The significance of productivity in the modern work environment is undeniable as it directly impacts the company’s competence, efficiency, and success, especially in today’s highly competitive and fast-paced world. Productivity sets the tone for meeting the company’s desired objectives, achieving innovation, and providing effective services to its customers.
Moreover, in an era where several factors could distract employees and hinder them from being productive such as social media, trends, news, advanced technologies, etc., productivity in the workplace has never been more important.
Change is constant in the modern work environment, it demands the utmost efficiency. Modern workers do not have the luxury to waste time and perform other tasks aside from work during their working hours. Modern workers need to be efficient and know how to manage their time and schedule wisely so they can ensure that all their deliverables are met based on their target or intended deadlines.
This article will educate readers about productivity, and productivity tools and introduce productivity hacks and techniques that modern workers can use in their daily jobs.
The Foundation of Productivity
Mindset Shift:
To be productive and consistent, one must have the correct mindset. This mindset can be referred to as a growth mindset, the first in this list of productivity hacks which is vital in achieving one’s goals and provides several benefits. In a growth mindset, people believe that hard work and dedication can make one develop or learn skills and abilities and that innate intelligence and talents are just the starting point.
This kind of mindset or viewpoint allows people to be persistent in reaching for their objectives and knowing that they can achieve whatever they want to achieve as long as they have the tenacity and motivation needed to achieve them.
In this sense, motivation and self-discipline play a huge role because they make one become consistent in reaching for their goals. Motivation is the driving force that makes people continue doing what they are doing. It is the underlying reason that inspires and encourages them to keep going. Self-discipline makes people focus on their goals and not get distracted by outside forces that could hinder them from reaching their ultimate dreams.
Organized Workspace:
Most people may not be aware but an organized workspace provides several advantages when working. There is a connection between physical space and mental clarity. An organized, clean, and well-lit area promotes calmness and happiness which is why a visually or aesthetically pleasing working environment will allow one to be more productive, energized and work easier and quicker.
On the other hand, dirty, cluttered space can lead to anxiety, discomfort, and stress. If one is working in a messy place, chances are their thoughts will also be messy and disorganized.
To create a physical space that provides mental clarity, one can declutter and set up an effective workspace. Office accessories, organizers and ergonomic products can help not only in creating a comfortable workspace but could help you achieve a productive area.
Also, you should only keep the things that are important or you need, get rid of unnecessary items in your workspace to maximize your space and limit the mess. You should organize your workspace based on practicality and sort things according to their use and make use of digital notes and documents to get rid of paper mess in your desks.
Time Management Techniques
A. The Pomodoro Technique:
The Pomodoro technique is a time management technique and one of the most popular productivity hacks developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. It is a productivity method based on 25-minute focused work divided by 50-minute breaks. Longer breaks usually 15-30 minutes are done after four consecutive work intervals. Pomodoro, which means tomato in Italian, is the term called for every work interval.
The name was derived after Cirillo found a tomato-shaped kitchen timer when he promised himself to commit to 10 minutes of study time as he was struggling to focus on his studies. The Pomodoro technique is very popular and effective because it provides several benefits such as making it easy to start performing a task, preventing distractions, becoming aware of where you spend your time, and gamifying and making your work productivity fun or enjoyable.
The Pomodoro technique is very easy to implement with its simple steps.
1. Prepare a to-do list and timer. You can use your phone to time yourself.
2. Set the timer for 25 minutes and focus on one task only until the 25 minutes is over and the timer rings.
3. Once the timer rings, check off one task from your list or one Pomodoro and record what you have accomplished.
4. Afterwards, you can take a five-minute break.
5. You can take longer 15-30 minute breaks after four or more Pomodoro.
The more you finish more tasks, the more you can enjoy extended breaks.
These are the basic steps in applying the Pomodoro technique but the practice has three rules to ensure being the most efficient which are 1) breaking down complicated tasks 2) placing simple tasks together in one Pomodoro and 3) the Pomodoro must ring once it is set.
B. Time-blocking
Time-blocking refers to the principle wherein you dedicate specific chunks of time to tasks. It is a time management technique where you schedule every part of your day and allow you to focus on a given task or activity in a specific period. For example, “I will study for my long exam from 1 pm to 4 pm tomorrow.” With this method, you get to break your week into bite-sized time slots and dedicate tasks for each slot like working on a specific project, going for a walk, reading the news, checking your emails, etc.
This method provides several benefits when it comes to focus and commitment. With time-blocking, you can control your to-do list better, prevent yourself from procrastinating, you get more time for deep and focused work allowing you to finish tasks quicker and more effectively. It also provides you with a healthier work-life balance.
C. Setting Clear Priorities:
Another way to ensure work productivity is to set clear priorities by identifying which tasks are important and which are not. The art of determining the significance of tasks allows you to prioritize those that need to be finished urgently and take out those that are not important at the moment. When doing this, you get to focus your time on things that matter and will impact your day greatly.
A popular technique using this principle is the Eisenhower Matrix wherein you can prioritize and organize your tasks by their importance and urgency. With the Eisenhower Matrix, your tasks are divided into four areas or boxes. The first box is for the tasks you must do first. The second is for those who can do it later. Third is for the tasks that you will delegate and fourth is for the tasks that you can remove.
