6 smart productivity techniques you should know about

There are hundreds of apps and tricks promising to improve your workplace productivity on the internet. But most of them are nothing short of nonsense. The best way to improve your productivity is to understand the individual way you work and thrive and find a way for you to work smarter. To do this, you will need to make strategic behavioral changes and stick to them for a while.

1. The rule of three

If you are someone who is over-ambitious and tends to add things to your to-do list that are nearly impossible to get done within a day, this is a great tactic for you. Instead of writing a long to-do list, just focus on finding three things that you want to achieve in the day and write them down.

2. Time blocking

Time blocking is a great productivity technique for anyone . It involves breaking down your day into time-controlled units. It involves limiting the amount of time you assign to a particular task. Instead of letting your work spill over borders, time-blocking helps you control the amount of time spent on a single task. It works best when you assign similar tasks to get done within one-time block of your day.

3. The two-minute rule

This is an excellent technique for any professional who is struggling with procrastination. The two-minute rule suggests that if you have any tasks on your to-do list that will take less than two minutes to complete, you should just do them now. This technique is designed to get you going right away and give you a sense of accomplishment to boost your work day.

4. DRY – Don’t Repeat Yourself

The DRY principle tells us that we should save time by reusing and recycling work that we have already completed. Repetition can make your job seem tedious and boring each day. Almost every job involves some form of writing or drafting. Creating workflows and templates can help you save time on daily tasks. For example, you can create general templates for your email responses, admin work, invoices, project reports, and other documents. When you need to use one, all you have to do is to make some tweaks.

5. Eat the frog

This technique is more commonly known as the Eisenhower Principle. Take a good look at your to-do list. If there are tasks with impending deadlines, you will be tempted to get them done first. However, the Eisenhower Principle tells us that we should instead accomplish the tasks that advance us toward our goals. This encourages professionals to prioritize work that is valuable regardless of the deadline.

6. The 80/20 rule

The 80/20 rule is also known as the Pareto Principle. It was designed to encourage professionals to get their high-priority work done faster. The 80/20 rule suggests that 80% of your output generally comes from 20% of your efforts. So, finding the tasks that provide the highest return and prioritizing them will help you be more productive.