8 Simple Ways to Increase Your Productivity
Whether you’re a student, an employee, a stay-at-home parent, or a toddler with incredibly fine motor skills, chances are you could use some help managing your time.
All of us have certain things we want to do and certain things we need to do, and finding the time to do both requires a level of steadfast organization and balancing skills rarely perfected by mere mortals. However, you can find more than enough time to accomplish what you need to do and what you want to do if you simply maximize your productivity during the day. There are two stages in maximizing productivity, and the first is Prioritization.
PRIORITIZATION STAGE
1. PRIORITIZE THE MOST IMPORTANT TASK
What is the most important thing you have to get done? Great, do that first! Maybe your grade-school teacher once said “Do the small stuff first so you can get momentum going!” but that actually isn’t the best method when you have a tough task to do. A tough task might be unpleasant, but you should give yourself the time to get it done (and get it done well!) so that when it comes to cram all those inevitable last-minute tasks in your workweek, you have enough time to finish everything.
2. USE A PRODUCTIVITY TOOL TO DELEGATE TASKS
Delegating tasks is important because you want to make sure that the right people are doing the right things. It also makes it so people know what tasks they are responsible for, and can be held accountable accordingly. Websites like Trello and Asana make this easy as pie for large groups.
Have an employee who is great with spreadsheets but not so great at PR pitches? Delegate them a task that coincides with their skillset, and hold them accountable to get it done by the due date. You can even set timers in Trello and Asana that send reminders when something is due (or will be due soon). No more weak excuses like “I forgot” or “Who are you again? I don’t work here. Go away. I’m calling the police!”
3. USE A NOTEBOOK OR WHITEBOARD TO VISUALLY KEEP TRACK OF TASKS
Studies show that writing down your goals for the day/week means you’re much more likely to get them done. Think of ink (or chalk, or text) as a mind-anchor for your tasks– writing each item down prevents anything from slipping away unnoticed. If you don’t give yourself the means to hold yourself responsible, then you risk falling back into old, unproductive habits.
Just write down everything — I mean everything — that you need to get done in the foreseeable future, and then group the tasks by “Short Term” (a week or less), “Medium Term” (up to a month), and “Long Term” (a month or more). This will make it so you always have an idea of what is coming next and so you can delegate future tasks accordingly.
4. WRITE YOUR TWO MOST IMPORTANT TASKS ON A POST-IT NOTE
Your day is limited; your to-do list should be too. Post-Its are small, which means that you can’t realistically use them to write out your entire goal list. However, Post-It notes are great for writing down the two most important goals that you have to get done for the day. Not only are you writing down your goals, but you are prioritizing the two most important things you have to do for the day, which will help keep you directly on track. Your Post-It notes will force you to prioritize while ensuring you’re not biting off more than you can chew.
The other stage in this process is the execution stage, which is where you start doing what you prioritized. To get stuff done, you’re going to need to eliminate as many distractions as possible, and you’re going to have to understand how you’re spending your time. You have your written to-do list, your two Post-Its have your priorities for the day, and you’re ready for phase two: Execution! It’s time to start working.
EXECUTION STAGE
1. SET ALL YOUR DEVICES TO ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ MODE
Putting your device in ‘Do Not Disturb’ will make it so that you aren’t tempted to look at notifications you may get on your phone during work. This will allow you to focus on the task at hand, without getting interrupted by text messages, calls, or tweets about Cher– all distractions that could impede your ability to get work done.
If you have an older phone that doesn’t have a ‘Do Not Disturb’ option, have no fear! You can put it on airplane mode and it will function the same. Note: remember to turn airplane mode off at the end of the day to receive notifications/texts/calls again.
2. REMOVE DISTRACTING INTERNET TEMPTATIONS WITH A SELF CONTROL APP
Need to get some work done but your newsfeed on Facebook somehow keeps finding its way to the center of your screen? With the SelfControl app, you can simply block Facebook so you can stop getting sidetracked and start getting down to business. Like a personal trainer who rides you for results, SelfControl is going to force you to get your shit done without distractions.
3. USE AN APP TO MEASURE HOW MUCH TIME YOU’RE WASTING (AND WHERE)
Ever wonder how much time Youtube is taking out of your day? Then Rescuetime might be for you. It’s a free app that tracks your browsing habits to see where most of your online day goes. It might be frightening to find out how much time you waste, but you’ll get to see what areas you can improve upon and start managing your time more wisely. It makes you cognizant of how much time you’re really spending on that beauty site or gaming forum– and if you’re aware of your bad habits, you’re much more likely to fix them.
4. TAKE A BREAK WHEN YOU HIT A PRODUCTIVITY WALL
Notice you aren’t being productive anymore? Then it’s time for a break! Go outside, get some fresh air, call a friend, eat a snack– do whatever you have to do so that you can sit back down at your desk and get to work again, without distractions. Sometimes you need to do some cartwheels if you want to truly focus.
You have a lot of things you need to do and a lot of things you want to do. Stop putting aside the things you want to do and make time for them by simply becoming more productive! Tell us in the comments what happened for your productivity when you tried some of the tips listed above. We can’t wait to hear!
