Declining productivity is a dilemma faced by a major chunk of the population in their daily lives. Being productive can offer you amazing opportunities to do more in a day’s routine. Not only does it allow you to achieve more, but it also brings with it a sense of achievement and happiness when you feel a sense of purpose and commitment.
To tackle the problem of low productivity and in order to positively enhance it, we have compiled a list of tips and tricks that will surely help you. So without further ado, let us begin!
- 1) Move out of your comfort zone
A problem that we often fail to identify especially in various work environments is that comfort zone can be a productivity killer. It does offer you sort of a happy place but clings too much to it and you start getting lazy without even realizing it. New environments, new experiences, and challenges allow us to test ourselves and at times help us in realizing our true potential. The next time you have a challenging task or a change of environment that seems to alter your comfort space, we would urge you to go with it, give it a try and you’ll surely be able to learn something new about your productivity levels.
- 2) Try to plan ahead
Planning ahead of time might sound somewhat old fashioned, but this technique always bears fruit. Compile a to-do list of the tasks which you need to perform. This gives a proper direction to your work efforts thus positively influencing your productivity. There is no hard and fast rule regarding when you compile that list. You can do it at the start of the day, the night before, or even an hour before starting any activity. In the current age, where time seems to be literally out of grasp, a properly directed effort surely helps stay productive and sane at the same instance.
- 3) Avoid multitasking if possible
Human beings are naturally aversive to multitasking. Studies suggest that there are only around 2-3% people who are naturally good at multitasking while the rest of the population suffers through it. Attempting multiple tasks at an instance results in a loss of focus and direction. Additionally, multitasking activities result in a faster energy drain thus you might get exhausted in the middle of the day. Try to commit to a single task and try to start the next one once you have completed the first one. Task completion brings a satisfying experience that also helps you stay positive throughout the day.
4) Take nutritious meals
“We are what we eat”, the reality of this statement cannot be undermined. Our mental, as well as physical health, is directly affected by our eating habits. If you develop a healthy eating regime, your body will support you throughout the day and you will be able at the top of your game while handling various tasks. The human body requires a healthy dose of antioxidants to function properly so make sure that your diet includes a sufficient doze of those as well.
- 5) Adopt a positive mentality
As we hinted earlier, a positive mentality could be the crux of productivity and a healthy lifestyle. Whenever you start on a seemingly difficult task, tell yourself that you can do it. To support this positive attitude it is important that you feel good about yourself, and that is only achievable when you have a healthy mind and able body. There is always room for improvement and one should strive towards betterment in order to grow. Rather than focusing on the problem, try to find a solution to the problem. Your positivity is also dependant on the things you surround yourself with. Quality offerings which resonate well with your need will result in higher productivity. For instance, if you require an internet connection for your work, choosing the most dependable bundle packages will facilitate your productivity levels. Adopting such a mentality would be extremely beneficial for your productivity and you will be surprised to see how much you can achieve afterward.
- 6) Eliminate distractions and temptations
In the current age, where the technology has grown tremendously, getting distracted from work has become an everyday routine. We have our mobile phones, laptops and so much more at hand which provides tons of distraction in terms of social media, gaming, and surfing to name a few. Extroverts especially face this issue when they feel like they have to socialize with every next person whom they come in contact with. To increase your productivity, you need to minimize your distraction yourself. Try turning off the notification on your mobile devices. If you want to discuss something outside of work with people, designate specific time periods for that. Doing so will help increase your productivity since you will have more time to get important stuff done.
- 7) Get up early in the morning
Studies suggest that early risers are more productive since there are fewer distractions in the morning. Not only that, early risers feel fulfilled with smaller sleep cycles in comparison which offers them more time for themselves. There is a reason why the majority of Fortune 500 CEO’s are early risers. Oh and considering the basic biology, sunlight itself is quite beneficial for us if not charming. Therefore, if you have the option, try adopting a morning routine for yourself.
- 8) Try not to be a perfectionist
Being a perfectionist can be a blessing as well as a curse in the present world. While they bring perfection to the work they do, it becomes difficult for them to stay satisfied with anything less than perfect. This would directly affect your motivation if you happen to be a perfectionist. You should focus on getting a task done to the best of your extent but beyond that, you have to consider that you cannot spend the entire day on just one thing. Focus too much on a single thing, and you lose productivity in the bigger picture. A good practice here is to allow time limit to individual tasks. If a task happens to take too long, you need to move on the next one. Adopting this could be a bit difficult especially for people who consider perfectionism as an ideal, but with the necessary effort and training, you can increase your productivity.
- 9) Take proper sleep
A sleep-deprived individual suffers in every sphere of life including their daily productivity. Proper sleep is essential for a body to function. If you happen to be missing out on your sleep cycles, your energy gets disrupted and you can barely hold on to a routine, let alone transforming your routine into a productive one. A good practice for adults is to take a 7 to 9-hour sleep to ensure a productive day ahead. Sleep deprived individuals are highly prone to committing errors during their work regimes. Give yourself the deserved rest so that you may achieve the productivity level which you yearn for.
