How to be More Productive at Work or Study
Before you read: some questions to help you think
about the topic and the words you might need.
What
ideas do you have for being more productive in your job?
How
do you decide what is most important to do every day?
Ever wish you could get more done while
you're in the office? Many others think like you because the thousands of
productivity apps on the market show that today's workers are always looking
for ways to be more efficient.. Here are 10 simple, low-technology to improve
your productivity.
Make your workspace efficient. Before
you do anything else, at the start of each day to organize and de-clutter your workspace. Having a
clutter-free environment helps you think more clearly and produce better results.
By cleaning up and organizing your space, you will greatly increase your
productivity and limit the time you spend searching for items.
Add color or live plants. Color can have a big
effect on your mood and productivity throughout the day. Blue creates the
feeling of calmness and helps you concentrate, while red is very good for work
that needs accuracy and attention to detail. Plants can also help people concentrate
by reducing headaches and tiredness: A study found that plants increase
workplace productivity and creative performance by up to 30 percent.
Decorate your workspace. In addition to
color and plant life, a few personal items in your workspace can make you feel
more comfortable and relaxed, which can ultimately increase your productivity. Add
meaningful career items, such as diplomas and awards, and other decorative
items that make you feel successful.
Get your most dreaded job out of the way. Everyone has at least one task on the
to-do list that does not get done. That task is actually the one you should try
to complete first. Instead of waiting until the last minute to finish a task, get it off your plate as soon as
possible. Then your other tasks will seem less daunting by comparison, and you'll stop worrying about that one
task all day. This will make you more productive.
Ignore your emails for the moment. Constant
email alerts popping up on your phone or desktop can really break your concentration.
Instead of reading every email as it arrives in your inbox, try turning off
your notifications and only checking messages at a time you decide like every
30 minutes or one hour. When you're working on something urgent, set up an automatic
reply for a few hours or an afternoon. In your reply tell the sender that you
will be unavailable to reply for a short time.
Move around. Don't just use your main desk
chair. Spend portions of the workday standing or working at height-adjusted work
surfaces, if possible. You can also make a habit of having walking meetings
rather than sitting and having conference calls.
Prioritize tasks that take less time. It's easy to procrastinate on short, easy-to-do list items and tell yourself
you'll get to them after you've finished your big project for the day. But what
if that project takes longer than expected? To avoid rushing at the end of the
workday to finish many quick tasks, get them done earlier. A general rule of thumb for finishing jobs is
that if it takes less than two minutes to do, then do it now.
Take short breaks. Whether it's a walk
around the block, a run to the nearby coffee shop, reading a magazine or
visiting with a colleague, taking short breaks — about 10 to 15 minutes every
two hours — helps improve your body’s circulation and reduces tired eyes and the
increase of muscle tension. Walking away from something you're working on can
also help you to have a new perspective
when you return.
Listen to music. Wearing headphones
doesn't always mean you’re not wanting to be social with others. When working,
listening to your favorite music can help you get into a good working rhythm
and finish the things on your to-do list. It also sends a subtle message to your co-workers that you don’t want to be
interuppted.
Change locations. If your employer allows
it, take one day a week to work from a different environment, like a coffee
shop or a co-working space. The change of place and view and the chance to meet
and talk with other people may give you a feeling of new energy. If you can't
work out of the office, try finding a quiet space away from other interruptions
where you can concentrate.
Try to
guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them
with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers
are very close and have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they
are used in the reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the
dictionary depending on how they are used.
The
answers are below the table.