Most of us aren’t as productive as we would like for two reasons: We have bad habits that interfere with workplace productivity and we’re reactive rather than proactive, putting out fires instead of making progress toward our goals. The solution is simple, though not always easy. We can replace our bad habits and reactive patterns with good habits that will make us proactive, and take charge of our own workdays.
Do Your Heavy Lifting When You’re at Your Best
Productivity expert Tony Wong advises to use your morning to focus on yourself
- Start your day out right by ignoring your emails in the morning and getting in a good breakfast, reading the news, meditating, or working out to give yourself the necessary fuel for a productive day
Eliminate Distractions
Feed the Eagles: There are only a few things that matter. Know what they are, and place your energy into them.
- Starve the Turkeys: Turn off your email and phone notifications if you need full concentration, and ignore those that are demanding your attention.
Break up Work Periods With Exercise
Studies have shown that physical activity enhances brain function
- If you want the most bang for the buck, exercise during work hours
- 65% of workers who used their company gym at lunchtime were more productive
- Instead of viewing exercise as something we do for ourselves-a personal indulgence that takes us away from our work-it’s time we started considering physical activity as part of the work itself
Get Enough Sleep
Sleep deprivation has negative effects on our performance
- Lack of sleep decreases our concentration, working memory, mathematical capacity, and logical reasoning
- Surprisingly, it only takes one night of sleep deprivation to create big deficits in our abilities
- How much sleep do you need?
- Seven to nine hours a night
Cut Down Your To-Do List
Getting focused means narrowing your options.
- Each night, when reviewing your to-do list, ask yourself two questions: What are the important tasks on this list?
- How many of these important tasks can I realistically accomplish or make significant progress on tomorrow?
One Last Tip
Take care of yourself: Eat a healthy diet, drink lots of water, get rid of bad habits, and be nice to yourself
- The healthier you are, the more productive you will be and the more time you will have to spend on things you enjoy
Delegate Properly
When you delegate properly, you have more time to spend on your own work.
- The key is to assign the right task to the right person-a person you know has the skills to do the job and that you can trust to get it done-and then leave them to it.
Plan Phone Calls
Turn off your phone when you’re about to work on a project that needs your full attention
- Set aside a structured time to make all your outgoing calls so you spend less time trying to reach people and more time in productive conversations
- If you’re working on something else, leave your phone on and answer calls.
Stop multitasking
Research shows that productivity can be reduced by as much as 40% by the mental blocks created when people switch tasks
- Additionally, IQ dropped 15 points for some multitasking men
- So, stop trying to do everything at once and give your full attention to one task at a time
Prepare a To-Do List Each Night
To-do lists are invaluable productivity aids
- They get you organized, provide you with focus, and reward you with feelings of satisfaction when you’re able to check off things you’ve accomplished.
- Making a to-do list each night ensures that you won’t waste time at the start of the workday looking for your task.
Be Optimistic
Happy people are more productive
- Results showed that optimists in the tested group made more sales and achieved more bonuses
- The most direct route to happiness was providing social support to others
- Social support providers were 10 times more likely to be engaged at work than those who kept to themselves
- People who picked up slack for others
