[TIPS & HOW TO]: Bad Habits Are Killing Your Productivity.
All the effort we make to boost our productivity, it’s all for nothing if bad habits are constantly counteracting. Here are common behaviors that can derail your time:
You’re an “of course” person
Getting comfortable pushing back on non-mission-critical requests is crucial to maintaining your productivity. Of course, you’ll have to use discretion and common sense — you’re obviously not going to give a flat “no” to any and all who come knocking, especially not requests from customers.
But what you can do is ask how customers to be precise by sharing as much information as possible so that you’d prioritize them against what’s currently on your plate. Sticking to your north star in terms of prioritizing work will not only keep you productive.
You’re a stickler for perfection
Being available to customers and producing quality work is what got you to where you are but you must be strategic about what tasks need to be an A+ and which will be fine at a B. Of course, you shouldn’t cut corners or get sloppy, but nitpicking over inconsequential details in minor initiatives (especially if it requires lots back and forth) is a waste of time.
You’re in (way) too many meetings
If your calendar constantly looks like one never-ending block of meetings, it’s time to re-examine things. Again, this is where being comfortable saying “no” comes into play. Only accept meetings that are absolutely necessary to your bottom line. If something can be done with a quick conversation, an iMessage exchange, do that instead.
You’re a social media junkie
This is a notorious one. It’s all too easy to get sucked into a social media at 8 am so dedicate certain times of the day to plowing through your social feed. And unless it’s your critical for you today to closely monitor social media, restrict your time there to only certain slots.
You neglect your sleep
It’s the simplest formula, but oftentimes the easiest one to neglect: Everyone is different in terms of how much sleep they need, but a solid seven to eight hours of quality Z’s is what’s recommended for maintaining focus, energy, and overall wellbeing.
Take a look at your workday. If you’re guilty of any of the above, working to correct the issue will do wonders for your output (and overall happiness).
