Should we describe productivity as the effort we are putting into specific tasks?
And how can you be sure that the project you have selected is the most important to your work?
When we get deep into understanding productivity, things start to get more complicated.
We might say that being productive is doing the right task at the right time and finishing it within a specific deadline.
Most tech companies today invest a lot of time and money to improve the work environment to create a more productive workflow.
But, do cozy offices increase work efficiency?
Studies have shown that to improve your productivity rate. It would be best if you had optimal discomfort.
Read: 7 Habits that make you a Successful Entrepreneur
What does that mean?
Productive discomfort is a state of workflow that keeps you alerted and prevents your brain from going into hibernation mode.
If not stimulated, our mind becomes idle.
Comfort office space is a trap, not a productivity hack.
According to lifehacker.com, a comfort zone is “behavioral space where your activities and behaviors fit a routine and pattern that minimizes stress and risk.”
If you’re working in the chill-out area in the corner of your office, you’re not going to increase work motivation or efficiency. Your brain will receive a message that you are relaxing, and it will slow down your ability to focus, remember, and concentrate.
It would be best if you nurtured your work habits to be more productive.
It is a common mistake that tech companies are making, aiming to cultivate a comfortable environment in the expectation that a home-like atmosphere will increase efficiency.
To be more successful in the office, you need to be sure to have that small dose of discomfort to keep you alerted.
And that’s just a starting point.
Here you’ll see what habits you need to develop to reach the potential during your workday, which will deliver results instantly.
Habits that make you more Productive
Do the hardest tasks first.
Cultivate a Deep-work flow as a first thing in the morning.
Some tasks are just hard, and you can’t do anything to change it. But what you can do is to work on it first thing when you get to the office.
Deep-work flow is a state of mind when you use your mental capacity
Most optimally, focusing on the task and get in that deep focus flow.
If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.
Mark Twain
The frog is the thing you don’t want to do, but you need to do it. And it would be best if you did it right now.
Prioritize your work to know which frog is first on the menu.
Eat that frog! And do not think it through, because your brain will find various reasons why you shouldn’t do it.
That little voice in your head is called procrastination – work against it!
Learn how to volume down that voice and focus on the results – that great feeling of accomplishment.
Laura Ernest made a tremendous distinction between being efficient and effective.
Efficient is to do things right, and effective is to do the right things.
To maximize productivity, you need to be both efficient and effective at the same time. Learn to distinguish high-value tasks above every other thing.
Start tomorrow’s work – today.
It’s one of the essential office habits to increase inner motivation. And to be satisfied with your accomplishments on a day that has passed.
At the end of every workday, give yourself 15 minutes to review today’s work and to create tomorrow’s to-do list of as we said before, real-value tasks. Sort up your unfinished tasks and give yourself a new deadline for tomorrow.
Why is this important?
Our brain works in a certain way that any unfinished work will hunt you down until it’s finished. Those phenomena are called Zeigarnik effects.
It’s something like a built-in app that our brain uses to remember you to finish what you have started earlier, and it keeps you anxious and stressed.
Keep Learning: 20 Online Resources and Productivity Apps for Online Business Owners
To avoid that and hack your brain to stop thinking about unfinished work, write down your plan for tomorrow’s day. Create a list of uncompleted tasks to give your mind relief. Similar feeling as the work is complete.
And when you get into the office another day, there will be a feeling of satisfaction, as President Dwight Eisenhower said: “Plans are nothing; planning is everything.”
Use tools to organise yourself
Even if you give priority to your work and get motivated, one thing that can be frustrating is the burden of self-limitation.
Through daily battles with deadlines, anxiety, stress, you’re in constant danger, and you’re going to burn out.
The recognition of self-limitation is a complex process. No one enjoys accepting that there are limits and admitting to themselves and others that you can’t do some things.
On the other hand, accepting your limitations, you open the door to your secret possibilities. You don’t even realize it was there.
We all have certain limitations, and it’s a fact. Yet, what can we do to overcome them?
Luckily we are living in the 21st century – in the information age and advanced hi-tech industry. There are a lot of software tools available to help manage your workday, set and monitor milestones, timelines, and give priority to tasks.
Project management is a fast-growing industry, mainly because people started to appreciate the gift of process automation and centralization.
You can automate your workflow to have all the information on a single platform.
The main issue is to select the right project management software to maximize productivity. A good example is ClickUp software for project management, which did an excellent job simplifying tasks, creating a transparent workflow, and increasing work efficiency.
You should also consider an alternative to ClickUp such as Nifty, which can give you a different perspective on team management, workflow, and product development. Improving efficiency and increasing productivity even more.
Regardless of what you decided, you have to take project management into mind.
Most people don’t use project management software because they’re still doing things manually. Old habits are dying hard.
But if you think about it, it’s pretty simple. Accept advanced software tools, become tech-savvy, and increase your productivity.
Build up a habit of using high-tech software to work smart, and let algorithms do some hard work.
They have specially designed tools to improve productivity – why don’t you take advantage of it?
Pomodoro technique
Have you ever worked for hours in front of a computer, not even going to the bathroom for hours?
And after that insane work sessions, you still didn’t have a sense of accomplishment. But you think you have been productive.
It’s because when we do something, we lose a sense of time, and to be productive, we spend too much time on some projects and tasks that we didn’t attend to do.
Pomodoro technique is a Time Management system, designed to separate your workday in parts of 25 min. of deep workflow followed by 5 minutes break.
Pomodoro technique is one of the best Time Management systems to increase productivity in the office. Fun to play with and a game-changer when mastered.
The main idea is creating a constant state of urgency. In that case, you don’t have a feeling that time passes endlessly.
There are only 25 minutes to make progress on a specific task!
Learn More: Top 15 Smart Gadgets for Office Cubicle to Improve Productivity
Multitasking is not your friend
Studies have shown that multitasking is a myth. Our brain processes linear information but can jump between different tasks at the same time.
The constant switching from email to phone notification and various tasks creates a nonlinear flow. And it’s hard for our brain to maintain focus.
There’s a feeling that you did a bunch of work, but the truth is that you didn’t. Do things one at a time to keep a focus and workflow in place.
Multitasking is significant energy consumption.
Inner motivation
What is the most valuable productivity habit you can adopt?
As we see above, there are a variety of tools, tips, tricks, and hacks to improve productivity in your office. But one thing is the most important to accomplish your goals – its Intrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation is the inner drive that comes from our most profound emotional and behavioral response, expressed as a sense of satisfaction and achievement.
In Abraham Maslow’s Pyramid of Motivation, the peak is a self – actualization. A desire to become the best person you can. And it’s by far the strongest motivator.
Unfortunately, most company cultures are focused on extrinsic motivation to increase productivity in the office. Giving a better salary, pay bonuses, etc. In that case, performance is only rising to the point when employees get a reward.
Intrinsic motivation, on the other hand, is to pursue long-term goals, nurturing the possibility of becoming the best version of yourself and getting recognition for your work.
Conclusion
Be persistent!
You need 21 days to form a habit, depending on the individual capacity and how strong you want to achieve something.
Increasing productivity is a long and complicated process. And there are a lot of distractions on the way. To clear your vision, use these guidelines of what you need to have in mind, forming yourself as a successful person, maximizing your office work without danger of mental burnout.
Find a way to manage through all possible distractions, procrastination, and ineffective work.
Have in mind. It is a marathon, not a sprint!
You could begin today by practicing the habits that we set aside as the most important.
Please leave a comment, and let us know which habit you find the most interesting!
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