We’re getting back to basics for January and starting with productivity. A new year often brings new drive so let’s harness it and kick procrastination back to 2023!
Do you ever look back on your day and wonder what you actually achieved? Why it took you so long? What your team have contributed? You may be suffering from a lack of productivity, so here are some of my thoughts to help you improve.
Respect
Respect is the cornerstone of productivity in the workplace. A culture of respect within the team means that no one shirks their responsibilities, no one shifts blame, and everyone has an appreciation for each other’s time pressures and workloads. Fostering a culture of respect starts with you, so make sure you get it through reasons other than your position of power.
Teamwork
A team that respects one another is more productive, it’s that simple. Getting everyone aligned to the common goal of your business success gets everyone pulling together.
People want to be part of a successful business, so work with your team to establish responsibilities for each person’s role.
Training
How do you show your team you respect them? Give them the opportunity to improve…
“Roughly 86% of employees say that job training is important to them – and nearly three out of every four (74%) are willing to learn things outside of work hours to improve their job performance.” SurveyMonkey
SWOT reviews and open communication will identify training needs, but make sure you look at yourself as well as your team.
Communication
An open-door policy might not work for you, but giving and receiving feedback and ideas in a respectful manner is important for boosting productivity. If your team don’t or can’t approach you at any time with their ideas, give them the opportunity to contribute during one-to-ones or team meetings.
Distractions
Speaking of open-door policies, a constant stream of staff interrupting your day could actually be counterproductive. This is just one distraction that could be grabbing your attention more often than necessary. Try keeping a log of the things that are stealing your focus and look for patterns.
Appreciate the value of your time and manage it effectively
Identify your high pay off activities and utilise your to do list and diary management to ensure you focus on those areas as soon as possible. Can you structure your diary to help you go from important task to the next important task? Do you need to allocate an hour per day to work ‘on’ your business?
Eliminate, simplify, automate, delegate, outsource
Another practical exercise to boosting productivity is to look at what day to tasks can be removed, made easier, automated or passed on to someone else.
Can you train someone with a natural aptitude to take on some of your workload or part of the process? That way you’re showing respect to your team, offering them a chance to progress through training and reducing your distractions – Nailed it!