One of the main causes of dwindling productivity is a chaotic and messy workspace. Yes, most of us do not have the time to organize our office. But, if we were to know just how much disorganization costs us, we would quickly reconsider. We all know that saying “time is money”. So, making the most out of both is crucial to staying afloat. There are two ways of going on about this. Put in more resources or optimize the already existing ones. Putting in more hours just might be frowned upon by the workforce. If we keep that solution as a last resort, here are some key points to go over in order to optimize our output.
1. Decluttering
Most of us are struggling to keep things in order at work and that includes our own work desk. The very first step should be getting rid of all the unnecessary stuff. It takes up all of our otherwise usable space and brings confusion into the immediate area. Papers are often duplicated and/or forgotten somewhere on those piles. Sure, paperwork is never fun but as soon as we deal with it, we should wave it goodbye. Desk drawers and filing cabinets are often stuffed with old, unnecessary and forgotten items. These are quite often not even work-related. A touch of something personal on our work desk has never hurt anyone, sure. But it should be kept in mind that it is, after all, a professional environment and workspace. Anything that impedes the productive flow of adding value should be dealt with. The general rule of thumb should be that anything we have not used in six months’ time, we never will again. Throw it out or better yet, recycle it. Only when we have done this can we move on to more advanced steps.
2. The multitasking fallacy
It is a common misconception that if we try to do multiple things at once, we will finish tasks quicker. Unfortunately, this is not the case as our brains do not operate in any similar way to our binary servants. If we concentrate on multiple things at once we are not increasing efficiency but we are destroying it. It is long established by psychologists that attempting to do this results in lost time, productivity, and an increase in mental strain. What we should do instead is, focus on a single task and execute it to the best of our abilities. Only then can we feel justified in tackling another assignment. It could take a little getting used to, as we have been taught wrong for years now, out of best intention, of course. But once we do, we can clearly quantify a significant increase if efficiency.
3. Time management
Having dynamic to-do lists is pretty much a must nowadays. These come and are preferred in many forms. Some use digital mediums such as smartphones and personal computers and those more traditional ones are still using a notebook and a pen. There is another saying that goes “A smart person writes things down, other memorize”. Which ties into our previous conclusion quite nicely. As we have already established that running concurrent tasks can be quite tasking, we need these methods to keep things in perspective and not let them run out of hand. Unified calendars both personal and business ones, can be synced across devices and between employees. This can prove to be invaluable, especially in large, complicated, and intricate projects as it makes everything more streamlined and much less prone to error. Time truly is the most valuable factor, one that we cannot buy or make more of. But what we can do is optimize what we already have available and make the most out of it.
4. Adequate toolbox
It is not all about getting rid of as many things as possible and living (and working) in a minimalist environment. There is no effort without tools. Machinery, devices, and equipment result in error-free results in a short a time frame as possible. Having efficient and adequate tools that work seamlessly will save precious time and effort that can be used somewhere else. For instance, instead of cumbersome paper clutter, we can use various forms of electronics that in today’s modern era is ubiquitous. Smartphones, laptops, computers, tablets, updated office software, and always on services are just some of the advantages we can utilize. Apart from that, there are much more conventional tools for any trade. Pens, notebooks, binders, basket trolleys, and many more are always needed in any working environment. It is important to find reliable suppliers in office tools and equipment such as Sitecraft to keep us well stocked. It is absolutely imperative for workplace satisfaction and productivity to have the right tools and equipment for each task.
The key takeaway here is to use as much of our working time actually doing what we are meant to. All of that fumbling around the chaos that is our cluttered working environment cuts into that all-important productivity and efficiency. Not only does that hurt the bottom line, but it does so to individuals. So instead of working harder, we can make the efforts today to optimize our working process and work smarter.
