Doing more isn’t always the solution to a productivity problem. I had recently discovered this when I evaluated the progress I was making on some projects I was working on. When I realized that I was attempting to do more in an effort to get more work done, I found it wasn’t giving the results desired.
I know that many others do the same thing. It’s an attempt to fill the to do lists and project management systems with the tasks, items, milestones, and goals we need to hit. While goals and objectives are crucial to seeing the end to a project, how you get there can be done by traveling on different roads. Which road you travel however can often determine the smoothness of the ride, and the overall trip time (OTT).
What happens to the OTT if you are doing more, but not the right things? How can you know what the right things are to do?
Ask yourself the following questions to evaluate if the task is the right thing, or not:
- Is it actionable? – Meaning can you take some real action on the task
- Does it align with the end goal? – Can it clearly match up with the end destination, or goal
- Does it maximize my use of time? – Is it the best use of time? Email, while a great tool, can be a huge time sink if you aren’t careful. Consider alternative ways to communicate such as an internal project management system, or task list
Some of the most productive thinkers out there, leverage technology to help them do their jobs. While technology is a wonderful resource and tool to help you accomplish things, sometimes it can get in the way.
Spend less time learning a system, and more time building a process.
Question: What have you found helps increase your productivity?
(photo credit: nezitic)