Do you ever struggle with productivity? Sometimes it’s hard to stay focused on the task at hand but there are some ways to combat the loss of productivity.
The Fight for Productivity
Staying on top of the tasks at hand.
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of productivity is, “the quality or state of being productive.” Kind of vague, yeah? So what does productive mean? I like Merriam-Webster’s third definition of the word,
“3. a : yielding results, benefits, or profits
b : yielding or devoted to the satisfaction of wants or the creation of utilities.”
So now that we know what the word means, how can we stay productive throughout the work week.
A few tools to help
Tools everyone can use to keep their productivity steady.
You might remember a blog I wrote a few months ago entitled “Five Time-Saving Tools For Every Business Owner” where I explained some of the many tools you can use to decrease the time you spend on everyday tasks. While these tools do not make you a more productive person, they do help you save precious time and energy which allows you to spend your time on more productive ventures.
Now a tool that I love to use is Todoist. This free to-do list web app is a great way to organize your tasks. Not only can you list all of your tasks but you can assign them a due date, allow tasks to repeat every day, week, month, etc., assign an importance to the task, and my personal favorite is you can assign the tasks to different projects. When you first log on you see all of the tasks that are either due that day or past due, for any project. But you can still look at each project individually and see all the tasks needed to complete that project, and this is all just the free version I use. There are many other features you can access for the premium version.
What makes you less productive?
Many things cause distractions but do you know what they are?
The world is full of distractions. I’m sure you already knew this, but people react to them differently. For me, I recognize my biggest distraction is Twitter; using it for personal use, not professionally. Also, anything on TV distracts me. I know I can sit down in front of a show I’ve never seen and be totally engrossed within minutes.
What is important is to recognize those distractions and find ways to eliminate them while you are at work. For me, that means silencing my cell phone for the day, except the ringtone. I also don’t turn the TV on during the day until I’m finished with work, even during lunch. I usually just turn on a good podcast and listen while I eat.
Conclusion
What do you find is your biggest challenge to a productive workday? Drop us a note.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Peter
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