18 Tips to Instantly Increase Productivity

New to The Life Uncommon? Stay up to date with the latest information, tips, and strategies by signing up or subscribing to the RSS feed.

In the last article, I spent some time talking about the importance of work-life balance.  Today, we are going to focus in on that “work” part a little more and review simple tips you can use to increase productivity starting right now.

Like work-life balance, productivity is another one of those corporate buzz words that gets used so much it loses its meaning.  Yet a simple way to think about productivity is to consider it the synergy between efficiency and effectiveness.  Therefore, in order to increase productivity, we need to identify and define both these terms.  And while efficiency and effectiveness sound similar and are found on the same page of the dictionary, they are actually worlds apart in meaning.

Being efficient means you are acting or producing with as little wasted effort, time, or resources as possible.  Being effective means that you are producing a definite, forward moving and worthwhile result.  To clarify the difference further, consider this thought: I am being efficient when I drive to the gym because I get there fast, but I am being more effective toward my overall health goals when I walk there.

Efficiency and effectiveness are a great combination – I am being efficient and effective if I run (save time, get exercise) – but unfortunately they do not automatically go hand in hand.  In fact, it is sad to say that many of us have developed our working skills in cultural environments where efficiency is emphasized over effectiveness.

I remember when I was a salaried employee, I was constantly being efficient.  I had the most organized email inbox you could find, my desk environment was perfectly managed, and I created agendas for every meeting I attended.  However, I was not very effective at my job because there was never any reason to be.  If I was effective, they would just give me more work, more responsibility, and more problems to deal with without raising my salary, making being effective the chump’s choice.  Therefore I always busied myself being efficient so I could avoid the additional weight that came with being effective.

Yet efficiency without effectiveness is an exercise is futility.  One of my favorite analogies for ineffective efficiency is “…it’s like arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic…” You may get them straight, but no one is going to sit in them, if you get my drift.   And since my experience working as a salaried employee was like being on a sinking ship, I find this analogy to particularly appropriate.

Unfortunately, effectiveness without efficiency is also a bad road to go down because it can mean you waste huge amounts of time, energy, and money in your efforts to take positive forward steps.  And who can afford to lose any of those precious resources?

For us Uncommoners who work outside the confines of the rat race structure, there is no silver lining to efficiency without effectiveness. In fact, it is just the opposite: the more ineffective we are, the more we allow ourselves to be consumed by pointless busy work the less meaning we will find in our vocations, the less money we will make, and the less we will be able to enjoy our life designs. Similarly, those among us who are creative visionaries won’t get far if we indulge in our natural impulses to move forward without the proper planning and organization.

The answer? To be the most productive we need to have equal parts efficiency and effectiveness.  So here are the 18 top tips I’ve learned (so far!) over my uncommon journey to balance these two aspects and instantly increase productivity immediately:

1. Set your alarm for earlier - This is the one thing no one wants to hear (including me!) but you can do yourself a big favor for productivity tomorrow by setting your alarm for a little earlier today.  It doesn’t have to be much – you’d be surprised what an extra 15-20 minutes in the AM can do for you – but there is a reason why they say it’s the early bird who gets the worm…
2. Batch your emails – Most email programs allow you to batch your emails, meaning instead of updating your inbox in real time, your email program will wait to dump new emails into your inbox until you request them, meaning you can actually get work done without being distracted every 10 seconds by your Twitter updates
3. Be inspiration-ready - Keep a pad of paper and a pen next to your desk while you are working.  If you get a great idea for a project different than what you are working on, you can jot down that idea and finish the current task at hand.  Jumping from one project to another may feel effective but it certainly isn’t productive.
4. Brighten up – Don’t underestimate the power of enough light in your work space! Adequate light will not only improve your mood, but will also keep you energized and prevent eye strain. If you don’t have a desk light get one ASAP.
5. Add some tunes – Background music is a great way to keep you focused on the task at hand, helping you complete items quicker and avoid distractions.  While everyone is different, I would recommend softer instrumentals, like soundtrack, classical, or piano-based pieces instead of Eminem, but try different styles out to see what works best for you.
6. Gauge your current performance level – Stop reading right now and ask yourself one question: “How productive do I feel right now?” Our concentration and production levels peak at various points of the day and are unique for each person.  It is important you keep asking yourself this question throughout your day (and night) to find your best production time.
7. Eliminate Sensory Distractions – Close the curtain, shut the door, put on headphones if it helps, but do what you got to do to eliminate your sensory distractions.  Tell your spouse you need an hour of uninterrupted time, put your cell on silent, etc.  Obvious fact but something we all forget!
8. Make a to-do list- Keep it simple and direct, and be sure you answer the question “what do I need to finish by the end of today?” Nothing feels better than crossing things off this list, and keeping a list will help you ensure you don’t forget any details.
9. Disconnect your internet- …After you finish reading this article, of course…Sometimes disconnecting from all the online distractions is the best way to get your stuff done.  Try disconnecting for an hour and see how much you get done.  It will feel pretty weird at first, but I promise you will be shocked by the results.
10. Grab a snack – To maximize productivity, it is important to keep your brain well fueled.  Don’t shy away from frequent small snacks when you are working, but just be sure they are healthy snacks like fruits, veggies, and nuts instead of processed or sugary foods – the number one productivity killer is a sugar crash!
11. De-clutter your desk – Can you see the surface of your desk? If your answer is no then you need to de-clutter (even if your answer is yes you probably need to de-clutter anyway). File those papers, remove those Diet Coke cans, and put all the loose pens and change into the top drawer.  Now, isn’t it easier to focus? I thought so.
12. Sign off AIM, MSN, gChat – We all do it – I gChat while I work all the time, and I can tell you that when I do it takes me longer to get something done and its quality is really sub par compared to when I give it my full attention.  Sign off the messaging systems – you can sign back on again for a few minutes during your break.
13. Wiggle your backside – Does your butt love your work chain? How about your back? When you wiggle your backside do you feel any discomfort or pain anywhere?  If your chair fails the wiggle test, invest in a new chair.  You want to be able to focus on your work, not that nagging pain in your lower back!
14. Stretch – Take your hand off the mouse right now and stretch that hand over your head.  Now bring the other one up to meet it, clasp hands, and push them palms up away from the body.  Take a deep breath and let it out slowly.  Aaaaaaaah…doesn’t that feel good?
15. Turn off the TV – If you’re like me and work in a room with a TV, it can be very tempting to put something on in the background while you work.  I can tell you from experience that I get ZERO done while the TV is on, and I guarauntee that you could be more productive if you turned it off too.  Look at it this way, the sooner you finish your work, the sooner you can watch as much TV as you want!
16. Schedule a break – Think about the next three hours of your life: if it is just work, work, work, then be sure to schedule in time for at least a 15 minute break.  Even if you are so busy you can’t go to the bathroom you need to include break time into your day.  If you can make it a break where you get out of your desk chair that is even better – breaks refresh the mind and help you keep perspective on your project.
17. ID big projects – Look ahead: do you know what is coming up for you in the next week, month, or 6 months in terms of big projects? Being aware of upcoming deadlines is a great motivator to keep you working productively.
18. Make Goals Visible – Take a minute to think about what it is you are working for.  Is it toward a monetary goal, a personal goal, a business goal? Whatever is driving you to do your job, write it on a sticky note and place it somewhere visible.  Reminding yourself what you are trying to achieve will keep your working efficiently and effectively.
    

Do you have anything to add to this list?

Tagged as: effectiveness, efficiency, Productivity, work life balance