Interrupted

The zone. That is what every programmer is looking for - when you get to work, you drop in the zone and get loads of work done very, very quickly and efficiently.

I'm quite certain that the zone exists in other fields too, although I guess it's mostly within the creative fields - writing, paining, imagining, programming, designing - where it's most prominent. If you haven't encountered it, the best description I have for it is very focused mode of mind. In the zone you are absolutely focused to this task on hand - be it new painting, program feature, chapter in book, fix to old software or whatever, you have it all - the entire vast thing, whatever it may be - right there, fully realized in you mind, within your grasp and because of this can do incredible amounts of work very quickly.

If the zone is interrupted - mostly due to some unwanted external stimuli, like phone ringing, someone talking to you (or even some talking to their colleague few cubicles over) or whatever - if feels bad. And worse, it shatters the zone. Focus is lost, and hours, even days worth of work to be done, gone, just like that.

It sucks. And that feeling when it happens is the worst.

At my old work, I was surprised to hear that some of the younger (career-wise) people were kinda afraid to come to talk to me about issues they were having, but, on reflection, I guess it was because they had the tendency to interrupt me when I was in the zone. No creative person responds well to that, and I guess I was letting it show. I never wanted it to be this way, and always wanted - and tried - to help them the best I could. But that moment when the zone shatters - it's nasty.

Even now, when I have realized what is going on, losing the zone causes issues. Someone talking, doorbell ringing, whatnot - it all interrupts me. But now I just take few deep breaths to let the worst of the anger out and get on with it.

Curiously enough, though, phone never had similar effect to me. I can answer phone, have short conversation and still resume from where I left off. This is pure guess, but I think it's because it's verbal only - when you don't see the other person, all that subconscious processing of postures, gestures and expressions isn't there to break the concentration.

That is the zone. And if you are one that has them, or know one that has them, it's good to realize what is going on. In the end, it makes co-operation much easier.