We all know someone who always seems to be getting things done no matter what. Whether a friend or a colleague, this is the person whose work is always done on time. The one who somehow manages to finish long hours of work in a few minutes.
The one person is described as a robot because surely no simple human could work as quickly as they do. Or, in other words, you can see they know well how to be productive right?
Yes, such people exist, cranking away at maximum efficiency. What do these people have high productivity? How do they do it? But before that let’s learn what productivity means
What Is Productivity?
Productivity is a term mainly used in business settings, though it can apply to other walks of life too. In business terms, productivity may be measured by the number of sales calls made or the factory line’s output. In an academic sense, it could be seen as the number of questions answered or words written.
In the basic form, productivity is measured by input. However, quantifying productivity is not always straightforward if the results are not good. Some tasks and industries require a lot of self-motivation.
For. e.g., in service provider industries, when trying to get a promotion or working on a creative project like writing a book. For this type of work, productivity can’t always be measured in terms of immediate results or output.
When considering how to be more productive, many take the help of time management techniques. Although interconnected, productivity and time management are two different things, and not all productive people are good at time management.
To be productive is about the results that are achieved within a certain length of time. Sometimes the most productive results don’t come from managing a list of tasks- it is more concerned with the outcome.
If you want to be productive or don’t know how to be productive, consider including some of these strategies.
Ways On How To Be Productive
- Make Your Area Better Organized
Take a few minutes at the beginning of each day to tidy and arrange your desk before doing anything else.
According to Kristoph Matthews, the creator of Boxbee, an on-demand storage firm, and head of engineering at NewtonX, having a clutter-free workspace facilitates clearer thinking and better outcomes.
You may cut down on the amount of time you spend looking for things by arranging and decluttering your workspace.
- Make Time For Self-Care In The morning
It’s not as though productivity comes in the middle of the afternoon. Although you can start your workday as soon as you get up, your actual workday starts when you sit down to begin.
Setting up a healthy routine is crucial to promoting your best self and work, whether that means grabbing a steaming cup of coffee in the morning or fitting in a brief workout.
A productive morning routine should provide you with the energy you need for the day and motivate you to give the virtual office your all. Although each person’s morning ritual is different, consider
Squeezing in a workout like floor exercises like lunges, yoga or cycling, preparing a nutritious breakfast, such as veggies or eggs, using a journal or affirmation practice to help you decompress.
- Incorporate Bright Colors Or Live Plants.
According to Jenny Gauld, interior designer for office furniture and accessory company Turnstone, color may have a significant impact on your attitude and help you to be productive throughout the day.
Red may be excellent for tasks requiring accuracy and attention to detail, but blue can provide you with a relaxing sense and aid with concentration. People can also focus better on plants:
According to research by the American Society for Horticultural Science, employees who had plants around the office felt less stressed and were more productive.
- Clear Your Most Feared Task Off Your List.
Everybody has at least one to-do item on their list that they keep putting off because they find it so difficult to do. Matthews says that’s the duty you should finish first. Get it off your plate as soon as you can, rather than waiting until the last minute.
You’ll be more productive overall because your other chores won’t appear as difficult in contrast, and you won’t spend the entire day worrying about that one assignment.
- Use The 80/20 Rule
The 80/20 rule provides another method for setting work priorities and a good way for those who don’t know how to be productive.
The 80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, was discovered by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto and asserts that, in any endeavor, 20% of the work will provide 80% of the results.
Highly productive workers select the 20% of their job that is most vital to maximize efficiency. Afterward, they explore methods for reducing the remaining 80% of their itinerary, to allocate more time for the most important tasks
- A Balance Between Your Personal And Professional Lives
The lines separating business and personal life are being rediscovered by remote workers. It can be difficult to determine when to put work away from your desk and when to concentrate on your home life if there is no obvious boundary between the two spaces.
Overlooking these limits may result in burnout. Actually, in 2020, 71% of workers reported feeling burned out. Prioritizing work-life balance and being aware of the warning signals of overwork are crucial.
Encourage the people in your team to enjoy the things that bring them joy outside of work by leaving their work on their desks at the end of the day. These pursuits can include reading a good book, taking walks, and spending time with family.
- Don’t Forget To Walk, Stretch And Move
Sitting inside can be stiff at times, especially without your team members there to talk to. Whether you are alone at your home or office, it’s helpful to go for brisk walks throughout the day. ‘
Going for a long walk can clear your mind and inspire you to come back to work all refreshed and energized. If you don’t know how to be productive just simply go outside with your favorite drink in hand, sit, and enjoy nature to refresh yourself.
However you choose to get fresh air, going outside will lead to better results, encourage better work-life balance, and make you focus on your high-end work when you get back to your desk.
- Work Before You Get Motivated
A lot of people look for ways to be productive and talks to get inspired and motivated. Highly productive people instead focus on starting work whether they are motivated or not.
In the classic book Bird by Bird, author Anne Lamott advises aspiring writers to look through a one-inch picture frame. What does that mean? It means that you can’t tackle everything at once when you are having trouble getting inspired, it’s normally because you are looking at the massive scope of a work.
That’s intimidating, it’s hard to get started when faced with the enormity of a task. The same applies to your work, even if you are not a writer. If you feel overwhelmed or don’t know how to be productive, look through a one-inch picture frame. Start doing something, like breaking the task into more manageable steps and you will find it easier.
- Take Short Breaks
Taking brief pauses unrelated to work, such as going for a walk, visiting a favorite coffee shop, reading a magazine, or catching up with a colleague, can have a significant impact on your productivity.
The longer you go without a break, the less productive you become. This is the reason, according to Kobel, it’s advised that people limit their daily work hours to eight or ten. You just can’t produce as much as your body and mind can, she explained.
- Give Up Attempting To Multitask
Another thing if you are not aware of how to be productive, multitasking may appear to be the most efficient approach to finish all of your duties, but it has the opposite effect on productivity. According to Kobel, multitasking just isn’t effective and wastes time when it does.
Final Thoughts
In this blog, we have discussed some of the main strategies on how to be productive. Focusing on trying one of these tips on how to be productive and increase your daily life productivity reduce all the stress and maximize professional and personal goals.