Productivity at Work (part 1)

Productivity is something I’ve been interested in for as long as I can remember. Back in my corporate days, I used to devour any Harvard Business Review articles relating to the best times to perform certain tasks - time of day/ day of week, ways to improve working life by being more productive. Since then, I have learned a lot more about what productivity really means. Over the next couple of editions of this newsletter, I will outline what I have learned and some useful resources you can use if you would like to be more productive.

If you’re interested in running a workshop relating to this (or any other topics I speak about) in your organisation, you can book a call with me here: https://calendly.com/happieratworkhq/speaking ?

What is productivity?

Sometimes we confuse productivity with the amount of work that actually gets done. Technically speaking, productivity is measured in output per unit of input. So you could increase your productivity by doing the same amount of work in fewer hours, for example. Often, when we work more, our productivity decreases, not just because we’ve increased the amount of time taken, but because we can't sustain the same level of output over a longer time period.

Why is productivity important?

Productivity is something that’s often talked about, even if it’s not fully understood. Have you ever stopped to consider why it’s actually important? From the organisation’s perspective, if employees can get more work done in less time, it means they can become more competitive, reach their goals faster, and overtake the competition. From an individual’s perspective, those who are more productive are more likely to get noticed by management, put forward for promotion and progress their careers more quickly.

Productivity versus busyness

Have you ever responded to the question, “how are you?” with “I’m so busy!”? I know I have! We have mistaken busyness as a badge of honour; it means we must be really important if we are busy. My friends and family started to get annoyed with me being so ‘busy’ all the time, so I decided to change my language from ‘busy’ to ‘productive’. This also helped me to change my mindset around busyness. To me, busyness implies you are not in control and on top of things, you are giving power to other people to command how you spend your time, and you are potentially using busyness as a way to escape from something else.

Dorie Clark has an excellent TED talk all about how busyness is a choice, why we choose to be busy and what to do about it.?

How do we measure productivity?

One of the first biggest shifts when people start thinking about productivity is the shift in mindset from productivity as an input (energy, number of hours), to productivity as an output or outcome; we need to think about productivity as a contribution to what we or the organisation as a whole is trying to achieve overall. This is hard for a number of reasons. The ‘9-5’ mentality is deeply ingrained in us (even 5 years after I left corporate, I still am living in the reality of a 9-5 world, feeling guilty for taking extended breaks during the day, or unexpected full days off!). We perceive that by working the hours we’re supposed to, that we’re ‘doing our job’.?

‘I worked a couple of hours extra on Wednesday, so it’s ok to leave a couple of hours early on Friday’

An example of this I refer to time and again is when a client mentioned to me that she had put in a couple of hours extra on Wednesday so it’s ok if she leaves a couple of hours early on Friday.?

The reality of the new way of working is that we focus on outcomes. It shouldn’t matter the amount of time that someone puts in, but rather the outcomes they achieve in the time they have worked. This means that if all of your goals are met for the week, then it’s ok to either move on to the next task, or to consider your work done for the week. This requires a clear setting of expectations around what ‘good enough’ looks like, and also how much time should be spent on a particular task or project. It also means that if we are working to our strengths, tasks will feel relatively easier, and take us less time to complete than if we are working in an area of weakness.

What hinders our productivity?

Busy being busy

Sometimes we’re so wrapped up in our own busyness that we neglect to stop and consider whether what we’re doing really matters at all. We are busy for the sake of feeling productive without getting anything of importance done! This is a trap that I fall into when I compare myself to others, or when I get wrapped up doing admin, like website maintenance, that doesn’t need to be done right away.

Unclear goals or outcomes

When you’re not clear on the goals or the outcomes you’re trying to achieve, everything can feel important. We can become distracted more easily, and constantly adding to our to-do list things that don’t really need to be done (but make us feel safe because we are being busy). I am slowly moving away from this type of approach. I have started writing down everything I need to do, and then aligning it to the business goals I have set for myself. If it’s not part of my goals, it gets delegated or deleted!