Leveraging Technology
A. Automation Tools:
A smart way to be productive is by taking advantage of and leveraging technology. This could be done by using tools that will automate your repetitive tasks. An example of a repetitive task is answering queries about your business or product. Instead of answering questions one by one, you can make use of a chatbot to satisfy the inquiries of people about your services. With automation tools, you ensure that your processes are completed quickly and with utmost accuracy. Automation tools allow your processes to be done with little to no human effort.
It makes you save time allowing you to do and focus on other tasks. Automation tools also provide accuracy as processes are done by a system hence limiting errors committed. Moreover, you can leverage automation tools to Automate Tasks in Android, streamlining processes and enhancing efficiency in managing mobile devices and applications.
Automation tools like the iPad Kiosk Software allow your processes to be done with little to no human effort. It makes you save time allowing you to do and focus on other tasks. Automation tools also provide accuracy as processes are done by a system hence limiting errors committed.
B. Digital Detox:
While it is true that technology can amp up your work productivity, it can also negatively impact your working experience. This is by indulging yourself too much on social media or digital gadgets. With this, digital detox becomes important wherein you make yourself disconnect from the digital world periodically.
This can make you avoid distractions and allow you to focus on the things that you must complete within a period. With digital detox, you get to limit yourself to being exposed to things that will only disturb and interfere with your productivity.
C. Task Management Apps:
A look into top apps that help organize tasks.
a. Demo desk
The first on this list of productivity tools is Demodesk which is the top platform for virtual sales. This site allows you to schedule meetings on auto-pilot, host professional video meetings that turn into revenue, and teach and coach sales teams using artificial intelligence. This site boosts work productivity and drives greater revenue.
b. Click up
One of the easier work productivity hacks is using Click Up which is a platform that enables you to simplify your work allowing you to finish more tasks. With Click Up you can manage, plan, and track whatever type of work with project management that highlights your team’s needs. You get to work across your different departments easily without too many email threads and meetings.
c. Sendpulse
Another top app to organize your tasks is Sendpulse where you can streamline your processes in sales and marketing from top to bottom. With this platform’s dashboard, you can see a comprehensive view of your workflows and contacts to win more customers.
d. Chanty App
The Chanty App maximizes your work productivity by being an easy-to-use team collaboration tool. With this, you can easily communicate with your teammates and have secure and unlimited messaging.
e. Appointy
Appointy is one of the leading platforms in terms of scheduling tasks automated to grow your business. With Appointy, you get to schedule processes, meetings, and appointment management which results in saving and cutting hours of admin work. You can also accept payments through Appointy, manage your staff, limit no-shows, and get more clients.
f. Supplementary Tools
i. Removal.AI
Other productivity tools that you can use to maximize your working energy are Image editing services like Removal.Ai which allow you to easily do image editing tasks in a matter of seconds. One of its features is the Background remover which quickly takes out the unwanted background from your photos. This will allow you to save time in manually removing the background from the pictures that you will publish or use for your work. It also ensures that you get high-quality results.
ii. Dropbox
Dropbox is another work productivity tool wherein you can collaborate on your content securely anywhere you are and anytime you want. By using Dropbox, you can use tools that will help you create, manage, track, and share content efficiently. It also has very trustworthy cloud storage.
iii. Trello
Trello is a productivity platform where you get to bring all your tasks, tools, and teammates together to work and collaborate on the same projects. You get to see your teammate's progress and project updates efficiently with Trello.
Self-Care and Well-being
A. Regular Breaks:
Being productive means that you also know when to take the necessary breaks. Regular breaks allow you to enhance productivity. There is a science behind this as regular breaks allow our brains to recharge leading to enhanced creativity and productivity in general. It also lessens and manages your stress which leads to heightened job satisfaction and well-being overall.
The best practice for effective break times is taking breaks at least every 40-60 minutes. According to a study by DeskTime, the most effective break time is a 52-minute focused work and 17-minute break time. Efficient breaks reduce your stress and maximize your work productivity.
B. Mindfulness and Meditation:
Mindfulness and meditation can boost your concentration and reduce your stress by clearing your mind and thinking only about things that matter at the moment. You train your mind to be fully aware of your surroundings in the present time. Also, you get to rest your brain and remove all the unnecessary thoughts that you may be thinking about.
For beginners, here are simple techniques you can use to practice mindfulness and meditation. Focus on a specific object or thing like your breath, a physical object, or even the physical sensations within your body, and return to that object when you get distracted and your mind starts to think about other things. You can also sit comfortably, observe what your legs and arms are doing, soften your vision, feel yourself breathing, and focus in the moment.
Conclusion
All in all, being productive is attainable and can be achieved in various ways such as having the right mindset, and workspace, utilizing time management techniques like the Pomodoro technique, time-blocking and setting clear priorities, leveraging technology by using automation tools, having digital detox and task management apps and lastly taking self-care and well-being seriously by having regular breaks and practicing mindfulness and meditation. All these techniques are work productivity hacks that will surely unlock your efficiency.
To all modern workers, being productive at the end of the day lies in yourself. If you choose and decide to be productive, you become productive. So start your productivity journey today, apply the aforementioned productivity hacks, and unleash the utmost efficiency you have within you.
