Everyday Christianity says: April 6th, 2007 6:47am
[...] it’s okay to surf the web all day — you’re learning new things and connecting with people, right? — but other days you need to [...]
» The Social Web (Web 2.0: What went wrong?) - Paolo blog: Ramblings on Trust, Reputation, Recommender Systems, Social Software, Free Software, ICT4D and much more says: August 31st, 2007 3:43am
[...] Two-Edged Sword of Web 2.0 «." Web Worker Daily . 29 Mar 2007. 26 Aug 2007 <http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/03/29/the-two-edged-sword-of-web-20/>.Mchenry, Robert. "Web 2.0: Hope or Hype? - Britannica Blog." Britannica Blog. 25 Jun [...]
The Social Web says: September 5th, 2007 12:27pm
[...] “Web Worker Daily » Blog Archive The Two-Edged Sword of Web 2.0 «.” Web Worker Daily . 29 Mar 2007. 26 Aug 2007 <http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/03/29/the-two-edged-sword-of-web-20/>. [...]