Work smart text - Do more with less
Statistics show that even when employees work more, only 12% of the leaders have full confidence that their team is productive. Microsoft 2022 Work Trend Index shows that since February 2020, employees saw a 252 percent increase in their weekly meeting time and an increase in the number of weekly meetings by 153 percent. On the other hand, burnout has hit record levels over the past two years. Forty-four percent of workers surveyed said they had experienced a lot of stress during the previous workday.
If companies continue this rat race, employees will be less productive over time, and more stressed. Mental health issues are already skyrocketing. That’s why my motto this year is doing more with less. Doing more with less is the way to stop this vicious circle of self-pressure. Whether it's maximizing productivity by working fewer hours or finding ways to spend more time doing what you love, finding ways to get more out of what we have can be a valuable skill.
Here are a few tips for doing more with less:
1. Start fewer projects and close more. Being involved in several projects simultaneously reduces your ability to focus. You can channel your energy into finishing tasks by doing one or two projects simultaneously and avoid overproducing. As a result, you will reduce the lead time of the projects and the unfinished tasks in the parking lot.
2. Multitask less and focus more. Multitasking seems like a very productive approach to finalizing various tasks at the same. Nevertheless, research shows that multitasking adds more to your plate and reduces your overall productivity. The effort to shift from one job to the other can take around 25 to 30 minutes. The less time you spend shifting gears, the more you get accomplished. Timebox your activities to stay focused for longer periods.
3. Spend less time in big group meetings and more focusing on your work or doing 1-on-1 sessions. Research shows workers spend more than 85% of their time in meetings, which affects their psychological, physical, and mental well-being. Spend more time in the meetings that will bring you benefits and less in the ones that you don't belong or can't collaborate. Do not feel bad for having no-meeting days to focus on your priorities.
4. Do fewer tasks you don't enjoy and more things you love doing or are good at. Tasks you don't like to do drain you. Instead, you waste less energy when you enjoy, and you get also better results. Ask yourself if you can delegate them, do them more quickly or more efficiently. Some people may be a better fit for doing those things, while you can be better at doing others. Before accepting a meeting or a task, ask yourself if you are the right person to do the job, or if someone else could be a better fit. Saying yes to everything doesn’t make you a great coworker but dilutes your boundaries.
5. Buy less, use more. Just like lean methods call for a just-in-time inventory in manufacturing facilities, the same applies in offices and even at home. So much time, money and space are spent on material that you don’t get to use. Reducing, reusing and recycling are the 3Rs of waste management that can help not only keep your space clean but also help the environment keep as much material out of the landfill as possible.
6. Hide less and collaborate more. Collaborating with others can be a great way to get more done with less. By sharing knowledge, resources, and ideas, you can achieve more together than you could on your own.
7. Stress less and thank more. Stress and burnout often start with people getting anxious about the future or depressed about past experiences. Unfortunately, you cannot change the past or predict the future. You can only remind yourself where you are right now, be thankful for what you have, and focus on what is possible. While it is hard to manage negative thoughts, you can always try to replace them with positive ones. Have a set of positive reminders or self-care cards on your phone to talk to yourself positively when negative self-talk kicks in.
8. Focus less on results and more on progress. Last but not least, our society's extreme focus on results is detrimental to mental health. Unrealistic expectations and comparisons trick our minds in very unproductive ways. Instead, focus more on what you can control and your progress. Spend less time finding why unrealistic goals are not met. Find ways to support and celebrate progress, and define robust systems to keep things going in the right direction.
By following these tips, you can get more out of what you have and be more efficient in your personal and professional life. By doing more with less, you can save time, money, and other resources, be more productive and enjoy the process.
