It doesn’t matter if you are a student, a job seeker or a business owner. You need to be as productive as possible if you want to make the most out of your day. This is why productivity is one of the most crucial skills that a person can ever have.
Do you always plan a schedule but for some reason, you cannot stick to it? Does it always feel like 24 hours in a day is never enough for you to finish everything you need to do? Is time management a constant issue in your life?
If you want to hone your productivity skill, there are a few things you can try to do:
1. Learn to Prioritize
Begin your day with a list of things to do. Classify each task under different labels such as:
Urgent and important
Urgent but not important
Not urgent but important
Not important and not urgent
This method can boost your sense of productivity earlier in the day so you won’t feel de-motivated and stressed out later in the day.
2. Develop Organizational Skills
It involves several small tasks that could make a significant difference such as sorting files into different folders, putting proper labels on them, cleaning your workplace and desktop and planning the involved steps in a task before you start. These easy and simple methods can help increase your focus on a specific assignment without pointlessly being interrupted.
3. Manage Your Distractions
This doesn’t only involve finding a quiet nook or turning off your phone. You also need to know how you can control your inner distractions. For instance, if you tend to work while worrying about the things you still need to do later, write down your remaining work on one sheet of paper instead of trying to remember them.
4. Know When to Say Yes
Every time you get a new task, don’t say yes until you curb the excitement of doing something new. Reflect on your written to-do list. Reject any request and cancel any unimportant meeting that doesn’t go well with your priorities. Saying yes mindlessly will only cost you more time pressure and stress.
5. Take Breaks Every Now and Then
You probably always feel that you have to be productive on end. However, you also need to remember that work is not the only thing that matters in life. Don’t try to be a perfectionist. You should know when to say enough is enough.
There are people who use work as a means of escape. Little do they know that it can actually hamper their creativity and make them suffer from chronic stress. Say no to over working and instead, make some time for family, friends, and hobbies. You can only master productivity if you know how to be happy in the first place.
Every person has a different level of motivation every day but the real winner is someone who sustains a long term productive lifestyle. Use the above tips and master the skill of productivity in no time!