Being productive can be challenging, even for the hardest working and most relentless of employees. The focus, determination, and resourcefulness that one needs in order to be productive require a lot from a person, that can sometimes be challenging to achieve. Being productive 24/7 can be categorized as an art, but for employers, it is an asset. So what are 2 key principles for productivity?
The term “productivity” can be defined as ‘the state or quality of producing something and how effective the effort by an individual, population or community is.’ This means that although you have various tasks or projects that are currently ‘in the works,’ making sure that each one is of quality and produced efficiently is still as important as how much you achieve during your day. Overall, productivity can be defined by two very different things:
1. How much you completed during your day.
or
2. How effective you were during your day. Getting The Most Done In The Shortest Amount Of Time
Getting Rid of Interruptions
Working hard during your busy day can sometimes be impossible. The biggest distraction, now at work, is your colleagues around you asking questions or gossiping about the latest episode of Stranger Things and social media. This can be a huge issue for you as they are, directly and indirectly, cutting off your focus to get the day’s tasks completed quickly and effectively. How do you solve this? Isolation, and some good music. Moving into an area that is quieter, a less trafficked area, and more productive, can help you focus on what lies ahead of you. In addition, a good playlist of music is another key thing to have with you as it allows you to ‘zone out’ the people around you and focus.
Working Through Projects…FAST
Another thing that can be troublesome is the lack of motivation or desire to complete a project because of how large, complex or lengthy it is. Fortunately, there are ways of working through your projects quickly without losing your moral. One effective way is to keep your current activity tasks to a minimum and focusing on each specific task on its own. This will allow you to finish your projects faster and at a higher quality, which will ultimately impress your peers and (more importantly) your boss.
Timing Matters
Throughout your day you may have multiple meetings, events or functions that require your input and this in itself can stop productivity in its tracks. To work around this, while keeping deadlines and making sure projects are in check, there are a few ways to get things done without missing anything. One way is to formally block sections out in your calendar for work time. This gives you the time you require to get work done and ensures that you won’t be disturbed by your peers for a set amount of time.
In addition to this, you can also keep the number of meetings you take to a minimum or keep designated time for meetings with colleagues in advance. This does two things. One, it allows you to make sure that meeting time is used for important items or discussions and two, it allows you to ensure that your time won’t be wasted during the day.
Making Sure Your Assignments Get Done
Utilizing Software Applications
Using project management, time tracking, or scheduling software can make all the difference when it comes to planning tasks in advance and ensuring they are delivered on time. Not only does this allow you to stay on track and see your progress from start to end, but it also lets you collaborate with other team members involved in the project when necessary.
Setting Task Deadlines
Creating task deadlines for smaller items within projects ensures that you know when things need to be completed, allowing you to track your progress. Today, work management software allows you to understand when specific tasks need to be finished, what resources are required and who is responsible for completing them. The ability to view, in real time, what is going on gives you the added benefit of understanding if you’re behind, on track or ahead of schedule.
Action Time: How To Productively Stay On Task
The best way to commit to your projects and ensure that you stay productive is by keeping a digital or paper ledger of your tasks. This will help you to understand quickly if you’re on track to success, allowing you to make sure that your customers and co-workers are happy with the work you’re completing. Overall, the biggest thing to understand is that you must keep a record of where you are in a specific project, as at the end of the day, if you don’t know where you stand you will lose productivity quickly.
Remember, productivity can mean how much you finish in a day, but we also fail to remember that it too means how effective we are amongst our peers. So, even if you don’t get everything done you set out to do for the day, the quality and the effectiveness of your work is what’s important.