All You Need To Be More Productive In The New Year

The year 2020 we all waited for and anticipated is here in our faces. Most institutions will be resuming this new week and many are quite optimistic in making it a really good year. The problem, however, is that we live in an unstable fast-paced society and it is easy to feel frazzled and this often result in poor time management and inefficiencies. In actual fact, many of those who had new year resolutions have already betrayed their conscience in less than one week. 

Quite fortunately, there are many ways in which we can regain control over the daily activities that seem to be beyond our control. It doesn't matter whether you are a student, stay-at-home mum, 9-5 employee or a corporate executive, if only you will just decide to incorporate these five easy steps over the next few weeks, you will be surprised how more productive you will be in the new year and beyond. 

1. Set goals and develop plans - Success and progress can only be measured by goals. If you don't set goals, you will lack motivation and willpower to work or do significant things. Without setting goals, humans tend to work at their own pace and get lackadaisical about the things that truly matters. In fact, whatever you can't measure, you cannot manage, hence setting SMART goals is very paramount to success.

2. Prioritize Your Tasks - Both the rich and the poor have 24 hours. How they spend their time is what determines what they get at the end. Interestingly, everyone make plans; even the poor man makes plan to be rich but his problem is often a problem of prioritising. Do not get overwhelmed by the many distractions around - phone, social media; stories, statuses, e.t.c that often steal your time. Instead, take an inventory of everything on your plate and then start prioritising the tasks. This is surely one of the best things you can do for yourself. A great philosopher once said, to thine own self be true. If you would be true to yourself, you would realise that the problem you have is not the lack of time to do the things you have to do but the inability to prioritise well enough.

3. Take Breaks - My personality makes me work-oriented and so, I tend to feel frustrated or depressed when I am without work. But I have seen myself work so hard in the day, achieved quite a lot only to burn out afterwards. Sometimes, it takes more than a night to resuscitate, thereby affecting productivity the next day. It is one thing to power through the tracks when you're on a marathon but when you are on a relay, you know when to give way for another. Life is as such. You have to take breaks. You have to get up from your table and let your mind be refreshed. If you can, step outside and get some air for 10 minutes. Have a chat with a friend or colleague. Listen to a good music. I bet you will be back to work feeling refreshed and motivated.

4. Quit multitasking - Yes, quit multitasking. Don't be deceived any longer that the ability to multitask is an important skill to increase efficiency. This is not all true. Psychologists have discovered that attempting to do several tasks at once can result in lost time and productivity. A better way to do this is to make a habit of committing to a single task before moving on to the next one.

5. Track your work time - It is easy to think you are pretty good at measuring the time you spend on various tasks. However, research has suggested that only around 17% of people are able to accurately estimate the passage of time. Getting an accountability partner and journal is a good way to help you know how well you spend your time and day. There are also enough mobile apps and softwares that help you track your time and activities, and a well help you become more productive and proactive. 2020 is the start of a new decade. Decide to make every time count and worthwhile.

Olukotun Gideon Olusola

Lead Coach, Take the Lead Coaching Consult