“Be more productive,” is a phrase most people hear on a regular basis. It could be your boss giving you advice, your teacher telling you how slow your performing or your parents lecturing you. No one is pressuring you to be perfect, but being productive and boosting your performance is important. Although the phrase above is quite common, it is easier to say and harder to implement. People usually say “be more productive” but skip the part about how to be more productive.
Productivity is important to strive for in your daily routine. Everyone has their own approach for adapting to be more productive. Most of these methods have something in common with one other. These commonalities, when organized, can really help you raise your productivity a few notches. Here’s seven ways to make you productive again.
1. Prioritize Your Activities
Always start your workday by sitting down with a list of your activities, and prioritize them into categories. See which activities need more attention and which ones have stringent deadlines. Develop a systematic approach to your daily tasks. Shuffling through your tasks always ends with you having a troubled mind; you won’t achieve anything by the end of the day. Just take the time, and prioritize.
2. Freshen Your Mind
Physicians believe that a healthy, fresh mind can achieve almost anything. One way to have a fresh mind is to exercise. So, start your routine by working out. Get your blood pumping by doing a normal exercise like jogging. When you’re done exercising, you are bound to notice that you feel more awake and have a clearer approach to the tasks ahead of you. Make a habit of working out first thing in the morning. You’ll start noticing improvements in your performance from this simple habit.
3. Race the Clock
Set up a competition for yourself. Competing is one of the best ways to become motivated, and it is a great method to boost your performance. Set a time limit for yourself, and try finishing your tasks within that time frame. Do not force yourself to work unless it’s manageable. Try to avoid burnout. Remember, perfection is not the goal.
4. Take Short Breaks and Relax
Try taking a short break in between your tasks. A 30- to 40-minute break to relax yourself won’t harm your productivity. Don’t make it a frequent habit throughout the day, rather time your breaks and set them accordingly. Taking a break helps you reflect on your tasks in a much more relaxed way. Taking a break helps you come up with ideas to perform your tasks better and ways to be more efficient.
5. Say No to Things That Are Unrelated
Have a phone ringing when you’re working? People usually get side-tracked by distractions like phone calls. Take a call only if it helps you with your project, otherwise let it ring or set it to silent. Keep yourself away from distractions, because they tend to break the flow of things which can affect your performance.
6. Do Check On the Clock Regularly
It’s good to race the clock, because it reminds you to keep your eye on it. Deadlines have a well-defined cut-off time. In order to complete your work within that period, you need to keep yourself well aware of the time.
7. Get Help From People Doing Similar Tasks
If you find yourself stuck with a task you can’t handle, don’t hesitate to get help from the others. Asking for help isn’t a bad thing, and it helps you learn. Seeing how others complete a task helps you get insight on different ways to achieve a task. Always try to learn new things, and apply what you learn.
