The Art of Being Productive

Have you ever wondered why some people always deliver quality work on time and do it with a positive, relaxed attitude, whereas others work hour after hour but fail to accomplish anything substantial? We may assume that it is because of intelligence, education, street-smartness, wealth, family, friends, or luck. But that’s not correct. It’s all about being productive.

So, how do you define a “productive” person? The common notion of productivity is the ability to produce a lot of work in a short span of time. This may be partially true, but not completely. True productivity is the ability to create a lot of high impact work in a short span of time. Therefore, focusing on work that makes a difference is what counts; rather than being busy with empty work that creates little impact in the long term.

To be more productive, you must understand the difference between regular tasks that keep you occupied throughout the day and high value, high impact tasks that help you achieve your goals. While you are working, you may be bombarded with a barrage of random requests throughout the day, each one of which can be finished off in just 10 minutes. However, attending to these requests is in reality siphoning off time from your high value, high impact tasks. You may think you are being very productive when you finish the random tasks, but the truth is that it’s just fake productivity. As Henry David Thoreau said, “it is not enough to be busy... The question is: what are we busy with?”

The key to be more productive is to cut away unimportant tasks and focus on the important ones only.  Every morning write down a list of things to do and then evaluate which ones are the most important of them. Question each task from your list to make sure that whatever tasks you select are the best use of your time. You must know your end objective and do things that serve this objective. There is no point doing something unimportant.

Here you can apply the Pareto Principle (80:20 rule - the Law of Vital Few) to work on 20% high impact tasks and allocate substantial time for doing those tasks. And then allocate a time slot, may be at the end of the day, to clear other 80% “not-so-important” tasks. You can always clear those tasks in less than an hour or so, compared with few hours you would have spent attending them in the day. Moreover, from your to-do list, you can automate certain tasks using available technology – for example, bill payments. You may also delegate some tasks that do not require your expertise. By doing this, your time is reserved for the absolute important things.  

Once you have identified the key tasks, it is equally important to set timelines for each task. By Parkinson’s Law, work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion. This means if you don’t set a timeline, you can take forever to complete what you are doing. If you set a timeline of say 8 hours to finish a task, you will take 8 hours. If you set 4 hours, you will take 4 hours. And interestingly, if you set 1 hour, you can actually complete it within one hour, if you really want to.

Once you are left with only critical tasks with deadlines, how do you go about finishing them more efficiently? Should you work non-stop like a robot to complete those high impact tasks? The answer is NO. Research shows that when you work non-stop without breaks, productivity keeps slipping as time passes. However, when you take short breaks at the right intervals, they help you start on a high note, resulting in high output that makes up for the lost time. So, whenever you are tired or feel unproductive, take a quick break. Walk away from the desk, have coffee, listen to music, talk to your friend. You will be charged up when you return which will enable you to get more work done.

While you must take the strategic breaks that increase productivity, you must remove distractions that limit your productivity. Make a note of things that interrupt your work – unwanted phone calls / SMSs, continuous alerts from your mailbox / BBM / Twitter / Whatsapp, the urge to log on to Face Book or check out videos on YouTube, have pointless small talks with your colleagues, or to take unnecessary tea breaks. These interruptions prevent you from getting things done and distract you from doing what matters. So spot these distractions and shun them, especially when you are doing an important task.

When you have completed the important tasks of the day with a focused approach, you will be amazed to know how much time you have to attend to things that you have missed while working. Calls to friends can be more leisurely, FB status updates more witty, reply to emails more meaningful.

In today’s competitive world, you will always have too many things to do and not enough time to do it. However, the best way to get more done is to spend more time doing less. As Peter Drucker said, efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things. But excellence is doing the right things right. Remember, no one achieves productivity by accident. It is the result of meticulous planning and focused efforts. So, work smart and be happy!