A lot of people feel that they don’t have time to get too many things done. Before you think that, however, take a look at what you can do to increase your productivity. Read about 5 mind hacks to make you more productive.
Have you ever felt as if you weren’t up to the tasks? You have so much things to get done and not enough time. And if you don’t know the root of the problem, it may soon become overwhelming. The reason why you may be feeling this way is that your productivity is low. You’re actually wasting time. And sometimes, you may even not be fully aware that you’re doing so.
Software company Atlassian conducted a study on the distractions that affect employees at work. Emails, meetings, notifications… these all interrupt your workday. It could be as often as every 12 minutes. And your productivity goes down as a result.
Through it all, your body is the only thing that hasn’t changed. Neither is the connection to the brain. You still have to communicate with your brain efficiently if you want to be productive. With that, I will share a few tips that can help you improve your productivity and reduce wasted time. These are 5 mind hacks to make you more productive so you can finally get those tasks done.
5 mind hacks to become more productive
Mind hack #1 Don’t Fall Into the Multitasking Trap
My first mind hack to become more productive is: don’t fall into the multitasking trap. Many people brag about multitasking. They feel more productive if they’re doing 10 things at once. Yet, it’s a common misconception. You only seem more productive on the surface when in fact, your work decreases in quality because of these mental switches.
In truth, multitasking can decrease your productivity by up to 40%. Think about it. How can we ever believe that quickly switching from one task to another is a good thing? If you try to do too many things at the same time, you’re only tiring out your brain. By overloading your working memory, you slow down your cognitive processes. Your productivity goes down and you’ll need more time to finish your tasks.
Also, you’re more likely to make mistakes if you multitask. Time blocking is a better method. Focus on one thing at a time and only move on to another when you’re done with the previous.
Mind hack #2 Practice Mindfulness
When you have to complete a task that you find boring, your brain will listen to your inner talk. It will know that you don’t want to do it and respond with procrastination. How do you overcome this obstacle? Sometimes, you simply need to do things that you have no interest in. And you can practice mindfulness to prevent procrastinating.
Increased focus and paying attention to the task at hand will help you remove the distractors and finish up sooner. And by being completely focused on your responsibility, you’ll also reduce the possibility of mistakes.
Mind hack #3 Eliminate Counterproductive Habits
People create to-do lists all the time. But have you ever tried making a stop-doing list? We all have some counterproductive habits that we’d like to get rid of. If you succeed in that, you will see how much your productivity can improve.
There are certain time-wasting routines and habits that we don’t even realize. Do you put on your favorite TV show when you’re having a meal? Sometimes, you’re three episodes in and you’ve just realized that the food is long gone.
Adding such habits to your stop-doing list can make you more productive. But, you have to be completely honest with yourself when you work on that list. You’re not depriving yourself of anything. What you’re doing is improving your lifestyle.
Mind hack #4 Start Grouping Information
Have you ever wondered why there are hyphens in phone numbers? The brain remembers information much easier if it’s grouped. That helps the brain to process what’s important and rank priorities, which allows you to be more efficient at work.
If you forget things, it may affect your productivity. Not only can an important task slip out of your mind, but you may also interrupt yourself by going back and doing things that you forgot to do. But you can help your brain by associating concepts and information. As long as the associations are meaningful to your brain, you will remember things better.
Another great exercise is remembering things instead of writing them down. For example, ask your new colleague for their phone number and remember it, rather than putting it in your phone.
Mind hack #5 Block Your Notifications
Think back to the Atlassian study at the beginning of the article. Can you imagine receiving a Slack notification every 12 minutes in your workday? If your focus gets interrupted this often, it’s almost impossible to get things done. In reality, things are likely to be even worse.
What about other apps and your social media? Studies have shown that people get interrupted approximately every 90 seconds. That’s why many researchers recommend turning off your phone or leaving it in another room. You won’t get distracted by the sound or the sight of new notifications on your screen.
Not only that, but our phones also have emotional value. It’s where we keep our memories, images of our loved ones, chat history, and all. If you put the phone somewhere out of sight as you work, you break that emotional relationship. You allow yourself to focus on work and be more productive.
Help Your Brain with these mind hacks
It’s easy for us to blame the boss. But are you really overworked? Or are you wasting time and losing productivity? The key is to get rid of distractions. Try practicing these mind hacks to make you more productive. Multitasking is a distraction, so is your phone ringing every 10 seconds. You may have useless routines that are only wasting your time. Maybe you’re overwhelming your brain with information that it can’t process in such short periods.
Apply these mind hacks and you’ll start to notice improvements. And if you’re ready to thrive, Book a Free clarity Call for more strategies and tips that’ll help you maximize your potential.
