Time is the most valuable commodity. So valuable that no amount of wealth can ever replace it. Once lost, it is gone for good. That’s why there is a reason why businesses, may it be large or small scale, consider time wasted as money wasted.
The question is, do employees make the most of every minute of their working hours? The majority may not admit it, but, the truth is, they are struggling in trying to maximize their time and fail to keep up with their productivity. Distractions are everywhere. Once they get distracted, it is harder for them to get back to focus.
Common workplace distractions
Being in the workplace/office doesn’t guarantee an employee’s productivity. There are just too many factors affecting it, there are the obvious ones and the not-so-obvious ones. Here are the common workplace distractions that affect an employee’s productivity.
Social media– Oh how addicting social media can be. Imagine scrolling through TikTok and the next thing you know you have spent 20 to 30 minutes on your phone looking through videos. Time passes by so quickly when you are on your phone. I know that. I am guilty of that, as well.
Workmates– Working is no fun without a workmate. Granted, you are there to work and earn money, but most people stay because of the people around them. I know, I’ve been there. The problem is, once you have gotten all close to your workmates, talking and gossiping in the workplace can’t be avoided. That, most of the time, is the reason why you lose focus on the work at hand.
Meetings– Others may disagree with this, but yeah, meetings are one of the reasons why an employee’s productivity declines. Imagine, you are on a roll working on your tasks and suddenly a meeting is called. Most likely you will get distracted after the meeting. You won’t be as focused as you were before getting disrupted. Besides, you can do without those meetings anyway, not unless it is an emergency,
Multitasking. To those who love to do two or more tasks at once, it is not helping. Multitasking only takes you longer to complete simple tasks. Besides, our brains are not wired in working different tasks at the same time. The outcome will be affected and are more prone to errors.
What To Do To Maximize Your Time And Be Productive
So how do you combat those workplace distractions and be able to maximize your time? There are many ways to do that, depending on how and where you are comfortable. But, to give you an idea of where to start, here are the following ways you can apply to help you maximize time and increase your productivity.
Plan your day. You must have heard this countless times already. And a lot of times you just snob it thinking it won’t change things anyway. But, it does. Especially when you get distracted and kinda get lost in the pile of work on your table. Since you made time to plan your day, there is something you can refer to help you get back on track.
Prioritize. Setting priorities doesn’t only apply in life. It is also effective in going through your day. Go through the list of things you need to do and identify which is the most important, the most urgent, and the most complicated task. From there, schedule your tasks considering those factors. It is easier to recognize what task you should work on first by determining their level of significance.
Time block. Time blocking may be a new concept to you but big names in the business world are associated with this concept. This time management technique allows you to plan out every moment of your day in advance and dedicate specific time “blocks” for certain tasks and responsibilities.
After deciding on what task to prioritize, you can now block specific times of the day to work on it. This way, multitasking will be avoided, and you can be sure that you will finish work within the deadline.
Avoid distractions. This may be hard at first but very doable. The most common types of distractions are listed above, but you are the only one who knows what distracts you from doing work. If you can’t turn your back on it right away, limit it. Include checking social media while time blocking, 5 minutes is enough to be updated. Make sure, though, that you won’t go beyond your allotted time or your schedule will be ruined.
Learn to say no. This might be the hardest to do especially when you are new to the job. People are expecting you to accept whatever tasks/favors are given to you. Set it straight. You have to do your tasks. You have deadlines. You have priorities. Decline politely. If they don’t understand, that’s on them.
Delegate. You don’t need to do everything. Other people are competent to do the work. Besides, they might be better than you in some aspects, but because you monopolize it, you fail to see the potential.
There are so many things you can do in a day when you organize your schedule properly. It might be hard at first, but when you start to notice how productive you are after applying the tips above, you’ll get more comfortable doing it.