Whether working in the office or remotely, employees are faced with the same question, how to maintain productivity? Unfortunately, there isn’t a simple answer, as there are many different factors that can affect how you feel during the day and ultimately how productive you will be. However, there are still some relatively easy habits you can get into that have been proven to help workers stay productive.
Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
In almost every aspect of your life, maintaining healthy habits will have a positive effect. When you are mentally and physically feeling better that will translate into your work life and allow you to maintain alertness and focus for longer periods of time.
One of the most important things to do during the day is remembering to drink enough water. The human brain is made up of a staggering 73% of water, meaning it requires a near-constant flow of liquid. Studies have shown that even mild dehydration can reduce mental and physical performance. Lack of hydration can also lead to a loss of concentration, headaches and tiredness, which has a direct effect on your productivity during the day. Therefore, its crucial to keep a full glass or water bottle with you and make sure to keep drinking throughout the day.
Alongside drinking enough water, healthy food is another must. Almost everything you eat is converted into glucose which gives the brain energy and keeps us alert and focused. Your body will process glucose at different rates depending on the food you eat. Meaning that some foods will not be processed fast enough and will fail to provide you with sustained energy. Whereas others will process too fast and the energy will be gone too quickly. Snacks that provide lasting energy for the day include almonds, bananas, yogurt & granola, carrots, apples, and dark chocolate. Items to stay away from include sweets and salty foods. Sweets or items that are high in sugar content provide you with a short burst of energy. Once that burst of energy subsides, you will find yourself feeling drained and barely able to keep your eyes open. Conversely, salty foods should be avoided as best as possible as well because they can leave you feeling bloated and thirsty, and as we mentioned earlier even mild dehydration can affect your day.
Exercising is also very important for maintaining health, like water and healthy foods, it can have a positive influence on work and productivity. Exercise is known to reduce stress, combat fatigue and improve performance, which in turn will lead to better work and fewer absences. Furthermore, each time you exercise and push yourself, your recovery time will become quicker and your energy capacity is increased. In addition, blood glucose and oxygen levels become high through exercise, which works to feed and energize the brain. It also releases endorphins into the body and boosts your mood. Aerobic exercise specifically has been found to influence memory and learning by changing the size of the area in the brain. Because exercise has been proven to have such a strong influence on work performance, companies are starting to key in and offer more benefits regarding exercise.
Plan
Planning is extremely important for staying productive throughout the day. Creating a list will influence you to stick with it more. Below are strategies for how to plan out your day so you are able to accomplish everything you are hoping to.
List out all the tasks you need to accomplish and put them into groups of enjoyable or easy ones, and less enjoyable or more difficult ones. From here it can be advantageous to place the less enjoyable tasks into a time slot when you tend to be more alert. Alternatively, you could try alternating the tasks during the day so you are always working on something a little different. By doing this method you can go between easy and hard tasks so your brain is always able to get a good break from something that is difficult.
Similar to the above you can also plan your day in time increments. For example, make set periods of time in which you are going to work on certain projects. During the set time only focus on one task, meaning try to avoid checking emails, texts or voicemails and social media. Once the time is up you can reward yourself with a small break where you check your phone, walk around the office, get coffee etc. After taking a break, it can be good to check emails, or accomplish small 2–5-minute tasks before starting with your next increment of a large task. Using time increments to complete tasks during the day can eliminate the tedium surrounding working on one single task for an entire day. This will also create a sense of accomplishment because you may feel like you did more because you weren’t just stuck on one task.
Don’t Multitask
Many of us believe that multitasking will allow us to complete tasks quicker, but for most that doesn’t work. Multitasking can actually hinder your process on tasks, because you are constantly working on a variety of items and lengthening the time to complete them. The quality of work can also be affected because your focus is scattered instead of being fixated on one project. If these tasks are not being accomplished well, that may mean you have to go back and fix them, which ends up being more work than the task should have taken in the first place. This all comes back to the importance of making a plan for the day, including certain time blocks in which tasks are going to be completed individually.
Take Breaks
While making the daily plan, it’s vital to add in breaks throughout the day. Even if you feel you have a lot you need to accomplish, try to take a break after about 60 to 90 minutes of hard work. These breaks are a great chance to go for a small walk, get a refill on coffee or water and take the opportunity to reward yourself for doing hard work for the last hour. Many people will end up working harder when they are working towards a reward at the end.
Walking or moving during your break changes up your environment and can provide the brain with a better break because you have removed yourself from things that require your attention. The best way to truly disconnect it is by eating your lunch away from your desk. Because that gives you an hour away from everything work-related. Then when you return to your desk you are going to feel sufficiently more recharged and ready to tackle the afternoon’s tasks.
If you are having issues with productivity and are currently working from home, check out a coworking space like ReSourceYYC. Changing the space you are working in can significantly help with productivity, especially if you are finding there are a lot of distractions at home. In a coworking space you are rewarded with ergonomically correct furniture and amenities that keep you feeling your best. In addition there is a professional feel to the spaces and a community of like-minded professionals to connect, and gain support with. All together making coworking spaces an ideal place to go when you want to become a stronger employee or need motivation to grow your company.
Sources:
https://www.bbfp.com.au/latest-articles/how-exercise-improves-productivity-and-your-brain-function
https://www.wrike.com/blog/9-productivity-snacks-get-work-day/
https://www.officeh2o.com/2021/07/13/how-hydration-impacts-your-productivity/
https://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/10-ways-boost-your-productivity-the-office.html