Hello There!
I’m part of several group chats. Groups that I joined for different purposes, and even a couple that I created myself.
But there are some of them that I just can’t keep up with anymore. Between the memes, videos and 87 notifications, it was more than my brain could handle. I was just one exhausted human.
That’s when I knew it was time to hit “mute”.
Group Chat
And honestly, that’s what I see so many solo professionals struggling with. The constant interruption and not knowing when to silence the noise. We’ve got emails, reminders, client updates, and tasks… and then there are the group chats that keep pinging. The gift that keeps on giving.
Muting those alerts turned out to be one of the best productivity decisions I’ve ever made. I turned off notifications for almost every app. My phone stays on silent. I don’t even think it remembers how to ring anymore.
Everything just got too loud.
I always try to start my day with good intentions and then next thing you know I’m getting pinged with “did you see this” messages of cat videos. I mean I do like cat videos and find them to be funny, so I guess I’ll watch those (on my break, of course!), but the lasagna recipe video? And I’m lactose intolerant! Now that’s just unnecessary.
Those group chats are the sneakiest kind of noise. The kind that quietly steals your attention away from the work that actually grows your business. Because we can’t do our best work when we’re reacting to every ping. We’ll never win that way.
Before you know it, we’re laughing, responding, and completely off track.
Sometimes, the smartest thing we can do is mute the chat for a while. Or just remove yourself from the chat so that you can hear yourself think again. When our attention is scattered across too many conversations, the important messages often get lost.
So if your group chats are exploding with unnecessary conversations and videos, make the decision to decide what deserves your focus—or else it’ll keep on pinging.
Here’s how I stay intentional about it now:
I check in intentionally. When you return to your muted chats, do it with purpose and not out of reflex. It’ll make all the difference.
I focus on priority threads. These are the ones that move the needle in my business—like client/project updates, professional networks and opportunities.
The Bottom Line
Most group chats are just noise. Not every message deserves your attention. But the ones that do? They can shape your day, your decisions, and your direction.
Chuckle of the day! 😂
Group chats are where focus goes to die—but at least it dies laughing.
Shamayne Brown is a virtual assistant and the founder of Camp Virtual Assistance.
She works with solo professionals and small business owners who are ready to invest in their business and need the support that she offers.
She specializes in creating email newsletters as well as other admin and creative design tasks.
Click here to connect on LinkedIn.
Click here to set up a discovery call.
