Do you often find our workday spiraling out of control? You start each day with a plan to get so much done, but soon find yourself becoming distracted, focusing on low-priority tasks and, simply, procrastinating. So how can you regain control of your time? One-size-fits-all lists on how to be more productive don't work; we'll outline productivity techniques that can be adapted to your personality and working style.
All workers and workdays are unique. With fewer companies and employees adhering to a traditional 9-to-5 day, the differences in our workdays are becoming more pronounced. But putting those differences aside, three overarching ideas apply to all our productivity tips:
Trust the small increments. You can't expect to change years of working habits over-night. Small changes in how you work can gradually add up to big changes in productivi-ty. Try one tip to start, and keep adding more as you find the strategies that work best for vou.
Be accountable. Whether it's weekly check-ins with a co-worker or setting your own deadlines and announcing them to others, having to answer to someone else can often force vou to get the job done.
Forgive yourself. You are human: Accept that you are sometimes going to slip up, become distracted and have a bad day. It's more important to move on than to dwell on your mistakes.
The tendency to become distracted is primal, so forgive yourself if you do. It arose in our earliest days as humans, when we needed to respond instantly to lions, tigers and other predators that threatened us, said Dr. Miller. Every sensory input was deeply interesting, and our response to it was sometimes a matter of life or death. Our brain has not let go of this ancient survival mechanism; we still crave that informational tap on the shoulder, he said
Fortunately, the more we work on focusing on one task at a time and ignoring distractions, the more we exercise the prefrontal cortex - the more evolved part of our brains. Then it becomes easier to focus.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/guides/business/how-to-improve-your-productivity-at-work