Productive Work: Myth or Reality?

They say, “work smarter —?not harder,” and I fully support it. Everybody wants to be successful at work and have time for hobbies, friends, and family — it’s completely normal. Here, I’m sharing what I know about productivity and multitasking. Scroll down if you’re looking for actionable tips.

Productivity vs. Multitasking

Finishing several tasks at once sounds so tempting! A new superhero is born, his name is Officeman — this is an idea we have to live with. I personally saw multitasking among required soft skills in vacancy descriptions, and it’s really frustrating. Let’s get straight to the point.

Multitasking does not equal productivity. In fact, they are antonyms. Coping with several tasks at once reduces levels of your attention, comprehension, and, as a result, damages work results. Check out this article in Yale Insights for more info.

Doing many things at once is an illusion. What really happens is our brain switching between the tasks back and forth. To make it more understandable, imagine that your attention is a lighthouse with one bright beam. You have only one beam — not a disco ball.

What Is Productivity Then?

The productivity term is actually used in many contexts. Now we’re talking about personal productivity that eventually impacts business and economic productivity.

Personal productivity is a combination of three factors:?

• Many tasks were finished by a given time,
• Work results are of high quality, and
• Little effort is spent to accomplish the task.

If it’s business productivity, we mean a ratio of revenue to hours worked. This one is way easier to calculate, right?

One fun (and obvious) fact: we don’t stay productive for 8 hours straight. In reality, there are only 2 hours and 53 minutes of productive work a day. I know that’s not what you expected, but let’s make the most out of this time.

How to Boost Your Productivity? Some Real-Life Advice?

Like many people working in business, I’ve come a long way to figure out the best tactics to increase productivity. Hope you’ll find something helpful here.?

1. Move from bigger to smaller goals

One big goal is essential when the work starts — it serves as a landmark of your work. But keeping only this goal in mind may lead to procrastination.?

Write out a list of steps you should make to accomplish a bigger goal (or a project milestone). If it’s teamwork, do this decomposition together. Smaller goals should perfectly fit into a to-do list — now you can start working.

2. Know how your body works

There is no perfect timing to finish creative or administrative tasks — it all depends on a particular person. Maybe, “the miracle morning” is not your thing — and it’s completely okay. Take several days to track your activities and reveal your personal productivity peaks.

3. Make it fun

Whatever their age, people like playing games, especially at work. I needed some proof for it, so I found this Microsoft case study. The company provided gamification in their call centers and saw a 10% productivity increase, while absenteeism dropped by 12%.

Try out something simple like a check-off challenge. It could be a competition in your team with rewards for those who check off most of their to-do lists.?

4. Talk to your team

It’s important in many aspects. First, only by asking can you find out what people think about their productivity and what environment they need to achieve higher results. Second, you should delegate the tasks to those who can do it better — for the common good and business success.

5. Take breaks

Last but not least, don’t forget about breaks. Take some time to recharge and get back to your work encouraged and inspired. I personally noticed that some time in the fresh air with no screens helps the most.

Wrapping Up

Now tell me what you think about this productivity trend. What insights have you got so far? And how is your team coping with it??

Productivity to me is a healthy relationship with your work, which is a good thing. At CHI Software, we’ve come far using the simple tips I’ve listed above. Check out our use cases here. And feel free to contact me if you want to collaborate.