When many people think of success, they think of productivity, and so this is a common skill in business that people want to perfect. While productive people may seem to have endless hours in the day, really they have just learned to work more efficiently by using the time available to them to its full potential.
By looking at success stories, it is easy to draw similarities between the habits of these highly productive people and what makes each of them efficient and productive. Here are some behaviours that you should try to work on to give your productivity the boost you need.
Take time out
While initially sounding like the most counterintuitive habit of a productive individual, taking time out from work actually benefits you in the long run. It makes it less likely you will feel overwhelmed, more prepared to tackle the work when you do face it, and more productive when you do it.
Don’t believe me? Maya Angelou was so serious about taking time out and separating her work life from her downtime that she rented a tiny apartment where she did her writing each day from 7am – 2pm, ensuring that she only worked when she needed and could go home and breathe at the end of each day. This led her to three Grammies, a Pulitzer Prize, and many other notable achievements.
Start the day right
Highly productive people also are often early risers, such as Beethoven, Bergman, and Sylvia Plath. However, getting up early does not mean diving straight into work; it means taking time to prepare yourself for the day’s challenges. This could be anything from taking a walk to reading a book, or, if you’re like Beethoven, counting out exactly 60 coffee beans for your morning cuppa. Getting in the right frame of mind for work makes you so much more productive when facing it.
Avoid Procrastination
Productive people also don’t procrastinate. Of course, this is easier said than done, but a great way to limit the time spent procrastinating is to control your environment by clearing your workspace and turning off notifications. In other words, you are forcing yourself to stay focused. Again, let us turn our attention to Maya Angelou who worked with nothing but a bible, a deck of cards, and a bottle of sherry in the room with her. Procrastination can also combatted by setting achievable goals, which make tasks more manageable and therefore provides less reason to avoid them. To set good goals, it is a great idea to write down your frustrations along with your successes at the end of each day, a technique which Benjamin Franklin lived by. This can help you form a better roadmap to success and set priorities for the following days
