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Have you been complaining about how your day seems spiral out of control? You start your workday feeling a 100 with a goal, plan, and list, but at the end of the day, you are unable to accomplish most of the items on your list. There are days when completing our To-Do list seems beyond reach, and you keep scrambling to achieve deadlines.

Being productive at work can be a difficult task, and the temptation of mobile games, social media, the Internet and the bustle of co-workers doesn’t make things easier.

So, how do we go about becoming more productive at work?

With only so many hours in a day, maximizing this time is critical to productivity. There are two ways you can increase your success output in a day – you either increase the number of hours you work for or you work smart. The second one is the better option.

Being more productive at work shouldn’t be confused with busyness. Productivity means getting effective results in a short amount of time as possible, leaving you with more free time.

Imagine ending your workday with a contented sigh, knowing that you productively achieved everything on your list. In this post, we will walk you through practical and easily applicable strategies for increasing your work productivity.

Stop Multitasking

Taking on a few tasks at once can be quite tempting, especially if some seem easy or small. But it doesn’t work. According to Earl K. Miller, a neuroscience professor, “multitasking is not humanly possible.”

Research also shows that trying to do several things at the same time reduces productivity, and shuffling tasks can cost up to 40% of one’s time. When you have to switch between tasks, your concentration and focus are continuously affected.

Need for reasons to stop multitasking? A study conducted in the University of Sussex in the UK reports that multitasking may be harming your brain physically.

So, stop trying to juggle eating lunch, presentation, and making phone calls. If you focus on completing one task, you will end it faster, giving you more to move on to the next. So, dramatically increase your productivity by prioritizing the tasks you have on your plate and allocating time for each.

Take Regular Breaks

This might sound counter-intuitive. However, taking scheduled breaks will help improve your concentration.

Some research also shows that taking short breaks in between long tasks will ensure that you maintain a constant level of performance. You might have noticed that when you are burned out, you never work as well.

Learn to spend that 15 minutes grabbing coffee mid-afternoon or taking a 5-minute walk around the office. Besides improving your concentration, this will also boost your mood.

Set Small Goals

Have you ever experienced an overwhelming feeling while looking at the big projects you have on your calendar? This happens to even the best of us and isn’t a cause for alarm. If the goals you set for a day are looking complex, you can break them down into smaller tasks.

This will make you feel more in control, keep you on track with your day-to-day activities, and increase your productivity. So, rather than write a project on your to-do list and allocate a deadline, you can try breaking down the project into all the tasks that will go into completing it.

Do the Biggest Tasks When You’re at Your Best

Several people do mental sludge tasks such as reading emails and other routine chores in the morning. Sometimes, we unconsciously push our big goals to the end of the day because we are not confident in our ability to accomplish them.

And by the time we finally get to them, we are too burned out from the day to give them the attention they deserve.

This is wrong; several work productivity experts recommend that you start your day with tasks that are the most creatively demanding, especially if you are a morning person.

However, if you work better at night, this doesn’t apply to you. Tony Wong, a productivity expert, advises that we do our most demanding tasks at times when we feel most productive.

Understand that there is no perfect schedule that is ideal for everyone. Understand how and when you work best to get your big projects done in no time.

Prepare a To-Do List

Each night, create a to-do list for the next day. To-do lists are invaluable aids for productivity. They help you get organized, provide you with pivotal focus, and reward you with feelings of satisfaction when you check things off your list.

What’s more, making a to-do list and updating it each night before going to bed means that you won’t waste time looking for your next tasks at the start of the workday. You can also try to talk through your list with someone else.

The co-founder of Buffer, Leo Wildrich, talks about this technique in “What Multitasking Does to Our Brains,” saying:

“The to-do list I jotted down didn’t change, but it felt as if I had done half the work of it all in my head already. The next day, all I had to do is look at the task and get it done.”

The next question is: how many items are on your ideal to-do list? To become a productivity superstar, you have to stay focused.

And getting that focus involves narrowing down your options (the items on your to-do list). So, as you review your to-do list each night, you have to ask yourself some critical questions:

What are the crucial tasks on this list?
How many of these highlighted (important) tasks can I achieve realistically or make significant progress on tomorrow?

Be Proactive

You need to put yourself on a realistic deadline for your tasks and work towards achieving them. This will help you eliminate distractions.

However, it is also essential that we take note of certain unavoidable disruptions such as a colleague asking for quick assistance or your manager requesting a quick meet. To handle these, you have to know how to deal with interruptions.

Inform your colleagues of your need to focus. On your work chat app, turn your status on as “unavailable/busy.” Let them know of your deadline and need to concentrate. This will significantly minimize your chances of being interrupted.

Bottomline

These strategies discussed above should serve as a solid foundation for you to most out of your time in a short time.

But you should also keep in mind that change does not happen overnight. Start with small steps and be consistent. Consistency is the key. Even if you slip up on any, dust yourself up and try it again.

Cheers to more productive days!

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Staying productive at work is not always easy. Everyone gets a little distracted or unmotivated at times throughout the day. Especially with a lot of people working from home, it seems even easier to get distracted.

The question of how to stay productive at work is one that is constantly being asked. It is important to implement certain tasks and habits in your day to stay productive at work. Here are plenty of tips to help you stay productive at work.

1. Make to-do lists

A great way to ensure you remain on task is to make a list of everything you need to accomplish. There are many ways to create a list. You can decide which works best for you. You may want to write a list down on paper or you can create a digital list on your computer.

You can decide what time frame you want to create the list for. You can create the list just for today, for today and tomorrow, for the entire week, etc.

