I don’t know about you, but if I can sneak in a half-hour lunch without reading email or organizing my to-do lists, it’s a good day.
In the back of my mind, I had a feeling there were ways to be more productive so I wouldn’t have to sacrifice so many breaks, and as it turned out, I was right. If you want to increase your own personal productivity, be conscious of how your deal with these 3 elements.
Time
You have 1,440 minutes each day. 480 of those minutes are used for sleep, and another 60 or so disappear during your commute to and from work. Take out the time you spend at home with your family and you’ve only got about 510 minutes to tackle that to-do list. Recognize the amount of time you have, whether it’s a half-hour before a meeting or a full two-hour block, and make sure you spend it wisely. Save the more complicated issues for when you have more time, and tackle the routine tasks when you have a few spare minutes. Don’t read email when you should be getting down and dirty!
Focus
You may have all the time in the world, but if you can’t focus on the task at hand, it’ll pass before you know it. If you consistently feel overwhelmed by the number of things you need to do, make a habit of listing your top 5 priorities each day of the week—then cross out the bottom two. What does this do? It helps you focus completely on the tasks that matter most. By the time you move onto the fourth task, you’ll already feel productive. And this will help you be even more productive.
Motivation
Starting creating motivation. Yes, inspirational quotes work well. Know what works even better? Treating yourself to a latte and a 10-minute break if you can get through 10 cold calls in the next hour. Make a game of it and have a little fun. Work won’t seem as much like work if you do. Everyone’s personal productivity is determined by how he or she manages these 3 elements.
Which element do you struggle with the most?