Employee productivity is an important aspect of every business as the success of every organization depends on the efficiency of its workforce. Increasing productivity at work helps in achieving quality results that contribute to the organization’s progress. This article discusses effective strategies that you can adopt to become more efficient at work.
What is meant by productivity at work?
Productivity at work (or workforce productivity) can be defined as an assessment of the efficiency of a worker or a group of workers. It is evaluated in terms of your output within a specific period of time in a work setting. The productivity of an employee is typically assessed relative to the average output of employees working in the same sector. The resources that you can utilize to establish productivity at work are as follows:
- Time;
- Knowledge;
- Information;
- Finance;
- Equipment;
- Space;
- Energy;
- Materials.
How to improve productivity at work
- Setting a baseline – this involves tracking and limiting the time spent on various tasks (e.g., social media, email, word processing and apps). Setting such limits can enable you to accurately estimate the time spent on individual tasks. Reducing the number of hours spent on unproductive meetings will help you become slightly more productive. The best way of utilizing time while attending an official meeting is to note down professional goals that you might want to accomplish through it.
Alternatively, it is suggested that you give yourself something nice to look at while at work, which can put a smile on your face. Aesthetically pleasing elements like plants, pictures, candles or flowers can enhance your productivity. Soliciting feedback from colleagues is another way to improve group performance and encourage creativity during meetings.
- Identifying targets and benchmarks – to follow this method, you should have a plan of action at the start of the day and do your best effort to accomplish it. Completing tasks that require less time during the first few hours is a great way to increase productivity in the workplace. Finishing short tasks right away can help save time and allows you to revisit them at a later stage to make any adjustments.
Implementing a manageable level of work will allow you to achieve your goals with a focused mind. Furthermore, setting deadlines to complete open-ended tasks or projects leads to productivity improvement. The following are a few productivity tools or applications (apps) that can keep you on track and help you achieve targets:
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- Ink Flow;
- RescueTime;
- Evernote;
- Any.do;
- Focus Booster;
- Mailbox;
- Dropbox;
- Instapaper;
- Quip;
- Wunderlist.
- Defining tasks – it is crucial that you concentrate on the most important task of the day during the early hours at the office. This implies that you should carefully utilize the peak time to get things done. This phase of time is essential for solving problems, getting answers and making decisions. You should possess good decision-making skills to analyze tasks that are of high priority.
To save time and complete tasks quickly, rather than attempting multiple times to perfect a task, you should finish your task to the best of your ability and move on to the next. Although, the ability to multitask can be an important skill to increase efficiency, doing several tasks at a time can lead to loss of productivity.
- Tracking individual progress – this method is primarily based on the fact that the time period of your maximum energy level can give your productivity a major boost. In order to track progress at work, it is essential for you to set a particular time interval during the day to check emails and messages. Brief interruptions can lead to a change in work pattern and a corresponding drop in your work productivity. Resisting the temptation of peeking at your personal gadget during work hours will help retain your proactivity.
Additionally, you can take advantage of your commute to check a few emails, create a to-do list for the day or do some brainstorming. Taking regular breaks can help improve your concentration as the absence of scheduled breaks may lead to a steady decline in performance. Indulging short breaks in between lengthy tasks will enable you to maintain a constant level of performance.
What are the benefits of being more productive at work?
- Allows you to focus on the most important task of the day;
- Creates more work output with less effort and time;
- Eliminates stress and exhaustion;
- Builds efficiency in getting more tasks completed;
- Helps you get rid of unnecessary activities that can lead to stress and fatigue;
- Produces quality work and efficient output;
- Centralizes your attention and effort;
- Provides peace and tranquillity in life;
- Eliminates clutter and stress produced by undefined goals or purpose;
- Helps you achieve work-life balance;
- Provides you more time to focus on important aspects of your life.
To enhance your productivity in the workplace, it is essential to be able to efficiently manage time. Maximizing productivity at the office is a great way to work smarter. Visit this space for more interesting work-related productivity tips.
