According to a recent business study, 92% respondents say they make or take work- related communications outside of the office, including during vacations.
Like most people in corporate America, there never seems to be enough hours in the day to do complete tasks leaving employees the options of either burning the midnight oil or infringing on ‘personal time’ with work projects. While one can’t create more hours in your day, there are effective ways to use that time more wisely. Discover better, proven, and efficient tips to increase productivity and decrease stress.
Make every hour count. Plan your day in 15-minute chunks and prioritize your tasks. That’s smart time management, but it doesn’t guarantee you’ll work productively. You’ll operate most efficiently if you banish aimless anxieties and the urge to procrastinate.
Here’s some ideas to boost workplace productivity and reduce stress:
1) Get it down…clear your mind! Have a pen and paper ready and list your anxieties, numbering them in order of importance. This exercise will help you clear your head-and maybe even reprioritize-so that you can return to work free of mental distractions.
2) Allot “worry time.” If you grow anxious thinking about all the work that awaits you, then reserve blocks of time to indulge yourself in worry. Don’t let these thoughts creep into the rest of your day-or you may wind up worrying about a job rather than doing it.
3) Confront, don’t complain. There’s a time and a place to vent your frustrations. But if you deplete precious time during the workday by dropping what you’re doing and talking about your irritations, you’ll dig yourself in even deeper. If you’re annoyed at a co-worker, don’t complain to whoever happens to walk into your office. Instead, speak directly to the person with whom you’re upset. This saves time and reduces the spread of ill will.
4) POP: Plan, Organize, Prepare. Plan ahead using solid project management skills. Make sure you map out milestones on your timeline and anticipate ample turnaround time for deliverables and deadlines. Organize your notes, tasks, and workload. Prepare for projects, such as fact gathering, logistics, or calling hard-to-reach project stakeholders.
5) Anticipate first, reflect later. If you make a high-profile mistake, you may feel compelled to dissect what happened in excruciating detail. That’s fine on your own time. But don’t waste the day analyzing a screw-up or justifying your decisions to any and all who’ll listen.
These are simple, proven tactics that can help you prioritize tasks and anxieties… and stop you from working in a constant crisis mode.