Posted by Part of being a responsible employee is being able to manage your time and quality of work. Whether you’re holding a senior position or have just joined the workforce, being efficient and delivering your job well should be made the top priority.
In this day and age, distractions come in all forms and bad habits develop from having a negative behavior pattern. They compromise your reputation and respect from others so be wary not to fall into the trap. Take a look at six practices that could be sapping your productivity at work without you noticing.
Agreeing to Everything
If you often find yourself getting overwhelmed due to tasks you don’t even remember signing up for or unable to complete on time, you have a problem. Saying yes to everything isn’t always the right thing to do. In other words, it’s a yes thing to do to say no sometimes. You need not be agreeable to everything to impress your colleagues or bosses, especially if saying yes to a number of things will cause you to procrastinate or under deliver your tasks at hand. Learn to pick your tasks and suggest to share your load with your team.
Procrastination
Talking about procrastination, it’s one of the top pet peeves for bosses. Prepare a work schedule to track your workflow and follow it diligently. The reason why meeting deadlines and keeping up with the calendar is so important is to avoid delay in overall results and delivery plus uphold the quality of work. You don’t want to become the bottleneck to your team’s overall performance. Avoid doing personal things during office hours, stop playing with your phone, get off social media, and don’t encourage negative behaviour like gossiping at your colleague’s desk or office pantry.
Hitting The Snooze Button
Let’s be real. Hitting the snooze button is ever so tempting and we’ve all done it. Unfortunately, studies have shown that hitting the snooze button messes up your heart and brain activity. That additional nine minutes of light sleep seeds your body to decrease in proactiveness and slows down your sense of alertness. Start your day by waking up properly and if you must have a cheeky little snooze, why not decide on a later time to rise. It also helps to retire to bed earlier in the night to get enough rest.
Prioritising The Wrong Things
You don’t need to reply to messages or emails instantaneously. Give yourself some time to sort out the urgent matters first. Random web surfing and heading out for countless meetings will not benefit you either. Be disciplined when it comes to agreeing to give your time. Choose to discuss via emails so you have a record in black and white. You can also opt to do a weekly meeting to follow up on important work matters rather than doing it on a daily basis.
Related: Maintaining a Feedback Culture in Your Company
Electronics in Bed
It’s never a good sign when you don’t get enough sleep, even more, so lack of quality sleep. Researchers have identified that blue light coming from electronic gadgets suppresses the production of melatonin. Melatonin is the hormone that induces drowsiness and controls the level of wakefulness hence, by having electronics around you will lead to difficulty in falling asleep. A recent Norwegian study carried out reveals that using your computer, tablets, and mobile phones before bed increases insomnia and daytime sleepiness. Being sleepy will cause you to be unalert and possibly produce sloppy work on top of sapping your energy.
Improper Diet
Sugary treats, fattening food, and lack of protein can affect your energy level which leads to your productivity level. Assess your eating habits and ensure that you eat well. Improper diet can sabotage your productivity primarily if you’re a junk food fan. You’ll hit a low time by 3pm if you decide to open a pack of salted potato chips or a can of carbonated drink as part of your lunch treat. Choose protein-packed lunches like grilled chicken or a wholemeal cold-cuts sandwich; your body and energy levels will surely thank you for that!
In short, as a working adult; you are responsible to manage your time and tasks. Giving in to bad habits not only makes you lose out on producing quality work but it also poses you as an undesirable employee to hire. Don’t jeopardise your career by working on things you can improve and do less of what drag you down.
What do you wish to do less of at work? Share with us in the comment box below!