After you create your list, you can decide which task you want to do first. Once again, this choice is based on preference. Some people find it best to start with the most difficult task, while others like to start with the easier tasks and save the most difficult for last. With time you will find out which preferences work best for you.

By creating a to-do list, you will have reasonable goals. These will help you remain on track and focused.

2. Create deadlines

When you create your to-do list, you should include deadlines for the tasks. By doing this, you will be less likely to procrastinate these tasks. It will give you a time frame to have completed the tasks by.

3. Limit social media use

Over the years, social media has grown into a major part of our lives. It has also become a very tempting distraction. It is easy to get sucked into it like a rabbit hole. Once you fall down that hole, it is hard to crawl out of it.

Limiting use of social media will help you to stay productive at work. You can set timers on social media apps. After so many minutes on the app, a reminder will pop up saying you have already spent “x” time on the app. This is a great productivity tool to ensure you do not spend too much time on social media.

4. Take care of yourself

With the fast past lives many of us live today, we forget to take time out of our day for ourselves. Simple tasks such as sleeping, eating well, and exercising will help you be more productive at work.

When you are tired, you are not performing at your best. It is important to get enough sleep to be prepared for the next day. You know yourself best. You know if you only get seven hours of sleep, you will still be tired the next day. It is important to recognize this and adjust your sleep schedule to benefit your productivity.

Eating well is important to ensure your body is receiving all of its necessary nutrients. Along with healthy eating habits, it is important to drink water. If you are one of the many people who forget to drink water, it might be helpful to keep a water bottle on your desk as a reminder. This will help you avoid becoming dehydrated, which can lead to tiredness and headaches.

Exercising is a great way to keep your stress levels down. After sitting at a desk the majority of the day, it is important to get moving. It does not need to be an intense workout, just something to get you moving. When it comes to exercising,there are so many different options. You can take a short walk, do yoga, do a quick workout routine, etc.

These healthy habits lead to productive work habits. They will help you be physically and mentally prepared for a productive work day.

5. Avoid multitasking

Although multitasking can seem more productive, it actually leads to more distractions. Switching from task to task requires time to put you in the right mind set of that specific task. You have to remember what exactly you were doing and where you left off. This ends up wasting time. Therefore, you should not switch tasks until you have completed the first one.

6. Divide big tasks into smaller tasks

Big projects can be both time consuming and overwhelming. A tip to help with those is to break the project down into smaller tasks. For example, do part one today and part two tomorrow. By spreading it out, you are ensuring the entire project will be your best work. It will avoid the typical circumstance where the last parts of the project are not your best work and it shows you were exhausted.

7. Take breaks

Whether it is standing on your feet or staring at a computer screen all day, it is tiring. Taking breaks will help you to recharge and regain focus. Try scheduling breaks into your day to keep maintaining productivity. You can take a short break after an hour of hard work without any distractions. You can take a break after thirty minutes of work. Figure out what works best for you.

8. Maintain a clean workspace

If your workspace is disorganized, it will be even easier to become distracted. Try to keep your space clean and organized. It is helpful to straighten up your desk at the end of the day, then you will come in with a neat and clean work space.

9. Keep track of your distractions

Start writing down what is distracting you at work. By recognizing the distractions, you can work your best to limit them. Additionally, write down when you are feeling unproductive and unmotivated. This will help you to find a pattern. You can start implementing healthy habits to correct this pattern.

Productivity Tools

There are countless productivity tools available to help you stay productive at work. Some of the most popular productivity tools include Slack, Clockify, Google Drive, Google Calendar, and Freedom.

Slack is a communication and collaboration tool that allows you to easily communicate with your co-workers. Clockify is a time tracking software. You can use this to track how long tasks take you. This is sort of similar to a performance review. Google Drive is a file storage and synchronization service. This includes Google Docs, Sheets, Slides. You can share these files with your team members to collaborate on them. Google Calendar is an online calendar you can use to keep track of your deadlines, meetings, etc. Freedom is a distraction blocker. You can block certain websites and apps to limit your distractions.

These are only five of the numerous productivity tools available to you. It may take some trial and error to find which tools work best for you. It will be worth it in the end because you will be increasing your productivity.

Productivity Amenities

Some offices offer productivity amenities. These are typically spaces that promote productivity. Seven workplace amenities that contribute to productivity are innovation hubs, outdoor workspaces, focus rooms, work cafes, phone booths, libraries, and lounges.

Innovations hubs are communal workspaces that encourage collaboration and communication. Outdoor workspaces are growing in popularity because research has shown working in elements with natural elements can heighten one’s creativity, productivity, and overall well-being. Focus rooms are enclosed spaces that allow privacy and remove distractions.

Work cafes promote recharging and networking without leaving the office. Phone booths provide a sound blocking and absorbing space for employees to make personal or professional calls in privacy. Office libraries have changed over the years. They now provide a conference table, a space for presentations, and conference calls. Lounges allow employees to communicate, relax, and refocus. It gives employees an alternative workspace option than their desks.

These are all office amenities with the dual purpose of being productivity amenities. They all offer different types of workspaces. These help employees find the workspace that allows them to be their most productive self. Implementing these productivity amenities can help to boost your employees’ productivity.

Increase Your Productivity

It is time to start implementing the above tips into your life. Staying productive at work can be difficult at times but utilize the tips to remain focused on your work. Some of the tips may take some getting used to but eventually they will become healthy habits. You will need to do some trial and error to discover what tips work best for you. Certain things will work for you, while others will not. That is okay, find what increases your productivity at work the most.

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