Succeeding at work: 5 simple tips on Improving your productivity

We all have those days where you come in to work with a list full of things your going to get done feeling like today is the day you finally finish it all. Yet, by the end of the day we look down to find that not even half of them are finished. 8hrs of work and not even 3hrs of tasks done, you think to yourself how did I waste that much time, what happened?

It is one of the most frustrating experiences, and it’s safe to say we’ve all faced it. Not only does it impact our work life, but we often take that sense of defeat home with us.

Maintaining high productivity levels isn’t always straightforward and easy. But you don't have to feel drained and defeated at the end of every working day . We’ve compiled 5 practical ways to help you tackle the dreaded to do list effectively.

Rework your To Do list

I can guarantee almost all of us have created that impossible to do list with 101 things to do and haven't managed to even cross of a handful of tasks by the end of the day. By creating these impossible to do list you set yourself up for failure before the day has even begun. Our to do lists are crucial in setting up the whole flow of our work day. A well-structured to-do list can enhance focus and efficiency, while a poorly designed one can lead to procrastination and decreased motivation.

A lot of us at times overestimate how much we can fit into a day. Realistically, our productivity fluctuates throughout the day, and breaks are essential for maintaining focus and energy. Instead of trying to cram too much into a day we need to set more achievable goals so by the end of the day we feel accomplished rather than overwhelmed

So how to we create this To do list to set us up for success?

First you need to prioritize your tasks, what task is the most important , what will take the longest amount of time and what is most urgent.

Once you have prioritized the tasks it is now time to start the to do list. Grab a small piece of paper or a posted note nothing to big so you physically can't fill it with too much and pick one of the 2 methods below (the 1-3-5 rule or the short prioritized list), whatever you feel will allow you to feel more motivated.

1-3-5 rule is a popular strategy to a lot of people use to set a achievable work load. The general idea of it is "understanding that you can't accomplish an endless number of things each day. Instead, accept that you can reasonably get one big thing, three medium things, and five small things done. So keep your daily to-do list to just those nine items." (The Muse, 2020)

My personal favourite however is to write that super short list with no more than 3 important tasks you need to complete. Have these 3 main task in eye view and have a second list with any small tasks that need to be done but keep it out of sight.

Your first task on this list should be what will make you feel the most accomplished. It is a known fact that our energy, focus and motivation will deplete as the day goes on so tackle this task first to give yourself the best chance of finishing it .Through tackling this big task first we boost our confidence, feeling like we have a achieved something already we are ready to fly through the little tasks. The next 2 tasks should be 2 medium ones that are still big tasks but aren't going to take up as much time as our first. View these task one at a time trying not to switch between them. Limiting ourself to 3 big important tasks a day allows us to feel it is a achievable amount and my even lead to us completing more tasks.

Feel free to find a different method that works for you, but make sure the to do list is short, prioritized and not vague to set yourself up for success

Now we have made the to do list at the start of the day here a 4 tips to get through this list in a way that doesn't leave you going home at the end of the day exhausted.

Stop multitasking

Multitasking the productivity killer. I am sure a lot of us have been tempted to try and juggle numerous workplace tasks in a day. It sounds like the best way to get through them, save time by trying to do 2 tasks at once right? But sadly I am going to have to burst that bubble research shows humans aren't as good as we think at doing several things at once.

The truth is, research indicates that the human brain cannot multitask effectively. Instead, what we’re really doing is rapidly switching between tasks—known as “task switching” or “context switching.”  This self-interruption makes it impossible for you to give your complete focus to one task with having to refocus every couple of minutes. By focusing on just one task at a time, you will complete it in a shorter amount of time as you aren't wasting time refocusing, and to a higher standard as all of your brains energy is on that task. Although you might feel you are really good at multitasking and you are saving time, the human brain is very good at tricking us to feel like we are getting more done than we actually are , when in reality we are wasting time and energy switching between tasks.

Manage your energy

Workplace productivity coach and speaker Dr Melissa Gratias says “People naturally have ebbs and flows in their work processes or in how well they can focus,”

Throughout the day your body will naturally go through peaks and pits of motivation and focus due to our Ultradian Rhythm. The truth is we are only human we will not operate like a robot all day and we cant have the expectation on ourselves that we will.

Instead of fighting your body trying to focus when you aren't feeling switched on attempt to harness the natural rhythm and save high focus tasks for when your brain is switched on. Take note of when you feel the most motivated and focused throughout the day whether that be morning, or afternoon and try to smash out those big tasks on your to do list with saving the smaller mindless ones and breaks for your energy pits.

Let go of perfectionism: 5 Minute rule

Struggling to start a task can sometimes be the most difficult part, a lot of us have this preconceived idea that everything we start writing needs to be perfect, but that is simply not the case. Trying to write the perfect first sentence will always be something that limits our productivity as it simply does not exist.

Obsessing and focusing on perfectionism limits the amount of work we can get done and hinders our productivity throughout the day, reducing our motivation and self esteem as we cant seem to come up with this perfect start.

Some of our best work has never come from a perfect start but rather a bunch of ineligible ideas thrown on a page that has been reworked. For example you are going to write a report much faster and feel more productive if you have a plan of how you want a report to flow then one perfect starting sentence.

One strategy we can implement to get us started and in the productivity flow state is the 5 minute rule. Dedicate 5 minutes to starting a task in that 5 minutes you can complete a email, outline a new task, research a topic or even just get a sentence on the page. After that 5 minutes your motivation to continue remains. Even if you move onto another task give yourself this 5 minutes to get in the groove or do those small task you have been putting of.

Take a break and prioritizes your health

Mental and physical health go side by side and if we aren't taking care of our body through getting enough sleep, drinking enough water and fuelling ourself with good food how do we expect our productivity levels to be at there best. It is okay to need a break and schedule it in to your day. Listen to your body if it is telling you you are hungry and cant focus and lunch is a hour away there is no point waiting and wasting this time not focused. Take 5 minutes and refuel yourself as we will never do our best work if we don't take care of ourselves.

Final thoughts

Majority of us can get wrapped up in the sheer quantity of work we have to do but we hope these tips can help you take a step back and realise your only human and you will not be working at peak efficiency 24/7. It is important not to put the expectation on ourselves that we will be these productivity robots but instead work on improving our productivity with easy to implement strategies. We hope these 5 tips productivity tips allow you to leave the work day feeling accomplished and proud. Some days no matter what we try our productivity is just not there and that is okay to the next day is a brand new day to implement these strategies don't be too hard on yourself you've got this!

For further help in maintaining that work productivity I recommend checking out melissa Gratias a workplace productivity coach that has a podcast with more tips and tricks. It is a great podcast that really takes in to account that we are only human and we do have struggles with motivation and focus sometimes.