Spend 20% Less Time at Work & Maintain Productivity

A New Zealand company shortened its work week by 20% and employees produced the same amount of work as before. Plus they were happier, more focused and their sense of work-life balance went from 54% to 78%!

One of the things that this company discovered is by giving people one day off per week to do things that often got in the way of work that productivity wasn’t impacted.

Here’s some of the things that they did to keep productivity while reducing hours:

• They got employees involved in brainstorming ideas for how to maintain or improve productivity. In my work, getting staff involved not only generates terrific ideas, it increases their sense of ownership of the ideas – and this leads to better execution of ideas & reduced resistance.

• They reduced the length and number of meetings. Which is the largest complaint I hear from coaching clients, is that they can’t get anything done because they are in meetings all the time!

What else can you do to increase productivity?

• Keep meetings short – hold standing meetings or set a time limit

• Always have agendas with outcomes for meetings

• Set deadlines and accept the 80% solution

• Stop multi-tasking – it does not increase your productivity, it actually reduces it!

• Plan your day and your week – know your priorities and ensure they are completed on time

• Set up blocks of time to work on certain tasks – only open your email at assigned times, group all phone calls together

• Minimize interruptions – close your door or put on headphones to signal when you don’t want to be disturbed

• Try the Pomodoro technique: valeriemacleod.com/tomatoes-and-productivity

• Tackle the hardest tasks first

• Take breaks

• Exercise & get sufficient sleep

• Say “no” to things that don’t fit within your goals

• Limit screen time – I’m talking Social Media & television

• Organize your office so that you can find things easier

• Use Systems Thinking so you focus on the future instead of getting bogged down in details

I’d love to hear your ideas to improve productivity! Valerie.MacLeod@HainesCentre.com