Improve productivity, fast!

I’ve often found my great intentions to get things done during free time periods in the week are foiled by some kind of external influence, eg:


credit: alisdair

A phone call from a relative that turns into an epic conversation… I go to mow and the mower won’t start… The football starts on TV and I get a little caught up… Someone needs help with some problem that takes up a lot of time… I lose track of time Digging and Stumbling…!

The reasons are many and varied! You can’t solve all of these problems, but there are a few things you can do to improve your productivity in the home or office. Get cracking with these ideas and see how much you get accomplished this week!

1. Take the phone off the hook. When you have something planned for a half hour or hour period, you’d be amazed how easily phone calls can mess things up! Try switching off your mobile/cell too – you’re not going to miss anything that can’t be caught up when you switch back on.

2. Remove other potential distractions. Turn the TV off, put the new magazine out of sight, close down firefox so that you can get that job done.

3. Start on the task at hand immediately. Don’t do a quick last minute email check – this will inevitably lead to a quick check of a web page, which leads to quickly posting some comments etc etc…

4. Tell other people you are not available. If others are aware you are busy, they will be less inclined to bother you for trivial things that can slow you down.

I’ve also found that making a conscious decision to use your time well works better than hoping you get some things done!

What productivity tips have worked well for you? Do some ideas work better than others?