Making Errors - How to Focus and be Accurate

[Cypress]

My job involves a lot of addresses, numbers, contact info, etc.....I find I am making small errors, not a lot but they are a problem I want to solve. My boss expects 100% accuracy and let's me know when something is off. Most of the work is accurate but mistakes are mistakes. If you work with data entry, how do you focus and put the energy into the work?

[ApatheticNoMore]

Maybe you just need to review your work a few times, which I have to say comes pretty natural to me because I can easily be obsessive-compulsive (aka detail oriented :)). But I'm sort of convinced it's really the same trait, and when accuracy matters it's exactly what is called for. Of course the problem is if they want extreme accuracy and very fast production, as I'm not sure that is always doable, as it's kind of a trade off. I don't know then, ideally the software would do some auto-correct at least on addresses etc., but I guess it's not.

[Float On]

That is so hard because when you write or enter something your mind reads what should be there instead of what may be there. A great example: My wedding program announced the Maid of Horor instead of Maid of Honor. 3 people checked it! One wrong letter. At least it's something we've laughed about over the years.
So much of my job is printed or web material. I slowly look over everything I do and then I have someone else proof it as well. Do you have any co-worker that you could become "proof buddies" with?

I've done data-entry projects (names, addresses, phones) for a local company. When I go do 4-6 hours of that job I get comfortable, no distractions (music or talking with others). I give my eyes a break every 15 minutes and I massage my hands, wrists, arms, temples and closed eyes, stand up and stretch my back and drink some water. Repetitive data-entry is mind-numbing and hard.

[Cypress]

Thanks for the support. Sometimes, I am rushed, but other times not. I just miss, or as you say, see one thing and another is typed out. The office is a tense, noisy environment. I have co-workers with the style to talk out loud, at any time, about anything that crosses the mind. Total extraverts where I like a quiet atmosphere. I can close the door I suppose but than I am seen as anti social and what's wrong with me.

I am a type B worker surrounded by vocal type A's.

[Tybee]

For this kind of work, you might try headphones with something very quiet and non distracting, to drown out the coworkers. I do this.

[ApatheticNoMore]

ear plugs, to me headphones just provide another form of distraction (music) - which is plenty distracting to me, but earplugs are only so effective, but better than nothing.

[iris lilies]

OP, do what you have to do to get the non-distracting atmosphere you need to do your job. Earphones are a good idea.

It is normal and reasonable to block out chatty colleagues if you are responsible for detailed work.

I supervised people in multiple units. One of those units produced work with their hands, and they could chatter all day and still do their work. Other employees who sat near them produced higher level work that needed heavy concentratin, and the chatty people were a distraction.

[catherine]

That is so hard because when you write or enter something your mind reads what should be there instead of what may be there. A great example: My wedding program announced the Maid of Horor instead of Maid of Honor. 3 people checked it! One wrong letter. At least it's something we've laughed about over the years.


Great story, FloatOn!

Reminds me of when I gave a 3 hour presentation on how to position an antihypertensive in front of a whole roomful of executives at a major pharmaceutical company and on the VERY LAST slide my bottom line was that what their doctors want to see is a drug that results in a "Proven decrease in morality" (should have been "mortality")

I can't give advice on this topic because I am not a detail-oriented person and I've found that I can proofread everyone else's work except my own. I do think our minds don't want to see mistakes so we don't see them. I think you really have to take time to go letter by letter and number by number, but as ANM said you usually have to make a trade off between proofing and getting the data entered. I think mistakes are inevitable to a certain degree when it comes to inputting a lot of data.

[Simplemind]

My work was much the same. I would work on say, 10 reports and then put them to the side. I would go back and review a bit later and review it backwards because it was easier to see errors that way. We also had a double check system where another set of eyes had to review it for accuracy before it was locked in.

[pinkytoe]

If it makes you feel better, back when I was working, our highly paid PR director and several of her minions didn't catch that the word pubic was used in place of public. So it became pubic affairs rather than public affairs in a publication that went out before someone else discovered it.

[iris lilies]

If it makes you feel better, back when I was working, our highly paid PR director and several of her minions didn't catch that the word pubic was used in place of public. So it became pubic affairs rather than public affairs in a publication that went out before someone else discovered it.yes, that typo is common. I often worked for the pubic library.

