However, it’s not always a good thing to be so engrossed in your phone, particularly when you’re at work. When you’re in the workplace, there are certain rules you need to consider to avoid getting into trouble.
Let’s take a look at the 7 best practices for using your smartphone at work.
1. Put Your Phone Away and Out of Sight
Using your phone throughout the day can be a massive distraction, which can lead to inefficiency in the workplace. Your boss may not completely ban using your phone in the office, however, that doesn’t mean you should be using it 24/7.
To limit yourself from using your smartphone too much, keep it in your pocket, bag, or desk drawer. It’s all right to check your phone occasionally, especially if you’re a parent, or you’re expecting an important call.
2. Set Your Phone to Silent
It’s important that when you’re at work, your phone is set to silent mode. If you have friends or family members that frequently call you throughout the day, and you know your phone’s going to be ringing constantly, then rather set it to vibrate.
By switching your phone ringer off, you can still be notified when you get an important text or receive a call without bothering anyone else in the office. No one wants to sit in a workplace all day with someone’s phone that won’t stop ringing and dinging.
3. Take Emergency Calls Only
You’re at work to do work. Do you think it’s a good idea to be chatting all day on your phone with your best friend? Avoid getting into trouble with your boss and rather save those phone calls for your lunch break or after work. Unless the call is an emergency, it can wait.
If you’re a parent, and you get a call that your child is sick, and you need to pick them up from school immediately, then that’s a different story.
Dealing with an emergency is something that almost every boss will understand. But if your partner calls to tell you how much they miss you, do it after working hours.
Perhaps your loved ones always call you about every little thing. If that’s the case, be sure to discuss your working hours with them and tell them to only call during lunch or when the workday is over.
4. Set Your Calls to Go to Voicemail
While you’re in your place of work, it’s a good idea to set your phone so that the calls will go to your voicemail immediately. By doing this, you’ll still be able to see who called and decide whether it’s important enough to respond right away.
If it’s your roommate calling about your dog having an accident on the rug, then it’s something you can deal with when you get home. Even so, if you’re expecting an important call or there’s an emergency, then this method isn’t ideal.
But in the case of non-emergency calls, setting your calls to go immediately to voicemail is an effective way to deal with frequent calls.
The best way to deal with unwanted calls is to use an app. Truecaller is a great app that will identify who is calling you. This comes in handy to avoid spam calls and telemarketers.
One of the amazing Truecaller app features that you need to use is one that allows callers to add reasons for their call. This allows you to identify why someone is calling before you pick up the phone.
Download: Truecaller for Android | iOS (Free, subscription available)
5. Make Phone Calls in a Private Place
Taking a phone call or making one is fine during your lunch break, however, it’s only polite to do so in a private place. Find a spot that is away from everyone else, especially if you’re going to be chatting loudly or laughing.
Some of your colleagues might still be working and don’t want to be disturbed. Perhaps they are on their lunch break too and prefer to relax in peace rather than hear about your weekend plans.
Also, be sure to keep the volume of your voice down if you are discussing personal things over the phone.
6. Keep Texting to a Minimum
In this day and age, texting is something that we all do, it’s unavoidable. We text throughout the day, and while some people do use texting to keep in contact with clients, it’s difficult for your boss to know if it’s personal or work-related.
Texting during working hours all depends on the position you hold. Are you someone who uses their personal phone to text customers continuously throughout the day? If so, then it probably won’t be a problem.
If not, then if your boss sees you texting all day, they might assume you’re not getting your job done.
7. Never Look at Your Phone During a Meeting
This is probably the most important rule of all. Unless you’re using your smartphone as a work tool to take notes, it’s best to keep it in your bag or pocket while you’re in a meeting.
While you’re in a meeting, you need to give your undivided attention. Never send texts, check your social media, play games, or do anything else not work-related on your smartphone.
When you’re present in a meeting, you need to signal to everyone there that you’re involved. If your eyes are on your phone all the time, you’ll just be showing that your mind is on something else besides work.
Avoid Problems in the Workplace by Not Fixating on Your Smartphone
A smartphone can be useful during office hours, however, there are some general rules that you need to know. Every ring, ding, beep, and buzz from your smartphone can have an effect on your productivity at work, and using it all the time can be a huge problem.
If your employer doesn’t mind you using your phone for work-related business, then that’s fine, but be sure you only use it for just that. Don’t let your smartphone distract you from your work duties.
