Batching similar tasks
A huge productivity booster is batching similar tasks. Batching tasks and then doing them one after another, helps you to save time, because you need less preparation and less time to “get into” the task.
Tasks you could batch:
– sending emails
– making payments
– writing social media posts
– making phone calls
– finding images for your social media and blog posts
Pocket
Does this sound familiar? You are looking up information on the internet, when suddenly you find an article that has nothing to do with your subject, but really piques your interest. You click on it, read a bit and then you find another interesting article. After about an hour or so, you’ve read a lot of great articles, but they had nothing to do with the information you were looking for. Whoops… Pocket is what you need! This is a tool in which you can save articles easily, so you can read them later. It prevents you from losing what you find interesting, so you can continue what you were doing. You can use Pocket as an app on your phone, or as a Chrome extension on your laptop. An absolute must!
Pomodoro technique
Would you like to:
– handle distractions better?
– tackle your procrastination?
– have more structure in your work?
– motivate yourself more easily?
Then you should definitely try the Pomodoro technique! This means dividing your working time into short, timed blocks of 25 minutes (Pomodoros). When the timer rings, you take a short break: 3 to 5 minutes. After four of these Pomodoros you take a longer break: 20 to 30 minutes. This technique is great because of its simplicity and effectiveness. Go try it out and see for yourself!
Email
One of the biggest distractions during a workday is, without a doubt, checking your email. Every ping from an incoming email pulls away your attention from what you were doing. But do you really need to reply to every email straight away? I really noticed a boost in my focus, when I started to turn off my email notifications and started using only 2-3 moments a day to check my email. Such a simple change in your behavior can have such a big impact!