7 Productivity Hacks That Will Make You More Successful
What every entrepreneur should know
7 Productivity Hacks
There are plenty of different productivity hacks out there, and many of them aren’t too useful. From wearing your socks inside out to get that fresh feeling to eating more protein at breakfast, the internet has a lot of information on how to become more productive, but it’s hard to know what tips and tricks will actually help you accomplish more with your limited time.
After reading this list of seven productivity hacks every busy entrepreneur should try, you’ll know exactly which methods are worth your time and which ones aren’t worth the effort.
Set Clear Goals
Setting clear goals is one of those tried and true productivity hacks that doesn’t get enough attention. When you have a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish, you will be more likely to achieve success in your business ventures.
Rather than letting your day to day activities guide your schedule, take some time to brainstorm a list of objectives and develop an action plan to help reach them. If not now, when?
Use The Right Tools
When it comes to productivity, tools aren’t everything but they can make a big difference. Some people swear by their Trello boards while others prefer to make lists on paper. All of these are valid productivity strategies and should be viewed as such.
The key is to know what works for you and then build your day around that. What’s more important than figuring out which tools will help you manage time more effectively? Once you do, take advantage of them.
You don’t have to purchase anything new; if pen and paper work best for you, keep using them! There are many different productivity hacks out there; if one doesn’t work well for you or feels like too much effort, try another one until something clicks.
As long as you use whatever tool helps your productivity (and doesn’t distract from it), that’s all that matters! And if something else works better in its place later down the line, go ahead and switch it up again! Once you figure out what makes sense for your life and schedule, stick with it.
Manage Your Email Responsibly
Managing your email is a critical productivity hack for entrepreneurs. If you let your inbox get cluttered with messages from people who don’t require a response, it can make you feel disorganized and out of control.
To help keep things under control, start using tools that prevent you from replying to or filing emails unnecessarily like Unroll.me (which organizes all of your email subscriptions) and Boomerang for Gmail (which lets you schedule sending or filing emails at later times).
Also, avoid checking work email outside of normal business hours , it can make it hard to maintain a consistent work life balance.
Delegate Tasks
One of the best ways to increase your productivity is to simply outsource things that are eating up too much of your time. Just remember, it’s not about finding cheaper alternatives to do your work for you, it’s about improving efficiency and making sure that you’re spending your time on what only you can do.
If you can get a better deal by having someone else take care of something, or by using software or tools to automate a process, then delegate away! Here are a few places where you might be able to save yourself some trouble
Stop Multitasking
In our always on world, we’re bombarded with endless demands and opportunities. But did you know that trying to do everything at once may be slowing you down? According to a study by McKinsey and Co., we waste about 25% of our time by failing to prioritize, take action or set aside distractions.
If you can focus on one thing at a time, you’ll get more done faster. So stop multitasking and focus on one task until it’s complete before moving on to another. It might feel like a drag in the beginning but you’ll get used to it and will likely be much more productive as a result.
Remember: Slow and steady wins the race!
Create the Right Environment For Maximum Productivity
Maintaining a healthy work life balance is one of most difficult tasks as an entrepreneur, but it’s also something that will make you more successful and happy in life. To optimize your productivity, it’s important to create an environment where you can be as effective as possible at work while still enjoying downtime.
For example, if you’re working from home and children are nearby, try wearing headphones to block out distractions. If music isn’t your jam, consider listening to nature sounds or white noise. Also try using an app like Forest or Anti-Social for extra accountability, you won’t be able to check social media if you have unopened business emails stacked up!
Take Smart Breaks
The more time you spend working, the less productive you are. It’s counterintuitive, but it’s true we work on much higher levels when we change activities every hour or so. To be most productive, set an alarm for every 45 minutes and use that as a reminder to stand up, walk around for three minutes and stretch your legs (and if you can take a quick walk outside, even better).
When it’s time to relax again, do something fun! Play video games or read a book; it will rejuvenate your mind and help you come back with a new perspective in no time.
How Do Entrepreneurs Increase Productivity?
We all know that multitasking is a myth. Instead, we should focus on doing one thing at a time and doing it well. Here is a tips from a successful entrepreneur:
Don’t keep your phone in your pocket while you work: The biggest productivity hack I have learned is to leave my phone in another room when I am working. I find that when I’m working, I don’t want to be distracted by texts or social media notifications. If you must keep your phone nearby, set up Do Not Disturb so that you’re not constantly getting notifications and remember to turn it off once you’re done with work for the day!
Conclusion
So what’s next? Putting these tips into action, of course. Knowing how to be more productive is great but it means nothing if you never do anything with that knowledge.
Start applying some of these tips now, whether it’s forming a morning routine or scheduling an hour for creative work every Sunday and you’ll start to notice positive changes almost immediately.
Remember: once your new habits become a part of your lifestyle, not only will you get more done, but you’ll be happier and healthier too. I wish you luck!
