Improving Productivity

It is common to feel unsatisfied when a work day ends, due to non-completion of work. It is difficult to stay productive and feel satisfied at the end of each work day. Productivity helps you add hours to your work schedule and here are some ways to increase your productivity:

1. Complete the most difficult tasks in the morning, while starting your day at work. Do not leave them for the last. Leaving them for later would simply drive your intent from pursuing them. Always take up the difficult, lengthy tasks in the morning and the shorter, simpler ones in the evening.
2. One of the most important factors behind not feeling productive is lack of love for one’s work. If you do not love what you do, chances are you will never feel charged up and inspired to do it. Always choose a profile of your liking.
3. Don’t think too much about the tasks given to you. Just start the work without giving it much thought, or without getting dreaded to complete a certain task.
4. There will be times when you wouldn’t be as productive and efficient as other days. Think of it as normal and don’t get too worked up thinking about it.
5. Try to stay away from the Internet. Of all things leading you to an unproductive day, the Internet is one of the biggest culprits.
6. By making a list and prioritising your tasks, you would be much better off in handling them than going ahead without any written plan. Feel in control of your work and don’t fret.
7. Half of the generation today is sleep deprived. Make sure you get enough sleep before starting your day. Sleep away to glory on weekends and make do for the time lost on the weekdays.
8. Find time to exercise daily, even if that means spending ten minutes stretching your muscles at home. After a eight- or nine-hour shift, our bodies need oxygen. And only a good night sleep and exercise can guarantee that. Stay in shape and say bye-bye to lethargy.

These are some of the suggestions that can make your life sorted and work easier. Follow these on a daily basis to increase your productivity at work and also at home. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to write and add on to the list.

From Today, Let's Get Efficient.

Efficiency is not achieved by just working hard, you also have to work smart. Spending extra hours at work to complete the tasks assigned, is not a sign of efficiency. You have to squeeze more out of every hour and maximise your productivity. Working smart and hard means knowing how you can set and achieve stretch targets within the workday. When you are efficient, you feel more content and satisfied. Four ways to be more efficient at work are:

Schedule Your Day in Advance: Stop saying “First thing in the morning”, start saying “Let’s prepare for tomorrow.” You can also work on scheduling a week ahead on weekends. Habituate yourself to use a planner, communicate effectively, e-mail efficiently, organise your priorities and be realistic.

Get Up an Hour Earlier: “Early to bed, early to rise” is one of the most underrated adages. When you get up earlier than your scheduled time, you make mental notes of how you can compartmentalise your time for what lies ahead. If possible, go for a walk or find time for gym before you start getting ready for work. It is obvious, then, you will feel the need to go to bed earlier than before. Be disciplined. Be focused.

Stop Wasting Time: You have to get into the habit of utilising your time. Today, tomorrow and every day. When you are not doing what you are supposed to, you are wasting time. Take breaks and rest on purpose, do not deliberately waste your time. If you are require to undertake research on the Internet for your project, limit yourself and focus on your task rather than surfing the web viciously. Internet is a place where everything seems interesting. Resist the temptation.

Don’t Bury Sleep, Bury the TV: Do not let late night TV watching deprive you of the much-needed rest. As hard as it must be since most of us are attuned to a minimum of 2-3 hour TV viewing every day, saying “No” will not only save us time but prevent our brain from getting overloaded by rapid-fire stimuli it exposes us to, robbing us of precious sleep.

Being more productive and efficient should not be limited to your workplace, but to all areas of life. Extract more value out of your interactions and improve your life. What are the techniques that you follow to make your day more efficient and productive? The Quitter community believes in interacting with their readers, to help initiate a dialogue. Tell us what’s your key to getting your work deadlines met, tell us how it helps you from putting pressure on your life.

Quit Wasting Time. Embrace Efficiency.