By Dave Oshlag, W5Templates
We all want to be more productive with our workday. That’s a fact.
One major challenge is that we are faced with many, many competing and sometimes conflicting sources of information on a daily, hourly, minute-by-minute basis. Meetings, phone calls, conference calls, email, texts, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and our project lists all vie for our attention. Staying focused is harder than ever.
ONE: Our work environment has a lot to do with it. Do you work from home, in a private office or an open office environment? Each has its own and unique challenges. Being comfortable in your workspace is key – if you can change it more to your liking, do so. One of the most overlooked and easiest things to fix is the ergonomics of your computer screen: the middle of the screen should be at eye-level, re-enforcing better neck-spine posture vs. looking down, which causes neck stress. TWO: The length of time you work on a project matters. Work world psychologists suggest that working and concentrating for a period of 90-120 minutes at a time and then taking a break is optimal. This gives the “thinking part” of you a chance to breathe. The bigger challenge may be creating a solid block of time to work on that project. The solution for this is to schedule “my project time” in your on- line work calendar. THREE: Stress is a huge killer and distractor of a productive day at the office. The counterbalance to stress is exercise. But not just occasional exercise. Non-negotiable, daily, never miss it, have to make it priority one, exercise. Our brains get clogged and bogged down with each piece of information we process, and we need to make sure to clear our heads during each day to keep ourselves functioning and productive at top form. FOUR: Focus is key. If you have lists for your lists, or electronic lists for one set of projects and paper lists for another set of projects, where do you start? Simplify. Start each day with a 3x5 card or free space in your daily planner and write out your top-five “to do” list for this day. Don’t start with the easiest task, which is human nature, start with the “to do” that requires the most thinking power and tackle that at the start of your day, when your mind is clearest. FIVE: Sunshine makes us feel good. It helps stimulate the serotonin in our brains. Having a desk by a window makes a difference. Going for a walk outside in the sun helps us boost our ability to process. SIX: And finally, sleep. Today’s stressors make it hard for many of us to turn off the subroutines, the little thoughts that run through our brains at night when we’re trying to fall asleep. If you’re not dreaming at night, consistently are waking up tired, or with a headache, you’re not functioning at top mental capacity.If you suspect you’re not getting a good enough night’s sleep, start by not doing work in the evening to give your mind a chance to unwind. Do not bring your electronics into your sleep space, as much has been written on the detriments of electronic hyping prior to bedtime. If you’re still having issues with sleeping, consider talking to your PCP about a home sleep study. Awareness of sleep disorders is on the rise, with as many as 50-70 million US adults reported to have a sleep disorder, 48 percent reporting snoring, and 38 percent unintentionally falling asleep at least once during the day in the last month.
So let’s review what can make us more productive: optimize your work space, work in 90-minute blocks of time and then take a break, consistently exercise to de-stress, create a simple top-five “to do” list each day, get sunshine to boost serotonin, and finally a good night’s sleep. Now, let’s get to work.