If you ever feel like you have worked an entire day, but accomplished very little, you are not alone. Everyone from senior management to blue collar employees tends to feel like they are not working as productively as they can. In fact, one source estimates that distractions and lost productivity are costing U.S. businesses an average of $650 billion annually. Whether you are a boss of a small company that needs to improve your own productivity, or you want to empower your employees to be more productive, you should follow these three tips for guaranteed productivity.
Take Care of Yourself First
In order to be productive in the workplace, you need to have a clear mind, energy and a positive attitude. The way to achieve this is by taking care of yourself first. If you are stressed out, tired or depleted, like many American professionals, you will never work at your maximum potential.
Insomnia is a major cause of lost productivity in the workplace, as many of us do not get the amount of sleep we need. It’s important that we get 8 hours of good, uninterrupted sleep every night to function at our best.
What we put inside our body also controls our energy and stress levels and mood. Many of us load up on unhealthy snacks and complex carbohydrates, like chips, cookies and bagels, for breakfast and lunch to save time. However, these are not balanced and nutritious meals, and simply lead to a decrease in sugar levels that makes us crash later in the day. To promote productivity, eat leafy greens, lean proteins and other foods that boost energy levels.
Hold Yourself Accountable
It’s not uncommon for professionals to procrastinate, promising themselves that they’ll accomplish a task the next day, and the next day and so on. This leads to decreased productivity and late deadlines. To guarantee productivity, it’s vital to hold yourself accountable for timely results.
When you have a big project coming up, break down the tasks and create specific deadlines for each one. You can mark them in your calendar, but consider sharing them with your staff or colleagues in order to hold yourself accountable for making sure the project is done on time.
Set S.M.A.R.T. Goals
Utilize a system that helps you become more productive with S.M.A.R.T. goals:
- Specific: Be specific and describe the what, why and how of the goal as general goals don’t detail what needs to be done.
- Measurable: Set goals with clearly outlined results that can be measured.
- Achievable: Set goals that you can achieve with the skills, resources and budget at hand.
- Results-focused: You must dictate what results you plan to achieve with each project.
- Time-bound: Hold yourself accountable to specific due dates for each part of the project.
Making sure your mind and body are rested and properly fueled to face the day, holding yourself accountable and making S.M.A.R.T. goals are three ways to increase productivity in the workplace. However, that is often not enough as you may realize that you require additional workforce or newer software to really make a difference. If you need financial help achieving those goals, IOU Financial is ready to help! We offer small business loans of up to $300,000 in two days or less. Contact us today to learn more!