Lack of prioritisation

When everything is a priority, nothing is a priority. When we don’t have clear priorities to focus on, everything can become a distraction. Prioritisation is as much about knowing what to say no to as it is what qualifies as the top areas of focus. I see this a lot with my clients, their bosses tell them everything is important (and urgent!). There are ways to address this, one example is by asking the question ‘if there was one thing that can’t be missed this week, what would it be?’

Lack of communication

Assuming you have received clear guidance on expectations, outcomes and priorities to begin with, sometimes these can change without you ever hearing anything about it. One client had spent two weeks on a major project only to find out that it wasn’t required after all. This can feel frustrating and demotivating. The best way to deal with this is to take it as a learning, and ask your boss (or whoever assigned the project) ‘how might we avoid this type of situation in the future?’

Perfectionism

When we want to do a good job, impress other people, justify our recent promotion or even hide our imposter syndrome, we can turn to perfectionism to make us feel more in control. I know in the past I could have spent hours checking for typos, adding slide animations - work that wasn’t necessary to get my point across, but felt important as a way to prove myself (and feel busy and important!). A recent tip I learned from Niamh Moynihan was to check in with someone when you think you’re at around 80% completion. The other person may say it’s already done, or make some suggestions to get you to the finish line. This stops us going over in our head how to make it continuously better.

Procrastination

If something feels hard to do today, it seems like a good idea to put it off to an indefinite time in the future, avoid it til closer to the deadline, or not do it at all. Often the longer we put something off, the more difficult it feels in our heads. Sometimes it makes sense to put something off til we’re feeling more energised to tackle it (more on this next edition), so long as we’re not putting it off indefinitely or waiting to feel more “motivated”. There are a couple of things on my list that realistically will take around 15 mins each, but I really don’t want to do them. I am committing to you that I will do them today and then they will be gone from my head and my to do list. What can you do today to remove that task once and for all from your list?

Procrasti-working

Similar to procrastinating, by working on something else we deem ‘important’ (see unclear goals above), we feel like we’re actually doing work towards what’s important. This can look like planning, learning, connecting, side projects… none of which are actually moving the dial on what your priorities are. As an introvert and a planner, I can be guilty of getting caught up in the planning side of things. If this is something you relate to, you can bring these questions into your reflection practice. At the end of the day, write down the answer to this: what did I do today to move the needle on a goal I am working towards. Moving the needle will be actually producing work, reaching out to a client or billing for work already completed.

Waiting to feel motivated

If you’re not feeling particularly motivated to do a task, what makes you think you will feel magically motivated to tackle it in the future? We often believe that some people are just ‘highly motivated’ and others (us?) aren’t. This is not the case at all. People who gets things done all suffer the same lack of motivation. The difference is they know they don’t need to wait to feel motivated. Motivation comes from action and not the other way around. Once you commit to doing something, stick with it consistently and you will see results.

Waiting to be less busy?

The same goes for feeling “less busy”. Picture yourself three months ago. Did you think to yourself… ‘I’ll do this when I'm less busy, when I have inbox zero, when I finish this project’. Guess what? That time is now. Do you feel less busy than before? Or more busy than before? My guess is you feel as busy as ever. There won’t be a magical time in the future when you’re at inbox zero, have cleared your to-do list and finally have time to tackle that big project you’ve been talking about for months (even years). Shift your words to ‘I don’t have time for that’ to ‘that’s not a priority for me right now’ and see what changes…

Presenteeism?

This means being seen to be seen; whether it’s online, sending emails late at night or staying in the office til the boss leaves. You’re not actually working but you’re making it look like you are. A throwback from the old command and control days when being present meant you were working. Thankfully work is shifting to more outcome-focused results than input (time spent) to determine whether you are being productive. If you find yourself in a situation where you feel you need to be ‘always on’, I would question whether that’s an organisation you want to stay in.

Fear

This can manifest in several ways - there could be a psychologically unsafe environment and you don’t feel safe to speak up, you could be afraid to show up your peers by working faster than them, or afraid there won’t be more work for you to do, you could have a fear of judgement, of making mistakes or even success (with more success comes more responsibility). Combat this by creating an environment where it’s ok to speak up about these things - we are human after all.

