Productivity seems a far-fetched dream sometimes when the pressure of work increases. The end of the day can leave you with a feeling that you could have done more. If you are on adrenaline, the lack of productivity can make you put in more hours to accomplish a task that would have taken comparatively less time.
It all boils down to your approach to your assigned work and also to your time management. Everyone has 24 hours in their day, but how they make use of it makes all the difference. The following ways will aid you in increasing your productivity at work.
It all boils down to your approach to your assigned work and also to your time management. Everyone has 24 hours in their day, but how they make use of it makes all the difference. The following ways will aid you in increasing your productivity at work.
Begin with the Biggest Task
When you begin working, you are at your most alert. If you have a number of tasks assigned to you, take a good look at them and see which one is the most demanding. Tackle it first with a fresh mind. Chances are, you would save time if you get it out of the way.
It will likely take more time to complete if you do it last when you have been working for hours. Furthermore, getting to smaller tasks after finishing the bigger ones would motivate you to finish them quicker.
When you begin working, you are at your most alert. If you have a number of tasks assigned to you, take a good look at them and see which one is the most demanding. Tackle it first with a fresh mind. Chances are, you would save time if you get it out of the way.
It will likely take more time to complete if you do it last when you have been working for hours. Furthermore, getting to smaller tasks after finishing the bigger ones would motivate you to finish them quicker.
Take a Break
Just like study breaks, taking breaks when you work is a great strategy to increase productivity. Taking a five-minute break every 90 minutes would allow you to retain your concentration. Working without breaks would tire your mind and affect the speed at which you complete the tasks.
Just getting up to get coffee or freshen up would count as a break as it would allow you to get back to the task at hand with a fresher mindset. You can even take a more extended break between your work hours to exercise. Physical activity aids in improving brain function and, by extension, improves productivity too.
Just like study breaks, taking breaks when you work is a great strategy to increase productivity. Taking a five-minute break every 90 minutes would allow you to retain your concentration. Working without breaks would tire your mind and affect the speed at which you complete the tasks.
Just getting up to get coffee or freshen up would count as a break as it would allow you to get back to the task at hand with a fresher mindset. You can even take a more extended break between your work hours to exercise. Physical activity aids in improving brain function and, by extension, improves productivity too.
Set Achievable Goals
Making a to-do list at the beginning of each day is a good exercise. You can make a list before sleeping and review it in the morning. The morning review is crucial because it gives you a chance to exclude tasks that might be too much to accomplish in a day. This should be done because if the goals can not be completed within your allotted time, it can affect your morale.
Checking off tasks from your daily list will make you feel more productive and encourage you to work harder at the next task. Revise the list to make sure you only include those tasks you can surely complete in a day.
Making a to-do list at the beginning of each day is a good exercise. You can make a list before sleeping and review it in the morning. The morning review is crucial because it gives you a chance to exclude tasks that might be too much to accomplish in a day. This should be done because if the goals can not be completed within your allotted time, it can affect your morale.
Checking off tasks from your daily list will make you feel more productive and encourage you to work harder at the next task. Revise the list to make sure you only include those tasks you can surely complete in a day.
Say No to Multitasking
Multitasking is highly revered in a professional environment. But unfortunately, multitasking is not good for your productivity. It would work well for you if you tackle one task at a time, reducing the time you spend with a single task.
Working on multiple projects would lead you to spend more time on each project and divide your time. So, it’s better to focus on one thing at a time.
No Notifications
Apart from some contacts whose calls you mean to pick up as a priority, keep your phone’s setting on Do Not Disturb. Also, strongly consider disabling notifications from all social media apps and other apps that would ping you with unnecessary notifications. If you are compelled to look at your phone every 15 minutes, your productivity would automatically increase.
Get A Good Night’s Sleep
This is not something many people talk about but getting enough sleep is actually good for your productivity. If you get a night of good sleep, you are more alert the following day and less likely to get tired halfway through your workday. Working well into the night has become a habit, but the power of good sleep works wonders for productivity.
Multitasking is highly revered in a professional environment. But unfortunately, multitasking is not good for your productivity. It would work well for you if you tackle one task at a time, reducing the time you spend with a single task.
Working on multiple projects would lead you to spend more time on each project and divide your time. So, it’s better to focus on one thing at a time.
No Notifications
Apart from some contacts whose calls you mean to pick up as a priority, keep your phone’s setting on Do Not Disturb. Also, strongly consider disabling notifications from all social media apps and other apps that would ping you with unnecessary notifications. If you are compelled to look at your phone every 15 minutes, your productivity would automatically increase.
Get A Good Night’s Sleep
This is not something many people talk about but getting enough sleep is actually good for your productivity. If you get a night of good sleep, you are more alert the following day and less likely to get tired halfway through your workday. Working well into the night has become a habit, but the power of good sleep works wonders for productivity.