If you are struggling to get all things done at work by the end of the day, then the 5 office productivity hacks in this article will help accelerate your efficiency.
We all have 24 hours in a day. But why do some people have the ability to use their time to accomplish more tasks efficiently and still have the energy by the end of the day? This is because they know how to increase their productivity at work, which allows them to perform two times faster than most workers. Do you want to know how? Here are some hacks that can help you increase your office productivity.
1. Email management
Checking the email you just received is like checking your social media— once you checked the notification and opened your email message, before you know it, you already spent hours responding and organizing other emails as well.
There are some studies that prove the harm of constantly checking your emails and how that action affects your productivity.
- According to a 2018 email survey conducted by Adobe, 49% of their participants check their work email every few hours.
- Employees spend 16% of their weekly hours for email-related tasks.
- 55% of the employees point out that excessive email is one of the primary reasons that prevents them from doing their other job responsibilities.
Reading, analyzing, and replying to emails require a high-level cognition. You sometimes need to think deeply and understand the content of the email, which takes a lot of your time. This is because you need to analyze the email before responding. Therefore, it will take away your productivity.
Tips in managing your email to boost your productivity
Turn off your email notifications
Number one rule is to turn off your email notifications on both your computer and smartphone to avoid constant distractions.
Set a time to check your email
Don’t make yourself too available all the time when it comes to responding to emails. Checking your email twice a day will do—one in the morning to get ahead of the game and one in the afternoon to check if you have pending messages that need urgent response.
Batch your emails
While you are checking your emails, you should also sort those and decide which emails need urgent action or response and which emails will be deleted.
2. Learn to say “No”
Helping others is a good deed. Some people accept their request, so they don’t let their colleagues down, or maybe because it boosts their self-esteem. However, if it is causing you to become stressed and is eating your time at work, then you must learn to say “no” to stay on top of your productivity.
It can be difficult to say “no” as it can affect your relationship with your colleagues. However, saying “no” actually means saying “yes” for you to become more productive. It is also a way to simplify your life because you have less stress. Say “no” to favors if…
- it is preventing you from accomplishing your tasks.
- your short-term and long-term goals are not aligned with it.
- you are not comfortable doing it.
- you disagree with the decision.
- it is against your values.
3. Listen to Music
Listening to music at work can actually make you more productive, help boost your mood, sharpen your focus, and improve your overall work performance. According to research, listening to music will help release more dopamine in your brain, which makes you feel good and less stressed. When you play familiar music, you tend to concentrate more and have better focus, even if you are doing repetitive tasks. You will be less bored and work more quickly and accurately. On the other hand, familiar music with lyrics will kill your productivity because your focus is divided between your task and the lyrics of the song.
Try experimenting with listening to different types of music to know which one will help you reach your optimal performance at work.
4. Create a to-do list
It is easy to become overwhelmed on days when there are millions of things that you need to accomplish. We may also lose track of our focus on what we should do first and completely forget to accomplish the important tasks. A to-do list will help you organize and keep track of your tasks into a manageable list that you can cross off after completing the task or project. This will also enable you to prioritize and plan your day effectively.
Creating a to-do list will help you stay on top of the game. Its primary function is for you to remember your tasks and accomplish them on schedule. When you know what your least and most important tasks are and the tasks that you should accomplish by the end of the day, you become more productive because you won’t be worrying about what you will do next and what tasks you might forget.
5. Condition your mind and body
Having a morning ritual will help you set the tone right for the rest of your day. It awakens your mind and body and also gives you a feeling of having a fresh start. Morning rituals are sets of activities that energize you and help you achieve the peak of energy that you need for the rest of the day. There are different techniques that you can apply to your morning routine to attract more happiness, purpose, success, and energy into your day. Some morning routines that can help you boost your productivity are:
- Waking up early.
- Exercising in the morning.
- Meditating.
- Eating a healthy breakfast.
- Reading.
- Practicing gratitude.
Also, by having morning rituals, you are also rewiring your brain which helps reduce stress and negativity. As a result, you become more productive.
We may have only listed 5, but these are important office productivity hacks that you can apply at work. Learn more productivity tips with Super Success and Productivity 101 online course from Skill Success.
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