As much as we hate to admit it, there are times when we somewhat enjoy procrastinating and lazing around at work. That is, of course, until the work starts piling up or we end up missing important deadlines, and we start wishing and praying for effective ways that we can improve our performance and hopefully achieve more success in the workplace.
With the following tips for increased work productivity, we’ll help you get closer to becoming much better and productive workers—and get you one step closer to that raise or promotion you’ve been hoping for.
Come in Well-Rested
Feeling restless during the day will not only give you unsightly undereye circles but can also put you at risk of falling asleep in the middle of your work day (or possibly a meeting). Getting at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep the night before helps keep you healthy and ensures that you wake up feeling a lot more refreshed, alert, and productive the next day.
Maintain an Orderly Workspace
Being more efficient at work can be as simple as decluttering your workspace. Only display important tools and documents that you use daily. This way, you don’t waste time and effort in rummaging through your desk to locate the things that you need.
Get Yourself a Desk Plant
Research has shown that decorating your work area with something nice to look at can increase your productivity by 15 percent. This is because aesthetically pleasing elements like desk plants, pictures, and flowers can increase your level of happiness at work.
Cut Your To-Do List in Half
You don’t have to cram your work day with meaningless tasks just to call yourself productive. Instead of creating a long list, how about jotting down just your top priorities? Remember, less is more, so focus your energy on accomplishing tasks that really matter.
Delegate More
Chances are your job gives you an opportunity to split particularly monotonous tasks among your teammates or subordinates. As much as you can, delegate the tasks that don’t require your expertise so you can save time and focus on more challenging assignments.
Eliminate Distractions
It’s very common for office workers to be easily distracted by other people, noise, and even their own gadgets. Do whatever you have to do to block out whatever it is that makes you lose your momentum. This includes turning off your notifications, saving non-work affairs for break times, and doing anything that can improve your focus.
Finish Difficult Tasks Before Lunch
Here’s a challenge for you: Try to pack your mornings with the hardest tasks and make it your goal to finish them before lunchtime. Heavy meals can make you feel sluggish and slow you down, so it’s best to tackle important assignments while your brain is fresh. This way, you also get to feel more at ease towards the end of the day.
Boost Your Energy Levels
One of the best ways to keep yourself going is to maintain good energy levels. Aside from getting enough sleep beforehand, it helps to avoid food that’s high in added sugar. Stock up on healthier energy-boosting snacks like hard-boiled eggs, low-sugar protein bars, fruit and vegetable smoothies, yogurt, and even dark chocolate.
Take Regular Breaks
Being productive doesn’t mean working nonstop. Work breaks are crucial to keeping your mind fresh and your energy levels high throughout the day. To maximize productivity, work for about 90 minutes straight (or if that seems too much, cut it to around 60 to 75 minutes) then take a 15-minute break to walk around, talk to colleagues, or grab a snack.. This gives you an opportunity to increase your daily physical activity and helps you come back to your desk feeling more recharged.
Stop Multitasking
Contrary to popular belief, multitasking doesn’t actually increase efficiency. In fact, it may even be the opposite, as psychologists claim that doing several tasks at a time will actually make you work much slower than if you were committed to completing a single task. Make it a habit to focus on just one task at a time before moving on to your next project.
Minimize Meetings
Meetings can eat up a lot of your time. If you can’t avoid them, manage them better by shortening and streamlining the process. You can do this by conducting stand up meetings, setting an agenda beforehand, putting a time limit on each topic, keeping slide presentations to a minimum, and only inviting those who actually need to be there.
Avoid Office Drama
In areas where stress levels can spike, it’s easy to get caught up in some work-related drama. While this sometimes cannot be avoided, there are usually ways that you can solve them—like apologizing or seeking the help of mediators—before they start affecting your efficiency at work. You don’t always have to be friends with your colleagues, but you do need to remain civil, polite, and tactful—even with people you don’t get along with.
Quit Striving for Perfection
Once you accept the reality that nothing is ever perfect, you can stop wasting time chasing after this illusion of perfection and just do your best in completing the tasks at hand. If you have to, you can always get back to it and improve it later on.
How the Sitflow Helps Increase Work Productivity
Desk exercise equipment are generally developed to increase movement and battle sedentary behavior. The Sitflow under desk leg swing does exactly that by promoting unconscious moment in the lower body whenever you have to sit still at home, in school, or in the office, thus helping you decrease the negative effects of sitting.
Aside from helping you make the most of your sedentary time, there are many benefits to using this innovative piece of desk exercise equipment—including helping you burn more calories, improve blood circulation, maintain muscle health, and more. But what truly sets this unique and scientifically-tested exercise tool apart from others on the market is that it doesn’t distract you from your daily tasks. You don’t have to consciously make an effort to use it. You just place your feet on the Sitflow, and your body will unconsciously do the rest.
How does the Sitflow help improve your productivity at work?
People often get restless after sitting for long periods of time, while others tend to feel stiff and sore due to the lack of movement. In either scenario, the employee may begin to get distracted or bored with their tasks as they end up focusing too much on those restless mental feelings or the negative physical effects of non-movement.
With the Sitflow leg swing, users are able to combat those feelings through continuous leg and foot movement, which helps alleviate restlessness and keeps them from feeling too stiff after hours of sitting at a desk.
The Sitflow has been proven to do way more than improve the quality of your health. It allows you to freely fidget at work, which helps:
- Release pent up energy
- Stimulate blood circulation
- Reduce stress levels
- Allow more oxygen to flow to the brain
- Increase mental alertness
- Keep you from feeling restless
All of these also contribute to improving your mental health so you can become—and feel—more efficient at work.
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