This is my first week at a new job and, shocker, it’s stressful. Not only am I just trying to figure out the lay of the land, but I’m being thrown into new projects and supposed to come up with all new ideas at the same time. In just a couple days, I’ve had countless to-do lists and they just keep growing. Luckily, I know I’m not alone in this.
Whether you’re a CEO or a brand new marketing associate like me, work can be stressful. Everyone has long to-do lists that never seem to get any smaller. While you could give up your social life and just stay at work all of the time, there are plenty of easy things to do to help make the most of your time at work. Check out these 10 simple ways to increase your productivity.
Organize your space.
Take a few minutes in the start of each day to de-clutter your desk. Having a nicely organized workspace helps you think more clearly and produce better results. A clean desk means you can find things more easily and can better focus on the task at hand.
Take short breaks.
Sitting at your desk and staring at a computer screen is not only bad for your health, but bad for your productivity. It’s suggested that a 10-15 minute break every two hours is incredibly beneficial. Use that time to walk around the office, grab coffee from a nearby coffee shop, or visit with a co-worker. Getting away from your desk will decrease eyestrain, improve circulation and give a new perspective when you return to a project.
Enjoy your commute.
Whether you drive or take public transportation to work, you should be making the most of that time. For public transportation folks, use your commute to read, write, knit or other creative projects. And for the drivers, how about listening to an audiobook? When you use your commute to do something you enjoy, you’ll be much happier, and therefore more productive, throughout the day at work.
Don’t check email first thing.
Unless this is required at your company, avoid checking your email right when you get to your office. Get done the biggest priority of the day first before dealing with requests and questions about other things. Then throughout the day, process your emails in batches every few hours. This will help you stay focused and accomplish things one by one without getting sidetracked.
Delegate and drop.
Do you have unimportant tasks on your to-do list? Delegate or drop them completely. When you get the most important stuff out of the way early, you can easily see what isn’t important and eliminate them from your list.
Focus on one thing at a time.
When you have a full to-do list, it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Instead of jumping around from one thing to another, focus on one thing at a time. Focusing your time and energy on the task at hand will not only improve the quality of your work, but improve productivity as well.
Don’t be a perfectionist.
Almost everyone has the desire for their work to perfect. However, perfection isn’t always realistic. Instead of holding on to a project for a long time trying to get every last detail perfect, it’s time to let it go. It’s better to have a completed project than a project in the works for way too long.
Get the worst over with.
Everyone has that one dreaded item on their to-do list that they keep pushing back because they know it’s going to be awful. Instead of continuing to put it off, it’s better to just get that one out of the way first thing. By accomplishing that task in the beginning of the day, the rest of the tasks that day won’t seem as overwhelming and you can stop stressing about that particular one all day.
Plan for the week.
In the beginning of the week, as well as each day, it could be a good idea to sit down and write down the top few things that needs to be accomplished that day or week. Getting into a routine of planning ahead will boost your productive and ensure you stay on top of your workload.
Avoid Facebook.
Everyone knows that Facebook is a time-suck. You think you’re going on just for a minute, and before you know it, five minutes have gone by and you’re still scrolling through your news feed. When you feel you need a break, leave your computer and take a walk instead.
In addition to all of these tips, another huge one is using Errand Solutions. Our goal is to help increase your productivity to ultimately live more purpose-driven lives. Whether it’s taking care of your dry cleaning or planning your next vacation, we can do it all. Give us a call at 312.475.3800 or email us at info@errandsolutions.com to find out how your business can take advantage of our one-of-a-kind service.
