Several thoughts come to mind when I think about ways to work smarter instead of just working harder. And, when I think about simple hacks that can be implemented to boost your business, including time to get it accomplished, accompanied by information that will compel you to act, it inspires me to share.
Life can be an adventure, predictable passivity, or somewhere in the middle. Ultimately, it’s up to you. Similarly, your business can be something that allows you to engage with others in a way that brings great satisfaction; it can be a fearful undertaking with potential pitfalls at every corner; it could motivate you and promote personal development or highlight your deficiencies; it could also inspire you to grow or spark constant uncertainty. It can and will most likely be all these things at different junctures as you build your business. However, again, it’s up to you. There are things you can do to influence your outcomes and working smarter is one that you can control.
APPROACH
The first hack is to address your approach. Four areas need immediate attention when working on your approach. They include stopping multitasking, reducing your to-do list, knowing when to take a break, and working within designated time blocks.
Stop multitasking – As most are aware by now, and it’s backed by research, multitasking does not work. Yet, this myth is still being perpetrated in a few remaining circles, but the science is clear; people who believe that multitasking works and continue to engage in it don’t have reliable facts to prove it. The facts prove just the opposite. No matter how good it feels to have your attention diverted back and forth between multiple projects, it simply does not work.
Countless studies prove it is not easy to concentrate on various tasks, especially if some require real focus or in-depth thinking. What you are doing is delaying the completion of all the items you are working on because as you switch between tasks, you are making it harder to give appropriate attention to any one of them entirely. To be clear, watching your favorite program while exercising may be fine; however, attempting to participate in a virtual business meeting while working on an essential assignment off camera is not. One of them will end up being neglected, causing you to compromise the quality of your work by diminishing effectiveness, reducing productivity, or both.
The sooner you realize multitasking is not your friend, the better, and any effort to master it is an exercise in futility. It’s costing you precious time that could be better utilized by having a structured plan that focuses on critical consecutive single-tasks. Of course, this new way of working will not magically happen. Learning the mastery of single tasks working requires skill, and skill development requires time and regular practice. It will not be easy because old habits die hard. Sometimes the need to feel productive causes us to “pile on” by working on several tasks simultaneously. We can even fool ourselves into believing that by working on 2, 3, or even 4 things concurrently, we are getting a lot done, yet nothing could be further from the truth. Divided attention is detrimental to efficiency.
Reduce your to-do list – At first glance, this may seem obvious, but it’s easier said than done, especially if intentionality is not part of the process. While the pain, discomfort, and fatigue that you experience may be palpable when you have too many things on your to-do list, it can be challenging to change this behavior which has become a habit. Don’t fret; if you are guilty, you are not alone since this pesky habit is prevalent among many busy people. However, being active is not the same as being productive or efficient, and in most instances, it means your attention needs to move to working smarter. Therefore, a shorter to-do list positions you to get more done when it’s based on a single task being accomplished because you can delve into real work and complete it. Also, your reduced to-do list is easier to refer to throughout your day.
A more concise list increases the probability of success because it’s user-friendly and improves your ability to stay on track. This affords you an opportunity to recalibrate if you have strayed off course. It is best if you start with your most important tasks first. Only list 3 – 4 significant tasks because it has been established that a lengthy to-do list with more than 4 or 5 daily assigned chores will impact your success rate negatively. Also, your 3 – 4 significant tasks will probably have 1 or 2 supporting related items. Therefore, it’s crucial to create and stick to a short to-do list; recognizing that anything more places you beyond the limit of what’s suggested as best practices.
Implement 90-minute work blocks- Researchers have discovered our brain can last for about 90 minutes at peak efficiency. So, if you want to operate at an optimal level, you should plan your day in 90-minute work cycles and no more than 120-minute cycles. When your concentration is best, you are less vulnerable to distractions, and your energy level is the highest. Your time blocks should include related activities in each time cycle. You are working smarter when you group and align like tasks. For example, you may want to schedule meetings during specific times of the day, late morning, early afternoon, or back-to-back as one block of time. Another time block may be dedicated to researching, updating notes, brainstorming, and outlining your next steps. Likewise, you could schedule a block of time to review, respond, and write emails rather than being reactive. Preparing for meetings, reviewing daily tasks, and working on assignments could also be a 90 – 120-minute work cycle.
What you will find over time is what used to be laborious tasks characterized as nagging intrusions and interrupted flow are now effective sequences of slated work. Production time blocks when your energy is at its peak. Learning to manage your time and maximize your energy levels will greatly increase your productivity. Once you have scheduled your 90-120-minute work blocks, you need to plan your break times.
