How to Keep Productive Throughout the Workday
No matter if your work schedule is a traditional “nine-to-five” or a more flexible one, perhaps working from home, you will encounter so many things that have the potential to ruin your productivity. After all, there’s no truly effective way to maintain the same level of motivation each and every day – and there is no way to shut out all distractions that arise when you should focus on the tasks at hand. After all, it’s much more relaxing and entertaining to take a peek at the latest updates or watch “just a few minutes” of the latest episode of that new series featuring your favorite hunky Netflix star… but it’s dangerous because it can turn into an hour wasted on Facebook or a binge-watching session during which you don’t get anything done. But with these tricks, you will be able to get more done and in due time, too.
Take short breaks at regular intervals
How come, you might ask, that you just warned me of the dangers of taking breaks and your first trick is to do just that? While this might sound counterintuitive, the fact is that taking regular – short – breaks has been shown to grow productivity. Researchers have found that while working continuously on a long task will lead to a gradual decline in productivity, taking short breaks throughout the process helps you maintain a constant level of performance.
Follow the “two-minute rule”
Entrepreneur and author Steve Olenski has come up with a simple “two-minute rule” that will appeal even to the most passionate procrastinators. It states that whenever a task arises that can be finished in literally two minutes, you should do it immediately. This takes less time than setting it aside and returning to it later.
If you commute, use the time wisely
How many of you spend tens of minutes riding the bus or the subway to your workplace, idly watching Facebook updates or playing Candy Crush all the way to work? Well, this “bonus time” you get each day can be used to get a few simple (perhaps even “two-minute”) tasks done. Instead of diving deep into social media, go through your emails, create your to-do list for the day, or whatever else you can get done while on the way to work.
Avoid meetings
Research shows that the average office worker wastes up to 31 hours each month sitting at meetings and not getting any work done. Meetings are quite often a waste of time, completely counterproductive, especially when they can easily be replaced by a group chat or an email sent to the right persons. So, whenever you can, avoid meetings and focus on the task at hand instead.
And if you have to do a meeting, do it while standing. Evidence suggests that standing meetings improve group performance – and are shorter.
Learn to say “no”
Last but not least, make sure everyone around you is aware of the fact that your time is just as valuable as theirs – and when they approach you with extra tasks and errands that don’t fit your schedule, make sure to say “no” whenever it’s needed.
