If you have a specific goal in mind for your business in 2022, you need to ensure you and your team are being as productive as possible. First, you need to consider the direction and goals you want to achieve. Based on your goals, you then need to consider which areas of your business require the biggest increase in productivity. But what can you do to improve your team’s productivity in specific areas and overall?
In this article, I’m going to discuss various ways to improve your team’s productivity to help you reach your business goals in 2022.
#1 Removing Distractions (& Improving Focus)
Focus is one of the key components in improving productivity. The only real way to improve focus is by removing distractions. Distractions include office-based and the almost unavoidable distractions experienced if you work from home.
Studies show that every time a person is distracted or interrupted from the task they’re working on, it takes around 25 minutes for them to regain focus and get back on track. These findings are concerning. They can make both individuals and employers realize how much time and money is potentially being wasted by distractions.
A few ways to remove distractions include:
- Do Not Disturb signs for employees. They can place it on their desk when they’re focusing.
- Put workspace notifications on silent. Setting virtual notifications to silent if working remotely.
- Download an app or website blocker. This ensures your employees are only accessing necessary sites during work hours.
- Silence or turn off smartphones. If a smartphone is not essential to the task, switch it to silent or off altogether.
Improving focus isn’t just about removing distractions. You also need to find ways to enhance your state of focus.
Some may find their focus and productivity increase when listening to music. Oftentimes, instrumental music without lyrics. Others may find it better to schedule specific times throughout the day. During breaks, they can reply to messages or smartphone notifications. It essentially gives them short bursts of time where they can indulge in distractions before getting back to work.
#2 Incentivizing
Setting goals with incentives is a great way to encourage your team to go the extra mile or two.
While your team should be motivated enough and you should already be hiring productive team members that consistently deliver quality work, placing incentives can help speed up your team’s work rate.
Some examples of incentives can include:
- Financial incentives, like a bonus or raise when specific targets are met.
- Activities such as dining out with the team.
- Paid time off or early finishes if all work is delivered.
Incentives should be more geared toward improving work rate and efficiency, rather than quality. Quality is something you should expect every single day. If your team isn’t motivated to deliver quality, then that’s an entirely different issue to solve.
#3 Considering Diet, Exercise & Overall Healthy Living
Diet and exercise play a very important part in productivity. However, there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and it is not in your best interest or the interests of your team for you to lecture them on specific diets or exercise regimes.
That said, if you want yourself and your team to be performing at their best, encourage them to eat a well-balanced, nutrient-rich diet, as well as exercise regularly. Simple changes you can make include drinking enough water, cutting out junk foods, eating regularly, and avoiding grazing.
To encourage exercise, many employers hire a fitness professional to host weekly exercise classes, like boxercise or yoga, which team members can join before or after work.
#4 Time Management
Time management techniques are crucial for increased and consistent productivity.
Two key time management techniques that get discussed frequently are:
- Pomodoro technique.
- Eating the frog.
The Pomodoro technique is where you split your working day into 25-minute segments. At the end of each 25-minute segment, you take a 5-minute break. During the 5-minutes you can relax, meditate, take a breather, walk outside, make a coffee, etc. The idea is the Pomodoro technique helps sustain productivity and removes the need for workers to be constantly glued to their computer screens when working — which is usually anti-productive.
Eating the frog simply refers to tackling the biggest task first — instead of focusing on smaller easier tasks at the start of your day, complete the biggest task when you start your working day as this is when you’ll have the most energy and focus.
#5 Be Mindful of Burn Out
Burnout is far too common, and it happens on many different levels. Burnout isn’t just referring to the most extreme version of exhaustion, but it can appear as low-grade fatigue that seriously impacts productivity and overall performance.
While meeting your 2022 targets is important, it’s just as important to consider the workload and expectations you put on your employees. Be aware that huge task lists, lack of guidance, and unrealistic expectations, among other factors, are surefire ways to burn out your team.
If you’re expecting an increase in productivity, consider ways you can increase your team’s chances to recover from busy work schedules, such as extra time off if needed, shorter workdays, incentives, etc.
How Are You Planning to Increase Your Team’s Productivity?
We’d love to hear from you and how you’re planning to increase your team’s productivity this year. Are you going to use incentives to encourage quicker turnarounds? Or maybe help your team remove distractions while working?
What’s going to work best for your team? Leave a comment in the comment box below and let us know!
For more information on how to improve productivity, build your business, and increase the success of your digital marketing strategy, check out the latest articles on the Intentionally Inspirational blog.
Written by Lewis James