Productivity is what drives any successful business, and it can be useful to take a look at the various hacks that experienced entrepreneurs have found useful to varying degrees in the workplace. Some of them may be irrelevant to your particular business, but all of them have found their uses in a range of different environments at one time or other. It’s interesting that some of the simpler ones can be just as effective as their more high-tech equivalents.
1. No Meeting Wednesdays
This works with Facebook so it must be good. Just make sure that in everyone’s calendar there’s one day in the week that’s completely clear for project and other work.
2. Delegate
When people are doing what they most enjoy they’re typically happier and more productive, so make sure everyone on the team is as happy as can be.
3. Prioritize important tasks
May sound like a truism but is often overlooked. It’s critical to set all the objectives before starting work on a task, and prioritizing the most important ones.
4. Use the whiteboard
The humble whiteboard can be invaluable as a team focus point where all delegated tasks are listed and each person knows the role they have to play and the stage they’re at.
5. Use post-it notes
Speaking of humble tools, post-its will still be with us when sega mega drives have gone the way of Betamax recorders. The size constraint even works in your favour to identify and prioritize most pressing tasks.
6. Use Self-Control
With the Self Control tool you can deactivate websites that distract you for a fixed amount of time. Once set, the setting can’t be interfered with and so the temptation is gone. Distractions can be added to a block list as you identify them.
7. Install Rescue Time
This handy piece of software measures the time you spend on various tasks and you can then decide whether you’re being productive on them or not. You get a weekly productivity summary sent in by email as well.
8. Toggl to track task time
Once Toggl is installed you start the timer as you start a task and then see how much time you actually spent doing it.
9. Take time out
If you’re find you’re not actually being productive between tasks, be honest about it and take a power-nap to recharge, rather than pretending to work.
10. Listen to some music
Some people can work better with music played through headphones. Experiment with different types and see what helps get you moving.
11. Account your costs straight away
QuickBooks from Intuit, the leading provider of accountancy software solutions, will streamline your payments and billing systems and free up valuable resources.
12. VIP Inbox
With VIP Inbox you can select your VIP inbox messages and only check these ones. The rest of them will be batched away for someone else to check later.
13. Install a ping pong table
Playing ping pong has proven therapeutic qualities and is a better option for staff in their breaks than smoking outside – and it’s better for your health too!
14. Use Trello
With Trello you can map out all your various company tasks and evaluate them graphically. Feel like a commander overseeing the battle from a hilltop rather than a foot soldier lost in the trenches.
15. Do Not Disturb!
iPhones and Macs can both now be set to shut down sounds, vibrates, alerts and banners and allow you to concentrate on doing some work.
What do you think? Do you practice some of these and do they work? Do you have other ideas we missed?
This is a guest blog post by Carlo Pandian. Carlo is a social media enthusiast that can’t stop to find new ways of getting his work done faster and better. He is a regular contributor for Venture Break and loves sharing productivity tips from entrepreneurs within the community of Tint.
