Remember when we thought technology would save us a lot of time? Two decades ago, we believed that, for example, sending an e-mail would take much less time than taking a letter.
Of course, sending the email really is faster than the letter, but we couldn't predict everything at that time. What we didn't know was that while it would allow us to save time on the one hand, we would spend even more hours and hours on other technology-related activities.
Every day, we get an avalanche of spam, Facebook notifications, WhatsApp messages and endless stories to watch in half a dozen different apps. That is, we are interrupted all the time and it is very difficult to maintain concentration.
With so many resources at hand, it can be tricky to get organized to stay productive, which makes us waste precious hours every day with the accumulating mess. If you are suffering from this issue, take a look at the tips we have separated:
1. Check your emails, but only read what matters
According to some authors, e-mails activate a boost in our brain, causing it to seek rewards. Are we waiting for some wonderful news to come through this tool, so we check the inbox non-stop? something that contributes nothing to productivity.
Also read: 10 Habits You Must Avoid To Be More Productive
The key to solving this problem is to take two or three 30-minute breaks a day to check your emails and be selective about what you read. Advertising emails and offers, for example, should not take up much of your day.
2. Don't trust the memory: write it down!
Just as you remembered most of the school subjects when you took notes in your notebook, it is easier to remember daily tasks if you write them down.
It is worth noting in the cell phone or in the traditional paper notepad. You may find that you will spend a few seconds dedicating yourself to recording your tasks, but you will thank yourself later in the day.
3. Have a right place for everything
Life becomes a mess when we don't know where to find what we need at the time we need it. And that goes for objects like the phone charger and its voter title as well as digital documents, which end up getting lost amid so many cloud storage devices and services.
While objects need to have a right place (and you should always return them to that place after use), you can organize your digital documents into groups according to frequency of use. Be sure to keep a file describing how your system works.
Read also: How to prevent personal problems from interfering with working life
4. Make to-do lists and cross out as soon as you complete them
Are traditional to-do lists an excellent tool for planning your day? and you can do it on paper even if it doesn't fit well with digital lists. Divide the longer tasks into smaller steps and cross them out as they finish.
Also, jotting down a time forecast for when you are going to perform each task is also a good trick to better organize your time.
5. Find Time to Get Organized
At the end of each day, try to set aside about 15 minutes to put your things in place? be it files on your work computer or the clothes around your room. The important thing is not to let the mess accumulate for the next day.
At first it may seem like you are spending more time, but this habit will save many hours of the days to come.
6. Don't be multitasking all the time
Doing several activities at once may seem like a good way to save time, but this is not a good idea when you are doing something important that requires your concentration.
Read also: Workspace organization and professional image
Interrupting a task to check a notification on your phone, for example, takes a lot more time than it sounds, as it takes more than 20 minutes to regain our previous concentration level. That is, if you need full attention to accomplish a task, it is best to turn off any kind of alert that might be distracting.
At first it may seem a little difficult to put into practice the tips we suggest, but they are all habits that can be gained through persistence in everyday life.
How To Be More Productive - Reverse-Engineer your day for Productivity and Time Management Tips (May 2024)
- 1,230
