Tips to Boost Your Productivity

Since Covid hit in 2020, most of us had to get used to working from home, which had a negative impact on our productivity in many cases. Although working from home has its advantages, it can also distract us from what’s important. If you’re also struggling to get your to-do list done, then keep reading for some tips that will help you work more productively.

Tips to Boost Your Productivity

1. Divide your day

A good strategy is to divide your day and schedule tasks for a specific time. For example, if you know you’re more productive in the mornings, then reserve that time for tasks that require more focus. You can leave easier tasks such as replying to emails for times when you know you’re more likely to feel tired (after lunch, Friday afternoons…). Following this technique will help you make the most of your productive hours.

2.  Set a goal and break it in smaller pieces

Setting goals can be tricky. But achieving them can be even more difficult. That’s why it’s important to break them into smaller tasks and go step-by-step in order to reach them.

3. Take breaks

Taking regular breaks is just as important as working on reaching your goal. It contributes to maximizing your concentration and sometimes when you feel stuck on a problem, a small break can help to solve it.

4. Track your productivity and evaluate

It’s important to keep track of how much time you spend on different tasks. It helps with getting a better overview of tasks that you’re able to complete in a short time and tasks that require more attention. Recording your non-productive time is also valuable. It enables you to recognize when you don’t feel like working, which helps to know when you should not plan to do your work. With this approach, you can evaluate the time spent on working and plan your days more efficiently.

A good way to start implementing this technique is by downloading the Timelines app. It was designed by a Locus Workspace member and it helps you track your time and be made aware of how you’re sometimes wasting it.

5. Create habits and be consistent

Habits are a great way to stay productive in the long term. They help you with continuing in what you do and prevent stagnation. Creating new habits is easy but keeping them is more difficult. In this case, consistency is the key to get things done.

6. Join a coworking space

Doesn’t it sometimes help you to see other people working around you? That’s exactly one of the main benefits of joining a coworking space. At home you’ll find thousands of distractions and nobody is there to ‘check’ that you’re actually doing your job. But being surrounded by individuals in a productive environment will help you focus and cross those tasks off your list.

Techniques and Other Resources to Help You Stay Productive and Motivated

1. Pomodoro technique

The Pomodoro technique – developed by Fracisco Cirillo –  has become a popular one when it comes to getting things done. This is how it works: you work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break, and repeat. After 4 pomodori, you take a longer break of 20 minutes.

2. Eat the Frog technique

Brian Tracy’s Eat the Frog technique is based on the 80/20 rule: focus and put your effort only on that 20% that is most important to you. It is advisable to write on a piece of paper what you’re planning to work on the next day so you know exactly what to focus on and avoid getting distracted with less essential tasks.

3. Group help

Sometimes being part of a group and setting goals together can also help towards achieving them. For example, at Locus Workspace we have a Mastermind Accountability group that meets every two weeks. During the first meeting, we set our short and long-term period goals, and these are reviewed at every meeting to evaluate the progress. Participants find this group a great way to feel liable for completing their tasks.

4. Apps and Tools for Task Management

There are tons of apps out there that can help you get your tasks done and boost your productivity. You can find some of the best in this article.

5. Books

A good read to learn how to improve your productivity is Indistractable by Nir Eyal. Check out this blog post for more information about this book, as well as other books for freelancers that you can find in Locus library.