We’re all trying to find the magic solution for getting more done in the small amount of hours available to us each day.
I don’t have the answer. No one does. Only you can solve your own struggle with productivity. Only you can decide if you’re going to blame social media or your as-yet undiagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder for your productivity woes.
But I can provide a few tricks that may help.
So right now you can either stop reading this article and get your work done, or take a look at my 10 best tips for boosting productivity (I know what I’d do…):
If your problem with productivity starts with the very matter of starting, lie to yourself and pretend you’re only going to spend five minutes creating an imperfect outline of the task at hand. Once the ice is broken you’ll inevitably end up doing a lot more work on it. Overthinking the project leads to the idea that it needs to be perfect, which leads to anxiety, and then potentially to a fear of failure and never starting it at all.
You’re placing unrealistic expectations on yourself if you expect to be able to follow your Twitter feed, listen to the US Presidential debate and receive pop-up email notifications WHILE trying to get a large chunk of that project out of the way. The first step to productivity is learning to work offline.
Disconnect yourself from the Internet for an hour, or at least close any programs that have the potential to offer unwanted (or perhaps wanted) distractions. Internet blocking tools like Freedom can help, as will browser-based plug-ins like Stay Focused (Chrome) that limit how many minutes a day you can spend on particular websites. Alternatively, grab a pen and paper and do some old-school long-hand.
Get the small stuff out of the way (thank you David Allen). That mobile phone bill? Pay it now. That email from your Mum you’ve been meaning to respond to? Reply immediately (it may save a follow-up call later this afternoon). The less-than-two-minute stuff’s easy to tick off the to-list, making you feel instantly more productive and able to move on to the bigger tasks.
These are particularly useful for dealing with emails (10 to 11am and 4 to 5pm for me) and delegating (11am to 12pm). Replying to an email may prevent an unnecessary follow-up phone call, and prioritising the delegation of tasks to your team will ensure your staff are on track to get their own work done. Ultimately, you’ll get more from the hours outside of your “power hours” if you commit to making the most of the power time every day.
What else are you going to do, sleep? This is the perfect time to crack that writing project or get started on that proposal. It’s quiet, it’s the most optimistic you’ll feel all day, and there’s not all that much else to do before the rest of the world wakes up. Even your social media accounts will be relatively silent at this time (unless you’re deeply hooked into the United States). Just remember, getting up earlier means you need to compensate at the other end: Don’t bother with the television and get to bed.
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Women’s Agenda is a publication for career-minded women who want to stay ahead of the conversation.
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