Increased productivity at work is important to get things done and get results in due time. However, a lot of people tend to struggle with being productive. It seems there are never enough hours in the day to catch up with all the tasks on their desks. You could start the day feeling productive and ready to tick off all your tasks but eventually get distracted and start procrastinating.
What if you can manage that seemingly little time you have and ensure you still deliver excellently? This would depend on different factors that can be implemented to ensure you stay focused, maintain your energy, and get things done at work.
Here are few things that you can do to boost your energy and productivity at work:
1. Choose Your Office Furniture Wisely
This is one of the greatest investments you can make to an office space due to the level of productivity that comes with it. A study from ResearchGate shows how much impact the office layout has on office occupiers’ productivity, and this includes your choice of furniture. Choose office furniture that is conducive for you as you work and that can be moved around the office easily to encourage team collaboration.
The design doesn’t have to be complicated; they can be as simple yet effective as the ones from Autonomous. The employee experience at work is based on different factors and how comfortable you are with your furniture can define your experience and most importantly, play a huge part in your productivity.
2. Choose Your Environment
It is one thing to have the best furniture that can enhance your productivity and another to place the furniture in the right place to get the most of it. Most offices today are open-plan, which could be a win or a loss for you, depending on your personality and what you would prefer. An HBR Research shows that the chances of any two people on a corporate campus interacting physically or digitally would depend on the distance between their desks. This means you may have to talk more often with your colleagues, which could hinder your productivity.
Decide on the kind of environment that works for you and see if you can maximize your work-from-home days if your office has any. You could also try to shut the background noise, even if it means plugging your headset. Shun the noise and get to work.
3. Prioritize Small Tasks
Prioritizing small tasks is an easy way to conquer your goals. Create a to-do list and start with the small tasks or break bigger tasks into small chunks.
Research has shown that the dopamine level spikes when we complete something, as we anticipate something important that is about to happen. By recording small achievements, you will feel you are making more progress and be encouraged to push harder for bigger achievements. On the contrary, when you start with the bigger tasks, it might take a long time to finish them, which could make you feel non-productive, as you are yet to wrap up any work.
4. Do One Thing at a Time
You might be tempted to multitask to get things done more quickly but you might also be sabotaging your productivity level by doing that. HBR talks about the magic of doing one thing to make you feel less overwhelmed or burned out at work. Choose to do one thing at a time before moving to the next task. This makes you feel accomplished, as you have successfully completed a task.
5. Take Regular Breaks
A survey was conducted on lunch break and its impact on productivity at work and it shows that nearly 90% of North American employees claim that taking lunch breaks helps them feel refreshed and ready to get back to work. Working for long hours without breaks can lead to stress and exhaustion, which can also affect how productive you’ll be at work. By taking regular breaks in-between work, you are giving your body and brain a chance to relax and re-energize for more work to be done, as it increases your concentration level.
6. Don’t Check Your Email
You can limit email checking to twice a day to avoid getting distracted too often. A study from the University of California-Irvine shows that regaining our initial momentum following an interruption can take, on average, up to 20 minutes. This means that every time you check your email, you are more likely to spend up to 20 minutes trying to get right back on track. To avoid this, you can set allocated times to check your email while you are at work and set an alarm to remind you.
Bottom Line
Every business owner wants to ensure that maximum value is gained for every form of investment they put into the company. As an employee or a business owner yourself, your work is to ensure you yield productive results at the expected time. It could get quite frustrating every time you seem to try so hard, yet the results do not match your effort.
