Practical Tips on Working Efficiently
Have you ever sat there in the midst of a project or on the job and thought to yourself "there has to be a better way"?
Have you ever tried the latest and greatest habit tracking apps, organizers and planners in hopes that you'll find something that will help you improve your efficiency and allow you to work SMARTER not HARDER?
Me too.
For that reason, I've jotted down a couple quick pointers that have helped me organizationally, mentally, emotionally, personally and professionally be more efficient, effective, and productive and today I want to share them with you.
1. Value Time
When I began to truly value my time my whole life changed. Sounds simple, I know, but sometimes the simplest things are the most profound and the hardest to perform. Time is life, and life isn't a dress rehearsal. We get one opportunity to seize everything we ever wanted. One moment. So in order to be most effective at the task at hand, one must first understand what their time is worth and that what they can accomplish within that alloted amount of time equates to their value. Want to make more? Add more value. Want to add more value? Make yourself more valuable. Learn. Read. Listen. Ask questions. Invest into your greatest asset: You.
"Until you value yourself you won't value your time, and until you value your time you won't add value to others."
-Scott Peck
Therefore; value what it is that you do. Value who you are. Value what you can bring to the table that nobody else can bring. Value your uniqueness. There is only one you. Nobody was born with your laugh, your smile, your eyes, your voice, and your heart. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Value you. When you do, valuing your time will simply be a byproduct of that.
2. Do things in Order of Importance
Stephen was right. When I started to understand the value of my time, I started to realize that I had a very limited amount. In fact, I started to realize that having 24 hours in my billfold was the only thing I had in common with everyone else. Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Richard Branson, my father, and the panhandler on the corner all woke up this morning with the same number of hours in their account. This realization made me think about how I was investing those hours.
"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." -Steven Covey
After we count sleeping, eating, bathing, and working a full time job, most folks don't have more than 5 or 6 hours (if that) to invest into themselves, their family, their, their passions, etc. By prioritizing what matters most and completing what's most important first, it not only allows me to "Eat the Frog" as Brian Tracy would suggest (which is where one completes the hardest, most important thing on their list of things to do first), but it frees up mental capacity to focus on what’s most important and in turn, decrease stress, anxiety, worry, and so much more.
Some practical steps might look like this:
- Make a list of everything that needs to be accomplished in a day.
- Number those tasks by order of importance (ie. 1 being most important and a 5 being least).
- Schedule calendar accordingly by first scheduling 1’s, then 2’s, etc. Then stay accountable to that schedule!
(Hint - do this the night before!)
3. Clear your desk/desktop of all but what's most important to you at that moment.
This isn’t to say “clear everything off of your desk”, and it’s certainly not to be used as an excuse to procrastinate work. In the past I’ve found that I could spend more time prepping my workstation than actually working. If you, too, find that you are doing the same you might be suffering from what I suffered from for years: procrastination disease.
“If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is the sign of an empty desk?” -Albert Einstein.
Having an organized workspace is of value, and will minimize distractions. By only having that which is of utmost importance at hand, I’m able to focus more on accomplishing those things which are most important and add the most value to me and others. It’s easy to be “busy”. I talk to more people that are “busy” but not accomplishing anything of substance than I’d like to admit. Busyness does not equate to productivity, so by having a decluttered workspace I avoid the busyness that can come with distractions such as text messages needing replies, unanswered emails, facebook and LInkedIn messages, unopened letters, reconciling bank statements, or whatever else may lead me astray.
I hope these tips and tricks can serve you so that you can lead a more productive and fulfilling life!