You get up early, you make some coffee, you get ready before turning on the computer, you follow all the advice on how to become a genius according to the infinite success gurus... but you still feel like you're not getting anywhere. The following tips will help you continue professional growth, improve your work performance, and create a more efficient workplace:
1. Limit distractions
Let's start with the most basic and, as we know, the most complicated. According to a Udemy study on distractions at work, 84% of Workers estimate that they can fully concentrate again about half an hour after they were initially distracted. What time are you going to think twice before distracting your colleague or your team? But there is more:
Between the notifications that pop up on your phone, your colleague looking at you over his computer so that you can read his mind, the desire to continue reading that thread about a mysterious crime... yes, it is easy to get distracted and continually postpone work, becoming one of the reasons that your performance has dropped. So to achieve great work-related results and stay focused during work hours, you need to understand where distractions come from and limit your exposure to them.
Practical tips:
· Turn on your phone's do not disturb mode.
· Work in a quiet place, if you can choose, or use headphones to minimize distractions in the office, go to a coworking space or stay at home.
· Reward yourself. Once you finish each task the terrible desire to be distracted will start to disappear. What rewards? That's up to you to decide. A coffee, watch Tom Holland's Lip Sync Battle again, Instagram…
2. Set milestones
Creating small goals will help you improve your performance for two reasons: you will be able to achieve your objectives step by step without getting overwhelmed and you will obtain concrete metrics to measure success in the short, medium and long run.
Practical tips:
· Divide your objectives into small tasks, following the methodology SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and in limited time.
· Be realistic with your expectations. Setting goals that are difficult to achieve or in a very short time can frustrate you instead of improving your results.
3. Avoid multitasking
When you start doing one task and another and another and another without having finished the previous one, the quality of the result of each one will deteriorate or, of course, will not be as brilliant as you could achieve. Multitasking may seem efficient, but constantly changing tasks reduces your efficiency. You can fool yourself into believing that you are doing a lot of things and, therefore, you are working hard and well, but it is very likely that you are making mistakes that you will have to fix later. Instead of juggling so many tasks, prioritize what you need to work on and get it done.
Our brain cannot concentrate on solving several things at the same time except if they are physiological operations such as breathing or digestion. Working on different tasks at the same time reduces our cognitive abilities, the brain can only focus on one task at a time! At least if we want quality results.
Practical tips:
· Instead of multi-tasking different projects at once, prioritize them and work on one main task at a time. You will complete it faster and it will be more effective.
· Refuse tasks that could distract you from your real work. Explain to your manager or colleague what you are working on as a priority.
4. Ask for feedback
The only way to grow professionally is to look for ways in which we can improve and leverage our strengths, and feedback is the best starting point. Frequently checking how our performance is going and asking specific questions will help you get the feedback you need. The best way to obtain constructive and objective feedback is through performance reviews. Here you have a brief guide on how to carry out an evaluation.
Practical tips:
· During the feedback meeting, create an Action Plan so that everything you discuss has a solid basis.
· If you are responsible, promote the creation of a feedback culture so that it is never something specific, but rather forms part of your organizational culture.
5. Clear communication
Knowing how to communicate effectively is essential, especially in a digital work environment that often involves asynchronous communication. When we work on a project, everyone involved needs to know what they are responsible for and how much time they have. Effective communication leads to great teamwork, which improves individual and collective performance.
Practical tips:
· When you have problems with a project, just ask for help. Communication is key too!
· Communicate your concerns and ideas.
· If you are responsible for a team, don't forget to give feedback and, of course, ask for it too!
6. Delegate tasks
The fact that there is a man in Spain who does everything, we leave it to Astrud. No one can do everything themselves and knowing when to delegate a task will make you much more efficient. Among the hard skills of a manager, it should always be known when you are doing too much.
Practical tips:
· Divide the project into small specific tasks to know what you can delegate and to whom.
· Assign each specialized task to a colleague who is dedicated full time to the specific field of that task.
7. Exercise
According to a study on the impact of physical exercise on work performance, physical activity improves performance labor. Employees' daily physical activity throughout the day generates resource convoys consisting of physical (sleep), affective (stamina), and cognitive (task focus) resources, which further contribute to the next day's work performance. Physical and emotional resources serve to reduce daily body pain; cognitive resources contribute more to the performance of daily tasks; and affective and cognitive resources are stronger predictors of self-rated creative performance.