How To Be More Productive At Work

The only way a company can keep running and succeeding is through its employees. Companies push through boundaries and achieve their goals when their employees are more productive. 

Just imagine yourself finishing each work day with a sense of relief, knowing you were so productive that you’ve crossed off everything on your list. This might sound too good to be true—because it is! On average, employees are only productive for 2 hours and 53 minutes daily. That means they’re generally the complete opposite for the remaining 5 hours or so.

If this is something you relate to and are currently working on reducing downtime, read below to learn how you can take charge of your work days by replacing your negative and reactive behaviors with proactive ones. 

Never Ever Multitask 

It might seem like you’ll accomplish multiple tasks if you switch from one to the other rather than just ticking off one item on your list at a time. However, multitasking is actually a huge productivity killer. 

The shifting back and forth from one task to another creates mental blocks that reduce productivity. Because of this, you’re never focused on anything. 

The solution is to figure out your priorities and allot enough time for each task if you have a lot on your plate. If you’re seeing this pattern in your team, maybe it’s time to review and improve your project planning. 

Prioritize The Most Challenging Tasks First 

Putting challenging or time-consuming tasks aside and concentrating on quick wins can be tempting. However, you can improve your focus and motivation for the rest of the day by doing the most challenging tasks first. 

You’ll feel a tremendous sense of achievement once you finish this task before anything else. It will start the day on the right foot and inspire you to eagerly complete the rest of the items on your to-do list.

Learn To Say “No” And Delegate 

Let’s face it: as much as we want to do everything on our own, we can’t. So sometimes, we need to set boundaries instead of overwhelming ourselves with way too many projects. 

This is where delegation comes in. We will always need a little bit of help from the people around us. When we’re at work, this means our team. Look over your daily tasks and see if you can assign any to other team members. 

Delegating isn’t about offloading work you don’t want to do. Instead, it’s all about ensuring that everyone is engaged in tasks best suited to their abilities and availability. 

Limit Your Distractions 

It’s easier said than done, especially with how connected we are to our phones. Getting sidetracked is normal, and focus can sometimes become a little hard to grasp. However, concentration is a skill that you can develop. Why not try turning off your notifications, putting your phone on airplane mode, or using a productivity app?

If none of these work and you’re still constantly checking your phone every now and then, try the Pomodoro technique. The concept is simple: you’ll work in timed sprints of 20 to 30 minutes after setting a timer and clearing your workspace of all distractions. These sprints aren’t too long and will teach you to improve your capacity to focus for longer stretches of time.

Find An Alternative To Meetings 

The truth of the matter is that not all meetings are productive. For example, you might have attended a meeting this week that ended up being nothing more than a major time waster. Urging people to take a break from their job for an hour or so when they are not required to do wastes everyone’s valuable time.

An alternative here is not to arrange meetings at all. You’d be surprised how you can resolve many issues with a brief call or email. However, that does not imply that you should stop holding meetings completely. In some situations, face-to-face discussions and agreements are still required. Just make sure you evaluate your options first.

If it’s only information sharing, sending an email is generally preferable. But, if you need to brainstorm with a team or have a thorough discussion, definitely schedule that in-person meeting. 

Take A Moment To Rest 

It sounds counterintuitive, but we are humans and need to give our brains a break. Taking time to rest at regular intervals helps decrease stress and anxiety and increase productivity.

Remember, your brain is a muscle. The more it uses itself without rest, the more it becomes easily exhausted. So take regular breaks of ten to fifteen minutes and use this time to step away from your laptop or whatever device you’re using. 

Let your mind relax. Once you face your tasks again, you’ll find that you’ll have renewed motivation and maybe some cool new ideas. 

Take Care of Yourself 

Aside from sick skin and many other illnesses, poor lifestyle choices also affect productivity. The more you care for yourself, the more focused and motivated you will be.

It sounds simple, but getting enough rest, exercising, and eating a healthy diet truly help with how we face our work days. Also, don’t forget to drink lots of water and get enough sleep! Lastly, always be kind to yourself and take time to do whatever recharges and refreshes you. 

A healthier you means a more productive you. Plus, the more effective you are at work, the more free time you’ll have to do as you like! 

Productivity Means Not Being Too Hard On Yourself 

There are no two people or two workdays alike. Although we may be able to adopt new habits that generally work for us, our work and personal lives will eventually toss us curve balls that result in less-than-ideal outcomes. 

So learn how to accept this flawed reality, forgive yourself, and try again tomorrow! Becoming a master of productivity doesn’t happen overnight. Developing habits happens gradually, so as long as you stick with it, you’ll eventually realize the adjustments you’ve been making and finally enjoy the results of your effort. 

For more productivity solutions, check out Collabit Software’s blog.