Instant Productivity Boosters
Some seasons are busier than others at work. I never find myself at a loss of things to do, but that doesn't always mean I'm moving the needle or getting anywhere. There was a time where I felt extreme overwhelm at work, but there were some strategies that I began to implement to help me be strategic and productive. When I stray from these pointers, I find that my days start to become more difficult, so I'm convinced that they work. Here are some productivity hacks that I want to share with you.
1 - Create a mission and vision for your day - For me this involves meditation and setting an intention for how I want to show up. I also think about core strategic goals for my team and in my organization, and do so by asking the following questions:
How will I support or create alignment with the strategy today?
How can my actions support my intentions?
What is truly critical versus not?
Am I doing activities or making an impact?
Activities are things to do that keep you busy, and some activities are critical, but if you are not making an impact, the activity is not considered a value add.
2- Block time. When you have a busy calendar, block time in your day to work, to eat, to stretch, and to think. If you don't protect your time, someone else will take it. Now that you have time blocked out for the essentials, within the time, make sure you are doing what you planned in. Set your phone to do not disturb, set your messaging to minimize messages while you are in a meeting with yourself. This time is focused time to work on projects, to address emails, or to be strategic regarding projects and planning. This is go time, while you have this level of uninterrupted focus. If you open an email, you need to action it.
Tips- Eliminate procrastination.Don't do things for the sake of doing them, make an impact with this time.
3- Prioritize your Projects: No matter what you do, someone else needs something from you, and it's distracting. I could go into much more detail, here, on how to organize work systems and flows, so that data is available with easier access, but we'd be here forever. What I will say is this, your needs and your projects are primary. Everything else is a distraction, even if it's important to a colleague, it's still a distraction to you. In the workplace, you should always be a collaborator, but it's important to plan when. If you are in the middle of working on a project, do not stop, keep going, and at a time in the day, when you are free (block open time) use the appointed time to support others. The only exception is a critical ask from your leadership team. Otherwise, if you succumb to every distraction, you will end up helping others succeed while you fail to meet your projects.
Time management is not something that is innate. For me, it takes intentionality to be a present wife and mother, to lead an organization, to be an entrepreneur. I have certainly learned a great deal in my journey, and expect to learn more, daily. I hope these productivity boosters help you as much as they do me.