- 10) Reward yourself
Human beings have a natural response to becoming more productive if rewarded well. In your daily routine, it is advisable to set certain milestones for yourself, achieving which will keep you motivated throughout the day. Not only that, you can reward yourself with tangible offerings as well after completing certain tasks. In your work environment, you should also give yourself minor rewards such as dressing up your work desk that will also create a comfortable space for you to work in.
- 11) Self-Critique always helps
Keep in mind that your best critique is yourself. Whenever you participate in a task, designate metrics which define a job well done. Upon completion, you can evaluate how effectively you completed that task and doing so will help you improve your productivity in the next attempt. Evaluate the timespan you require towards completing various chores and try to improve that timing whenever possible. The phenomenon of self-critique is directly affected by the self-rewarding system. We usually know our own strengths and weaknesses and working on improving these aspects can help overcome lagging productivity levels.
- 12) Make the most of your commute
With the modes of transportation continuously evolving and the world becoming a global village, more often than not, we have to travel in our daily routine. All that traveling time accumulatively comprises of a major chunk of our daily active time. If we are able to utilize that time to our advantage, it can help us increase our productivity manifolds. A good way of making use of your commute is to research content. Research is the backbone of knowledge acquisition in the modern world.
Work regimes can get very tiring at instances, therefore it is important that we induct positivity in our routines especially before we embark on certain tasks and journeys. Listening to soothing music during your commute is like a fail-safe option to calm your nerves and your mood for the day ahead. It can also be quite beneficial at the end of the workday when we need a breath of relaxation.
- 13) Dress up your workspace
As hinted earlier, taking proper care of your work environment ensures a healthy and active mindset. Whether you are performing a task at home or working in an office environment, don't be hesitant in dressing up your workspace according to your liking. You can also highlight certain festivities such as Christmas season by dressing up your workspace in the festive spirit. Doing so will help you feel more comfortable as you will be able to develop a sense of belonging, which directly affects your mood and productivity. A hygienic environment also ensures a healthy lifestyle so you should try keeping everything tidy. This would help you jumpstart the following day without putting in much effort.
- 14) Develop interest in your work
There has been a debate among various experts regarding declining work productivities. The majority came to the conclusion that people suffer in such work scenarios where they do don’t actually like the work they do. This is absolutely true and we can see it all around us. Sticking to a task which isn’t to our liking becomes a burden eventually and our productivity starts declining after a while. If you have the option, choose something that you can actively take an interest in. If there is a group of activities, arrange the activities in such a way that every once a while you get a taste of something exciting. Doing so will keep you motivated in your work and your productivity will increase.
- 15) Group up similar tasks
As we mentioned earlier, multitasking is rarely beneficial in work environments. To improve focus and avoid multitasking situations, make it a habit to group up similar tasks. If certain tasks complement each other, your overall workload will reduce manifolds and this will result in improved efficiency. There is no hard and fast rule that you have to complete a group of tasks before moving onto the next one. At instances, similar tasks might get boring as well. Therefore, adjust your schedule accordingly with minor breaks and rests to make the most out of your regime.
- 16) Keep facilitating accessories with you
More often than not, we come across a situation where we need a piece of paper and pencil to jot something down. When you start working, it is advisable to keep certain accessories with you, which can help you make the overall tasks easier. A calculator, for instance, can help you a lot if you are playing with numbers. Similarly, an excel sheet would be quite beneficial if you are dealing with numbers. Facilitating accessories aren’t just limited to these though. If you are going on a field trip, for instance, take the necessary stuff including food along with you so that you can focus on the important stuff.
- 17) Outsourcing can be a lifesaver
The notion that you can tackle every task on your own doesn’t really work in the practical world. At many instances, outsourcing your work can be a lifesaver as well as a time saver. Outsourcing would generally require additional resources but when you take into account the extended time you spend on a task at which you aren’t an expert, and calculate the overall efficiency, you will realize that outsourcing the tasks is actually the right approach. This allows you to focus on tasks of your expertise. Simultaneous tasks can be achieved this way and projects can be completed in a timely manner.
- 18) Adopt a result-oriented mindset
You should know that results matter in the real world, more than the effort at instances. Whenever you indulge in a task, you should focus on the completion part. This allows you to form a result-oriented strategy for maximum productivity. When you are in between tasks, take a while to evaluate if you are moving in the right direction. This would help you rectify and redirect your direction towards the goal and will directly affect its completion.
- 19) Try saying “No” occasionally
When we are working with people, especially in offices, every once in a while we might get distracted with additional work. This particularly becomes an issue for workaholics when people start relying on them for additional work. Therefore, it is important that you know when to shut out irrelevant work. Focus first on your tasks and then feel free to help others. If you have a big workday planned, you need to make the most out of it and to do so, you should shun out any external interference.
- 20) Improve your activity speed
Last but not least, you need to improve your activity speed. This can only be achieved by practicing certain tasks over and over again. Be your own judge and analyze if you can improve your task completion speed. We naturally tend to improve once we perform tasks whole-heartedly. Take interest in your work, align yourself properly, and surely your productivity will increase as a result.
Working on these tips will definitely help you improve your productivity. Beyond these, you should be able to identify certain aspects about yourself that either helps you improve your productivity or the ones that hinder your productivity levels and work accordingly. We will conclude this by wishing you the best of health and productivity.
