American workers spend 27.3 hours per week doing “non-essential” tasks, according to a study by leading productivity consultants PEPworldwide. The majority of this time is spent handling email.
Keeping yourself on track not only improves your quality of work but will also give your boss the signal that you are ready for the next level of your career. You may even find that you no longer rush to complete tasks before starting your weekend. Here are some simple tips to keep your productivity in gear throughout your day.
- Manage your email. Email can easily cause the derailment of your daily productivity. Establish an organized workload schedule for each day, and only allow yourself a few periods of time to check and respond to
emails. When you can, don’t respond immediately by email. A phone call can be more productive and avoid communication errors. - Minimize multitasking. A study by the Harvard Review showed that multitasking causes a 40% drop in productivity, more stress, and even a 10% dip in overall IQ. Our minds work best when we can stay focused on one task at a time. Prioritize your day to tackle the most important projects first and devote your full attention, until they are complete and before moving on to the next. If an emergency needs your immediate attention, set aside your current project until the problem is solved.
- Write your plan. At the end of each day consider all of your tasks and write a detailed work plan for the following day. When you arrive in the morning, review it with a fresh mind and adjust as necessary. Follow your plan strictly throughout your work day.
- Consider assistance. Regardless of how well you manage your time you may still find you have too much work and too few resources. A temporary specialist can take some of the pressure off your work load and stress level. This may be helpful during high intensity seasonal periods, or you may determine that bringing on additional employees will be a good strategy for long-term success.
Helpmates offers a 100% unconditional guarantee. Contact Helpmates today for a free workflow assessment to determine if contingent staffing support might be right for your department!
