I’m sure you would want to increase your productivity.
Productivity is a measure of how efficiently a person completes a task. Each day has 24 hours, assuming you work 8-12 hours (could be more). You have several tasks to do right?
How well you tick off your to-do list is an indicator of how productive your day, week, month, year and life is.
So, this means you can increase or decrease your productivity. Of course, you want to increase your productivity.
Therefore I can say that your productivity over time translates to success. Be it in your work life, family, spirituality, career, and even social life.
Research by Harvard University indicates that working longer doesn’t translate to productivity. However, working smarter is key to accomplishing the high priorities tasks. In turn increasing your daily productivity. The bottom line was planning your tasks daily.
In this article, I’ll explore how you increase your productivity.
Daily habits that will help you increase your productivity.
Planning
Set your daily goals for example, at the end of the day I’ll have finished editing 3 articles or publish an article. Failure to plan is planning to fail. A to-do list comes in handy daily, where you list all activities in order of priority. Planning is great but you must get to do the tasks.
In the previous article, I wrote of the Ivy Lee method of ensuring you execute your daily to-do list in order of priority. The method is simple enough for anyone to ace. A single task-oriented approach, it pushes the least priority task to the end of your to-do list.
Scheduled Screen Time
An average person spends more than 4 hours a day on their mobile phone. Every few minutes one checks their messages or social media pages constantly.
Productivity is interrupted every so often by screen time. However, you can schedule to check your phone at a specific break time as opposed to every 5 minutes.
10 minutes looks harmless on your phone. But 10 minutes every 1 hour for 8-12 hours translates to 2 hours on your phone.
Schedule your screen time at lunchtime or after work to increase your productivity
Exercising
I can attest to the benefits that come with routine exercising.
Exercise increases your energy capacity. When you push your limits while exercising, your body recovers, and your energy capacity increases.
How long do you need to exercise? And when? a 30-minute session will do the trick. At least 3-5 times per week to maximize the physical and mental health benefits. Mornings and mid-mornings are the best workout times to increase productivity
Low-to-mid-level intensity workouts increase your energy over time.
Delegate to Others
Delegating work frees you of work that can be handled by others. Delegating is a sign that you trust your teammates. It also empowers them to prove their worth which automatically increases productivity.
Delegate only to someone with a prerequisite skill set. Someone who understands given instructions, is eager to learn and a team player.
Effective delegation ensures maximum productivity. It also empowers the team make decisions, acquire new skills, and become innovative.
Effective Time Management
Time is a non-renewable resource and once wasted it can never be recovered. How do you waste time in your daily life?
Meetings
Small talk
Reading emails and text messages
Interruptions
Screen time
Traffic jams etc
How can you keep your meetings compact? Cut out unnecessary interruptions, and do your work?
Here are some of the habits that will help you stay focused and increase your productivity.
- Leave some time in your daily schedule for any emergencies or arising issues.
- Check the screens on your gadgets at designated times, as opposed to every other minute.
- Don’t read all your emails; screen them by sender and subject.
- Limit the time for any meeting to 90 minutes at most, but preferably less. End every meeting with resolutions for each agenda.
- Respond right away to important messages from your team.
- Prepare your to-do list the night before
- Don’t shy away to put a “don’t disturb” sign at your desk or door
Do Lots of Your Tasks First
Do your tasks, planning is important, and having a to-do list is brilliant. But, you have to roll up your sleeves and do the actual work.
Your energy levels are high in the morning since your body is well rested. Ivy Lee’s method will help you begin with your high-priority tasks first.
As your day progresses you end up with low-impact tasks at the bottom of your to-do list.
Adopting habits that help your productivity is pure wisdom. Because you were created to take dominion, be fruitful, and multiply in all areas of your life.
I love the story of the ant in the bible that speaks to being lazy. ”Go to the ant, O lazy one; Observe her ways and be wise, Which, having no chief, Overseer or ruler, She prepares her food in the summer And brings in her provisions [of food for the winter] in the harvest.”
In whatever we find to do we must do it with all our might, for the night is coming when no one can work.
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