8 Ways Successful People Work Smarter
Ann Brebner 🍓
🍓 The ‘A’ of Jamhelpingout - raising awareness of local charities by offering hands on support as well as fundraising.
Do you often think ‘how do they do it?’ It can seem like some people manage to do everything you are doing in your day and more. Good news, it’s not about what they do, it’s the way they are doing it. We are here to share with you our top 8 ways successful people manage their workload and how you can do the same.
1. Cut out the distractions
Successful people have the ability to work through things much quicker than others. Why? Because they are fully focussed on the task at hand. It is estimated that you spend 16 minutes refocusing on a task following an incoming email therefore it comes as no surprise that some of the most popular tasks our clients outsource to us here at SmartPA are those that distract them the most; incoming calls and email/diary management.
Our top tip for getting started right now is by closing all of the open tabs on your browser that you do not need for the task on hand.
2. Brain-dump
Successful people are cool, calm and collected even when faced with tricky tasks and many swear by the “brain dump” method. A brain dump is one of the oldest forms of organisation, writing all of your thoughts down in one place. By capturing all of the moving parts into one snapshot it allows you to think more logically about the problem at hand and see the bigger picture. Make sure you adapt this method to a way that suits you; if you’re artistic you might need to physically right it down with pen on paper or you might prefer to send yourself an email/use an online tool to record your thoughts.
3. Nail the morning routine
Almost all successful people are ritualistic about their working day and that starts from the moment they wake up. Whether its taking some time to read the morning news, meditate or go on a 30 minute run, the point is these people are taking out some time for themselves to rebalance their thoughts and refocus their energy. No wonder they arrive at work with a different mindset.
Try setting your alarm 15 minutes early and sit down to enjoy breakfast each morning instead of eating on the go.
4. Start with hardest task
Our brains are their clearest in the morning. If you usual log on and completing mundane tasks first thing, we recommend using the first couple of hours in the morning to complete your hardest tasks. Work smarter by using this time to complete tasks that are most likely to make an impact or snatch you that promotion and the late afternoon slug to complete the smaller tasks that use less brain power.
5. Delegate
The ultimate hack for getting your work done quicker; get someone else to do it. Very successful people know the limits to their own skillset and the value of their own time. Just because a task needs done, it doesn’t mean they are necessarily the person to do it. The best way to start is to make a list of tasks that don’t inspire you, and then either pass it onto someone else in your team or outsource the support to us here at SmartPA. We love all the tasks you and your team hate and can assist with anything from data entry to transcription to the very niche. Let us know what admin means to you.
6. Stay one step ahead
Impress your colleagues and stand out from the crowd by scheduling in 15 minutes after every meeting to complete your follow up actions when it is fresh in your head.
7. Live by the calendar
The to-do list can be a depressing way to look at your workload and means that you are more likely to jump from task to task. Successful people use calendar blocking to set their own timelines on projects and give themselves the time to focus on one task at a time. Remember to factor in breaks too – we recommend taking a 15 minute break following an hour of work.
8. Appreciate your time out of work
Successful people know the value of down time. It becomes too easy to pick up emails over the weekend/evenings and not properly switch off. But, by giving yourself the space to relax and enjoy your out-of-office life you will find yourself not feeling stressed coming into work and you are more likely to get a better nights sleep. Try planning something small to do each evening in the week to give yourself some focus.