WATCH: These health tips will decelerate the ageing process and keep you fit and healthy working from home.
We are living in unprecedented times. COVID-19 has turned the workplace norm upside down and suddenly, instead of a small minority of us working from home (aka ‘flexible’ work arrangements), millions of us have woken up to find our home is now also our workplace.
So, just how do you continue to deliver, and deliver with great productivity and discipline, when the rules have so dramatically changed?
Kate Christie is a time management specialist, best selling author, global speaker and the founder and CEO of Time Stylers.
Here, Kate shares her tried-and-tested advice…
1. Time Investment vs Time Management
The great irony about ‘Time Management’ is how much time we spend thinking about how we could, or should, be managing our time differently to get more done. Was there ever a greater waste of time? Probably not. Now, more than ever, it’s time to switch your mindset from one of ‘Time Management’ to one of ‘Time ‘Investment’.
Time is the one asset we all have exactly the same amount of – no matter how savvy or wealthy you are. So from today it’s time to start thinking about your time the way you think about your money – as a precious, enormously valuable and limited resource that needs to be consciously invested for the greatest possible return.
For every task you undertake while working at home, maximise your productivity by asking yourself this question: Is this the best use of my time? If the answer is ‘No’, then choose a better option.
2. Plan to Succeed
Start with a master To Do List of each task/ project you have on your plate. From your To Do List, identify the top two most important tasks to complete today – look to prioritise revenue generating tasks or tasks with the tightest deadline. At the end of each day, update the To Do List with any new tasks and identity the two most important tasks for tomorrow. If you do this every day, then by the end of the week at a minimum you will have completed your ten most important tasks for the week.
3. Focus on the Right Tasks
Maximise your productivity at home by focussing on the right tasks at the right time of day. Identity the time of day when you are at your absolute best – your most energised and impactful. Lock your two most important tasks (see #2) into your calendar during a high energy period of the day – for example, if you are a morning person then this time is sacred and must only ever be devoted to your most important, revenue generating work. Likewise, if you are more likely to have low energy in the afternoon, then use this time for your process driven tasks that don’t require your best brain.
4. Control Your Device Usage
Where’s your phone? Are you on it right now? I bet it’s within arms reach. While your phone is an essential business tool, especially when working from home, it also has the potential to be a massive productivity killer (think social media; news surfing; candy crush). The average smart phone user checks their phone every 6.5 minutes – and this constant compulsion to check your phone will severely limit your ability to use your time well. Be conscious of your device habits – if you want to maintain your productivity at home, it is important to set boundaries – work in 45 minute batches of time, single focus on the task and turn your phone off during each batch.
5. Stay Sane
We are creatures of habit – and now is the perfect time to create some new habits:
- Right now you will be saving significant commute time, don’t waste this gift! Get up and get active – exercise; eat well; meditate; focus; and have a set time to you sit down and start work.
- Take regular breaks during the day – your day should be set up as a series of 45 sprints, not an 8 hour marathon.
- Set and smash your deadlines – prove to yourself, your colleagues and your boss that you are super productive, regardless of where you are working from. Now is the perfect time to curate how you would like to work in the future!
ABOUT: Kate Christie is a time management specialist, best-selling author, global speaker and the founder and CEO of Time Stylers. Kate’s 4th book Me First: The Guilt-Free Guide to Prioritising You (published by Wiley), is available in all good book stores. For more information about Kate go to timestylers.com.
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