An increase in productivity shouldn’t mean an increase in work. By working smarter and adapting new workplace habits, you can accomplish more meaningful work in less time with less stress. We’re outlining some of our best practices to increase your productivity at work.
Prioritize Effectively
Multiple job functions across a variety of industries require the ability to juggle several high-priority tasks at once. Individuals are often left feeling overwhelmed and constantly in a state of ‘putting out fires.’ While there are many systems to help prioritize tasks, the Eisenhower Matrix is one of the most renowned methods. Sorting by urgency and level of importance, tasks fall into one of four categories:
- Urgent & Important
- Not Urgent, But Important
- Urgent, But Not Important
- Not Urgent & Not Important
By categorizing your tasks into the four categories above, it allows you to focus on one task at a time while you work your way from the most urgent & important tasks to those that are least urgent and important.
Avoid Multitasking
In a similar vein, it’s important to avoid multitasking when possible. Feeling the urge to constantly divide our attention has been a proven cause of anxiety and stress in the workplace. Divided attention leads to more mistakes, less efficiency, and overall poorer performance. Scheduling time to complete one task allows your brain to cognitively focus and reach a deeper state of critical thinking.
Tailor Your Schedule to Your Work Style
Everyone has a unique work style. Some are more creative and productive in the morning, while others prefer starting the day with light email and communication. By learning and tailoring your work day to your work preferences, you can ensure you are tackling your most challenging tasks at the times when you are most productive. This can create more efficiencies, allowing you to focus and get more done during your peak times, while saving other lighter tasks such as email for the times when you are least productive.
Meetings That Could Have Been An Email
We’ve all experienced the meeting that could (and should) have been an email. Meetings are notorious for small talk, tangents, and lengthy discussions. By limiting your meetings to only those that are absolutely necessary, you can save minutes, and even hours by simply communicating your objectives in an email. For those meetings that are held in person, it’s important to limit outside conversations and to keep the discussion focused and productive.
Minimize Distractions
We seem to be in a constant state of being pinged, buzzed, and beeped throughout the workday. These microdistractions can immediately break concentration which can take several minutes to regain. Scheduling times to silence notifications and focus on important tasks can help you produce greater results in less time.
In the same way excessive noise can be distracting, so can a cluttered workspace. Our brains like order, and an untidy office and desk can actually affect the function of your brain to process properly due to the visual distraction. By keeping a fairly clean work environment, you can minimize the visual distractions your brain could potentially focus on, leaving yourself with the ability to dive deeper into your work tasks.
While the above tips are a great way to start you down the path of productivity, keep in mind that these habits may not work for everyone. It’s important to learn your work preferences, and to adapt the habits that seem to work best for you. By building your work environment and schedule around your productive tendencies, you can begin to see more efficiency and productivity without the added overwhelm and stress.
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