Although many people think physical manual work is more taxing than office work, this may not be wholly true. Whilst manual labour uses a lot more physical exertion and energy, the average office job can be taxing in different ways. Recognising the different strains that working in an office space can have on employees is an important part of maximising your business productivity. The effects on focus and health that staring at a computer screen for 8 hours a day can have shouldn’t be underestimated. Here’s a few helpful ideas on how to take the right attitude towards creating a more pleasant, positive and productive place to work.
Plan Your Time
Having a good outline of what you have to do in a day is a great step to being more productive. Each day, arrive a little early and spend 10-15 minutes drawing up a plan of action for the day. That way you can keep track of progress and have a sense of achievement when things are complete. Within this plan, you should also allocate an hour to carry out those small tasks that so often get pushed aside for more pressing things, but are essential to business operations and productivity.
Managing Your Office Communication
Whatever kind of communication you have on a daily basis, be it phone calls, emails or letters, it’s imperative that you manage it effectively. Allocate specific points of the day where you will action correspondence, then you can use the other portion of the day for other more pressing tasks. Within this you should get your email inbox organised using filters and folders, so you know exactly where everything is and no important emails get lost among the other hundred or so. All this will make better use of your time and make you more productive overall.
Get Focused
It’s inevitable that some of us are more productive in the mornings, while others get an energy spurt in the afternoons. Figure out which is your most productive and focused time of day and allocate time in your daily plan to carry out bigger tasks during this period and moving the more minor tasks to a time when you have less focus.
Ditch Multi-Tasking
You may think that multi-tasking makes you far more efficient, but in many cases it can have the opposite effect. Trying to do too many things at once can cause you to lose focus all together, making even simple things take longer than they should. Keep your workload simple, focusing on just one or two tasks at a time for better productivity.
Take a Break
It’s important to remember you’re not chained to your desk. Taking regular breaks throughout the working day, will help you to re-focus, re-energise and improve your physical and mental well-being. If you can, try to get out of the office space for a walk and some fresh air, or just take ten minutes away from your desk in a quiet place. With all these small considerations and changes, you can make a real difference to your attitude and productivity levels at the office. For more information about a health, happy and productive office space, get in touch with Send Business Centre here.