It’s never too late to become more productive in your role. Sometimes you just need to find the motivation or that initial starting point.

By becoming a consistent challenger of the status quo you will soon learn how simple changes can help you become more productive. From optimizing your workflow to taking control of meetings, increased productivity is just 10 steps away:

Turn off email alerts!

Email is the single biggest distraction in your day and is a big productivity and time killer. Emails come in and the alerts ring, dragging you away from the task you were working on. It’s human nature, the alert rings and we immediately want to help and respond.

You will be amazed at how much time you get back and the productivity gains that will be achieved by simply turning off email alerts and addressing emails at two or three set intervals during the day.

Several companies have already started to ban email, moving their internal communications to other channels such as group messaging, which foster ongoing conversations and provide searchable chat histories

Stop the email cc’s

People love to demonstrate how busy they are by including you in emails.

Explain to those around you that you should only be cc’d in an email if you are part of a decision-making process. If you are not, then you don’t need to be included.

Include time for self-improvement and ‘downtime’ in your day

I picked this tip up some time ago and it supports a much-needed “working on the business and not in the business” focus.

Time management experts recommend that when planning your day, you should factor in some time for self-improvement, networking and even going for a quick walk to clear your head. Productivity rises when our brains aren’t completely clogged and our days include some respite from tasks and ‘to do’ lists.

Eat

Many 21^st century employees feel so run off their feet that they don’t take meal breaks. This is counter productive because of the impact it has on concentration and efficiency. Make time to eat lunch, and try to use the tearoom, not your desk!

Lunch can also be used as a networking opportunity to catch up with people who you want to nurture a relationship with – client or otherwise.

Apple CEO Tim Cook is known to eat lunch with random employees, which offers him insights into the company he might not otherwise be exposed to, and also helps his staff see him as someone they can relate to.

Use music to get everyone into the zone

This one’s a bit controversial. For every person who claims they can’t work without music, there’s another for whom music is a complete distraction! According to this study, those who listened to music at work completed their tasks more quickly and came up with better ideas than those who didn’t, because the music improved their mood.

Many people feel they work better with music and can even feel uncomfortable with silence.

Use cloud software to work collaboratively

Cloud-based software allows multiple team members to work on one project simultaneously. Applications such as Firepad (for text), WeVideo (for yep, you guessed it, video) or Sway (for presentations) negate the need for numerous emails to produce a joint project. Time savings are a natural result.

Have better meetings

Long and inefficiently-run meetings are a huge productivity killer. According to one managerial communication expert, efficient meetings have clear objectives, a selective list of attendees and an agenda that features time limits for each item.

Personally, I like to ensure that every meeting has a clear agenda before we walk in, and set of clear, SMART outcomes before we walk out! Another trend coming from the tech world into mainstream business is “stand up” meetings. From the get-go, a stand-up meeting is all about quick, efficient decision-making.

Make more of your activities measurable.

The Apple Watch and other wearables are transforming the way we measure our achievements, from the number of steps we take each day to the number of hours we spend standing and sitting. Many of us now use this data as motivation to improve.

Similar tools exist for productivity. Applications such as Rescue Time and TSheets track how much time you spend on activities such as answering email. Having an idea of how long you spend on certain tasks could help you find lost moments, change your habits and help you redirect time to priorities.

Work across platforms and devices

Working across platforms and devices means you can chip away at tasks wherever you are, no matter which device you’re using. This is a great way to ensure you always take advantage of those bursts of creativity and light bulb moments that can take your work from good to outstanding.

I ensure that every application we bring into our business is accessible across all devices in all locations including smartphones, iPads, and laptops. As a regular user of public transport, traveling to work and using my iPad before I get into the office or before the next meeting is pure gold in terms of efficiency and productivity.

Have fun!

I’ve made sure ‘fun’ appears in the job descriptions of every employee at sourceit.

Having fun, making some noise and laughing out loud makes everyone feel good.

I’ve been in the trenches and I know just how stressful it can be dealing with clients, other managers and all the other issues we face each day. But when I hear laughter in the office, I know that the team is in a great place and regardless of how tough it is they are enjoying what they do and are all the more productive as a result.

About Sourceithq Pty Ltd

sourceit is a fast-growing provider of affordable RFQ software delivered via cloud-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform. Sourceit empowers buyers by simplifying the sourcing and procurement process by providing a simple yet powerful solution to help buyers identify the best quote from their preferred suppliers.

Sourceit offers three different products for buyers:

• RFQ – request for quote software for general products and services, 
• Market– a specialized procurement and job management application for Marketing Services, and 
• Catalog – an inventory management and on-demand product/service ordering application.  

Learn more at www.sourceithq.com