Schedule 20–30-minute break times – working smarter includes taking mental health breaks throughout your date. Brief breaks during your scheduled activities will help you decompress and refuel. In a world where time seems to have accelerated, you need to know when enough is enough. One way to ensure you are taking mental health breaks is to plan them and commit to honoring your break times with the same enthusiasm you protect your work time. Burning the candle at both ends and always being available to everyone is a sure recipe for burnout. And if not burnout, it’s damaging to your creativity, productivity, and success. Yes, there should be scheduled time during your day when you can and should assist others; however, there should also be times you shut down your computer or at least walk away from it to refresh and rebuild your mental vibrancy. It would help if you didn’t wait until you find yourself exhausted or rereading text repeatedly. Or you find yourself slipping into daydreaming during conversations, and no matter how much you try to be attentive, your mind wanders, so you can’t focus. Instead, you should be proactive and schedule 20 – 30-minute breaks to follow every 90 – 120 minutes of work. It is essential to your well-being and healthy living.
PROCESS
The next hack has to do with the process. When we think about the process, we think of the logical steps needed to run your business or the workflow needed to make it successful. These are the things that are fundamental to your business, including management, optimization, mapping, and automation, to name a few. Even if your business is small or a start-up, these processes are vital in helping you manage your business functions. It’s all about working smarter by streamlining to create greater efficiency and productivity.
You design strategies to help you achieve your goals by planning and mapping your process. While some of your processes will be manual, many will be automated and use technology so you can gain and reclaim precious time. Designing strategies make it easier to focus on high-impact tasks requiring commitment and discipline.
Additionally, creating new processes sparks opportunities for collaboration and integration. You will be able to centralize related single systems that are relevant. As a result, it creates openings for similar tasks to be combined or new methods to be launched. For instance, an easy-to-use email platform can be valuable for collecting customers’ names, establishing a follow-up system, and developing client profiles to reduce the waste of resources while identifying and gaining valuable time to re-invest in your business. Freeing yourself from unnecessary practices is another instance of working smarter, increasing opportunities to self-regulate, and pacing the tempo of your time allocations so you can improve your business. Whether utilizing a customer management system, researching your competition, creating customer loyalty programs, leveraging business platforms, or forming strategic partnerships, investment in establishing effective processes will strengthen your proficiency and productivity.
Implement
The third hack is all about performance and execution. There are basic steps to implementing business processes. The question is, how to move beyond mental assent, understand what procedures are needed, outline them, and finally, implement them? The way to do it is to set it as a priority and commit to being intentional about utilizing and executing these business practices. Understanding and embracing them brings structure and order to your decision-making and planning that leads to application. A word of caution – if you don’t focus on implementing processes, you will instinctively find yourself gravitating back to what’s familiar, whether it has been successful in the past or not. Consequently, you must identify the action or actions needed and assign them to a person or team members, and if you are in the early stage of your business, this may have to be your responsibility.
Next, the process must be tested or scrutinized to determine its viability. You are checking to verify practicality and affordability. During this phase, you are looking to make an accurate assessment. You use this time to draw objective conclusions about if improvements are needed or not. If modifications are required, where and how? You introduce the improvement and repeat the testing process until you are satisfied with the result. Then, it’s time to fully launch. Once processes are implemented, this is not the end. You must continue to monitor them, to check for threats or inefficiencies that may develop to mitigate risk. This includes even simple risks such as working harder but not more thoughtful or adding practices or procedures that waste time instead of creating optimal performance. While these may seem simple, their impact could be substantial if ignored. To successfully implement processes, you must track their effectiveness, be vigilant, adjust as warranted, then rinse and repeat.
Finally, I hope that if you are not experiencing the level of success you desire, you are open to learning, taking the necessary steps to succeed, and willing to engage in corrective action when required.
When I think back to the times that I needed to get unstuck, I found it most helpful to go beyond my conventional way of thinking and the usual way of doing business. I sought ways to learn from those who had done what I wanted to do, educated myself to improve my knowledge, then I took a leap of faith by doing what was – at that time – uncomfortable action. Recognizing my actions didn’t have to be perfect; in fact, they were never perfect, but I did it anyway. I have never regretted the practice of betting on myself as I continue falling forward to success.
Thus, I say to you, if you find yourself slipping back into old habits or gradually sliding back to what’s familiar when pressure arises, I challenge you to commit to working smarter by using these three simple hacks.
