Are you struggling to get through your workday? Now, imagine that you finish each day with the satisfaction of knowing that you were able to check every single item on your to-do list. You feel at the top of your game, you are fast, focused, and effective. Every morning, you project confidence when you enter the office, and every evening, you brim with content as you lock the office door.
Does this picture feel too good to be true? Well, according to Misha Peleg, everyone can achieve this level of productivity with just a little bit of effort.
Most of us are not as productive as we’d like to be for two reasons: bad habits, and lack of focus. We spend most of our day putting out fires instead of being strategic with our time and putting it where it delivers the highest return on investment. The solution to this problem is simple, and Misha Peleg has proven it to be effective time and time again as he optimized his own workflow, as well the workflow of his teams, turning his many startups into profitable enterprises.
Check out Peleg’s eight steps to increasing your productivity and becoming the best version of yourself every single day.
1. Have a Healthy Morning Routine
Use your mornings to ground yourself. Stay away from emails, and instead, spend your mornings on a nice breakfast, work out, or meditation. This will help you focus and give you the energy you need for the rest of your day.
2. Plan the most difficult tasks for the most productive part of your day and don’t multitask
Know what time of day is the most productive for you and plan your to-dos according to your peak productivity hours. One of the most common productivity mistakes Misha Peleg has encountered in the office environment is when people multitask thinking it will help them work faster. According to Peleg, multitasking is the killer of productivity. Research shows that multitasking can actually reduce productivity by as much as 40 percent due to brief mental blocks created by shifting between tasks. So, stop trying to do everything at once and focus on just one task at a time. This will increase your productivity and help you get “in the zone” more often.
3. Prepare your to-do list the night before
A good to-do list is key to increasing your productivity. It helps you organize and be strategic with your time. Plus, it also gives you the feeling of satisfaction when you get to cross items off your list upon completion. By creating your to-do list the night before, you will ensure that you won’t be wasting your most productive time in the morning on looking for things that need to get done that day.
4. Keep your to-do list concise
It’s easy to get carried away when creating a to-do list by including too many things that you won’t be able to get done in a day. To be effective and to make sure you set yourself up for success, keep your to-do list to a manageable size. Your goal should be to finish each day with a fully completed list, so plan accordingly.
5. Learn to delegate
As soon as you learn how to delegate effectively, you’ll be surprised how much more productive your day will become. The key to effective delegation is to assign tasks to the right people – those who have the skills and experience, matching the task at hand. Relinquishing some control and trusting other people to do important tasks can be difficult at first. But overtime, you’ll find out that you can get so much more done by effectively delegating tasks to your team. Moreover, it will enable your team to learn and grow as well.
6. Plan your phone calls
Incoming calls are yet another huge productivity killer. To help you stay focused, plan your most important and difficult tasks in between calls and meetings and put your phone in silent mode in the meantime. This will allow you to fully focus on the task at hand. Then, you can return any missed calls once you finish and give your full attention to the person on the other end of the line.
7. Be optimistic
Happy people are more productive – it’s as simple as that. Research by Oxford University’s Saïd Business School showed that workers are 13% more productive when happy. The study focused on employees working at a call center. Researchers found that optimistic employees would make more sales and receive larger bonuses on average. There is logic in these findings: a positive mindset will give you the confidence and energy to solve challenges and always finish what you started.
8. Get enough sleep
We all know that lack of sleep affects productivity: it reduces our ability to concentrate, diminishes our memory, impairs our logic and our ability to do simple math. Just one night without sleep can create a huge negative impact on our ability to function effectively at work for the rest of the week. Adults typically need seven to nine hours of sleep. But if your schedule simply doesn’t allow for a good night’s sleep, you can replenish it with a midday nap that will allow you to get through the rest of your day with enough energy and mental focus.
If you liked these tips, share them with your friends and colleagues to help them become more productive as well!
Misha Peleg is a serial entrepreneur and philanthropist. Having founded several highly successful companies since the early 1990s, he uses his business success to support a wide range of non-profit organizations throughout the world. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.