[Miss Cellane]

What type of work are you doing? Are you entering data into a database? or filling out forms/envelopes?

If you are entering data into a database, see if you can work out a system where someone proofreads behind you. Or you proofread behind yourself, but a day or two later.

If you are filling out forms or writing envelopes, see if these things can be done from a database, where the info can be entered, proofed and be known to be correct. Then all you need to do is create forms that have the information you want on them.

Enter data, proof it once, have it be correct from then on.

[Zoe Girl]

I totally hear you, I am the big picture creative type and more and more of our work is detail oriented. I am finally getting the hang of all the details in being a hiring manager, I read the manual every time. Also snack paperwork, that is a huge job. I know I hold too much in my head, and so I wrote out procedures one year for everything, even tasks I do just myself and not for training. There are some systems I can run a report that helps me catch errors also. Can you run any types of reports or does it just go to the supervisor to catch?

When I need background sounds I use the meditation app on my phone, there are 6 or so different sounds like rain and a chant that do not have words or music but are nice background noise. It makes it look like I am listening to music.

[Cypress]

When I need background sounds I use the meditation app on my phone, there are 6 or so different sounds like rain and a chant that do not have words or music but are nice background noise. It makes it look like I am listening to music.[/QUOTE]

This is an interesting idea. I have several CDs of nature sounds, birds, forests, etc.. that I sometimes play driving home to relax. Especially in winter, I like to hear bird song in the house. There used to be a website I tuned into that had recordings of ocean waves, crickets, cat purring, chirping birds, rain, it is gone or I forgot the site name. They weren't loops but long sequences of natural sounds. That might be soothing. I also have Reiki II now and forget I can balance the space with a symbol. Okay, let me refresh that and at least, make the room comfortable for me. Does the app coming through the smartphone sound okay? I am not sure the quality of the speakers at all. I like my iPhone but it has it's limits.

The culprit is the bosses haphazard style of managing things. I was talking with my coworker on how she always wants more, wants it now, changes her mind, reverses and seems almost crazed with not organizing her thoughts or seeing the end result, just stumbling along and expecting us to be composed and follow along. My coworker also ends up with errors, confusion and having to backtrack with the frequent changes of mind. She just seems out of control most of the time. At least my situation was validated and it helps.

[Zoe Girl]

That does help. I know that I had so much organized going into this year, I worked hard at it, and then we had changes and increased duties and I had a hard time getting it together. I think I have it now, but it took awhile! That happens in an education environment where we have a regular cycle of changes!

[Tiam]

ear plugs, to me headphones just provide another form of distraction (music) - which is plenty distracting to me, but earplugs are only so effective, but better than nothing.

It depends. Sometimes music helps me bop along. Other times I needs something less distracting. I like this one when my nerves are jangled and I can't concentrate at work. It helps : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuSDmsoK4wc I just have it playing while I work. It helps jangled nerves.

BTW I struggle deeply with ADD....I'm not hyper, there's no "H" in that...but I find it incredibly difficult to concentrate and miss details all the time. Fortunately I have an ODD supervisor who LOVES to look over and correct my work and hands it back to me feeling fulfilled! Can't lose! :D

[Zoe Girl]

Adult ADD is hard, I know we figured out when my daughter was 19 she likely had it. She had thrived in highly structured school in some ways, anything that was not so structured she had odd behaviors and a very hard time getting things done. I used to leave her younger siblings in charge of making sure she got 3 chores done in a day because she struggled. She tried medication once and said it was wonderful, it was stolen from her locker at work and she never wanted to try it again. She is doing great in her current job however so I guess she has one of those great bosses who does not think everyone needs to work exactly the same.

[Cypress]

I found a groovy website for playing natural sound in the background. https://www.calm.com/

There are choices of sounds from a lake, rain on leaves, surf, falling snowflakes, clouds, on and on, this should help a lot. I love the sound of nature

[TVRodriguez]

Try proofreading your lists/data entry items backwards.
Or go bottom up instead of top down. It can make you look at it fresh and see things that are actually there and not just what you expect to be there.

I also sometimes use www.simplynoise.com for white noise to focus.