It may sound impossible, but if you make an effort to be productive you can easily do one month’s work in one week. The key to this productivity is to have a system or routine that works best for you along with knowing what needs to be done, when and how.
Focus on importance
We tend to put a lot of effort into urgent tasks, but what makes an urgent task so much more important than what is on top of your to do list? Urgent tasks tend to spark stress especially when someone on the other end is waiting for it. They distract us from what is most important – it’s just how our brains are wired.
When something urgent falls on your plate, analyse its priority over everything else. In some cases, a good question to ask yourself is whether your business will suffer if this task isn’t done this week.
Canadian-American motivational speaker, Brian Tracy, quoted “your most important tasks and priorities are those that can have the most serious consequences, positive or negative, on your life or work.”
Recognise distractions and remove them
Distractions kill productivity! One thing many of us are guilty of is spending too much time emailing rather than doing. Emails are a major distraction. Other distractions can range from checking your phone to chatting with a colleague. Recognise what it is that distracts you and stop feeding these things. If you have to work alone in your office with the door locked and without a phone, so be it. Successful people know how to do one thing right and that is focusing!
Understand the difference between being busy and productive
Being busy actually leads to inefficiency, not productivity. When we’re busy, our minds are all over the place…how can we actually focus? Your time is valuable and limited so don’t get caught up in doing everything because that’s impossible. As mentioned, determine what is important and stick to getting those things done first.
Create a plan
At the end of each work day, plan tomorrow. Make a to do list that you can easily complete between 9am to 12pm the next day and that will bring you closer to your work goals. You’ll be surprised how efficient preparation is. You may even want to save checking your emails until midday!