Procrastination is one of the biggest killers of office productivity, and it happens to the best of us. Whether it’s a quick browse around BBC news, or spending more time formatting your spreadsheet than actually filling it in – any time spent doing something else other than what you should be doing is damaging to yourself, and to your business.
One of the best ways to fight procrastination is to give yourself a mental slap and tell yourself to crack on. Here are some alternative tips to fighting procrastination:
There are an abundance of online site blocker tools, some more advanced (and pricey) than others, but most aim to do very much the same role – to block you from using tempting sites, whilst working.
Social networking sites likes Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Reddit can all lure you in, especially if they’re showing the little (1) in the tab box. Site blocker tools can limit your time spent on sites likes this, or block them completely for a period of time. This is diving in at the deep end a little bit, but it certainly helps you knuckle down, when your only other option is to stare at a blank page.
Set reminders for the work you’re doing. A to-do list is all well and good, but it is only half the job when it comes to getting work done. If you’ve planned to get a spreadsheet completed by the end of the day, then set periodic reminders throughout the day, with a little message of how far you’d expect to be by this point.
A scribble on a notepad saying “Do work” won’t motivate you at all, whereas a reminder every few hours asking yourself where you’ve got with your work will jolt your brain into gear. If you’re on a Chrome Browser, then consider using Google Keep – the desktop alerts are hard to miss!
Whilst this may not be one of the most important factors in getting work done, it can certainly make a difference.
The act of listening to music itself may not help you get your work done, as it is all down to personal preference, but listening to the wrong music is where the problems occur. When you’ve donned your earphones, try to keep the volume low so you still get the ambient background noise of your office, and stick to tracks which aren’t on your favourite playlist, or that you’re really into at the moment. For maximum concentration, try listening to soft, instrumental music. Something that won’t steal your attention on the chorus, preferably!
Ignoring visual lures is a big part of the battle. Going fullscreen is the one-click solution to these problems. The simple act of pressing F11 whilst working takes your browser from the tempting playground it potentially is, to a zen of whitespace and 100% work. The temptation to click on the flashing Facebook icon – gone. The new tab button, pulling you in – gone!
Multitasking is a great skill to have – you can get, as the name would suggest, multiple tasks done at once. When you really want to focus, you need to cut it out. Putting half of your concentration of two different tasks isn’t always the best way to get multiple things done. It can be much more productive, and procrastination-proof, to focus on one task at a time, and really knuckle-down.
If you know that whilst you’re working you’re going to need water, food, or other necessities – go and get them. Have them on your desk, ready for you. It can be all too easy to fall into the trap of getting up every 5 minutes, or whenever you feel like procrastinating, to get something from around the office, or your home.
Prepare for what you’ll need, so your focus is always on your work, and not on needing things, and having them play on your mind.
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