Distractions

These come in many forms - in office desk drop bys, in app notifications… They interrupt us and take us away from the work we need to do. They say once you get interrupted it takes 23 minutes to get back on track. Sometimes distractions can feel good, but at the end of the day leave us feeling like we haven’t really got our work done. Limit distractions by working in a quiet room when you can, have a signalling system in the office to let people know if you can be disturbed from what you’re doing, use noise cancelling headphones, turn off notifications, do the pesky tasks of emptying the dishwasher or washing machine before you get started on your deep work!

Meetings

Meetings can make us feel like we’re actually doing work. But it’s more often the case that additional tasks come from the meetings and we have less time to focus on our main goals for the day. Have you ever got to the end of the day feeling like you had a super busy day but actually don’t know if you achieved anything? Do a meeting audit of all meetings you attend in a month - are they needed? Do you need to be there? Can the time be reduced? Is there an agenda?

I spotted this from Daniel Pink today and thought it fitting for the message!

Watch outs when it comes to productivity

"when we feel busy, we think we’re being productive"

The trouble with productivity is that when we feel busy, we think we’re being productive. This is not necessarily the case. It’s a trap that we all fall into. Next week’s tips will help address this issue with practical recommendations on how you can become more productive without feeling busy all the time.

I was featured in the Irish Times thanks to Geraldine Walsh sharing my views on ‘toxic productivity’ and also dedicated a podcast episode to it. Essentially it’s when the focus is to be productive all the time, promoting a hustle culture at the expense of our wellbeing. Read about it here . Or listen to the podcast here !

We can get so wrapped up in the capitalist attitude that every bit of our time needs to be squeezed for its worth - we need to make the most of our time, enjoy every moment, monetise every moment. Because if we’re not making money from our time, how can we be productive??

The other problem with perceived productivity is that when something is hard, we feel like the effort we put in is much greater than it actually was. This is why it’s important to know your strengths, work to your strengths and find people with complementary strengths.

?? Related Happier at Work? episodes:

Boosting productivity by removing time wasters with Jennifer Smith

https://happieratwork.ie/128-boost-productivity-by-removing-timewasters-with-jennifer-smith/

The impact of toxic productivity

https://happieratwork.ie/109-the-impact-of-toxic-productivity-with-aoife-obrien/

How to avoid burnout by working smarter

https://happieratwork.ie/117-how-to-avoid-burnout-by-working-smarter-with-aoife-obrien/

What are you doing to support productivity at work? Do you have anything else that you would add to the list? I’d love to know in the comments, join the conversation.

What to look forward to

In the next edition of this newsletter, I will talk about productivity tips you can start using straight away. Available in 2 weeks.

On the Happier at Work programme, we focus on 3 pillars: workplace culture; empowerment; and balance.?

You can take this quiz to find out if you are in a toxic working environment and what to do about it.

Happier at Work partners with business leaders to support them to create and maintain happier working environments by focusing on the pillars of: workplace culture; empowerment; and balance. We offer speaking, training and workshops; happiness audits; research; and corporate programmes.

Aoife O’Brien is the founder of Happier at Work, a business with the mission to support organisations in retaining top talent. She is passionate about ‘fit’ and specifically how creating the right environment can help individuals to reach their full potential and support organisations to thrive. She is a self-professed data nerd, with a 20+ year career in market research in the fast-moving consumer goods industry working with clients like Coca Cola, Unilever and Heinz to solve marketing problems using data analytics. Aoife has been featured by several media platforms and public speaking events talking about imposter syndrome, fit, employee engagement, and productivity. She has lived and worked in Dublin, London, Perth, and Sydney and has a MSc in Work and Organisational Behaviour, a Diploma in Executive and Life Coaching and a Certificate in Career Coaching.?

The Happier at Work podcast , features a combination of interview-based episodes as well as solo podcasting, and has more than 80k listens in more than 50 countries. It was recently runner up for 2 awards and a finalist for the third year in a row. You can sign up to the Happier at Work LinkedIn Newsletter to receive the podcast straight in your LinkedIn notifications when it goes live every Friday!