When you think of productivity, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Do you imagine yourself sitting at your desk, working hard with no distractions or roadblocks? Do you think of getting the job done early or staying late to get half of tomorrow’s job done as well?
While both are certainly the “end-of-the-rainbow”, perfect image of what being productive looks like – the process of getting there is actually where productivity lives. It’d be awesome if you could just sit down to work and get everything done in one shot – but let’s face it. That just doesn’t happen. And honestly, that’s okay. Do athletes just wake up and decide to win the game? No. While the mindset of winning is one thing, the training and dedication to get there is what really counts. Productivity is the same way. Becoming a more productive person is all about maintaining habits that will help you reach your goals and success.
Here are 6 Killer Habits To Increase Your Productivity
Regularly Use The Cloud – You should get into the habit of uploading your documents and photos to your favorite cloud-storage. Before you leave work, upload your files to the cloud so that you can access it at home if you need to. And vice versa. Most cloud storages also provide apps for their services, which is extremely helpful for pulling up information when you’re traveling for work, working remotely, or anywhere on the go and need information fast. Make sure that no matter where you’re working, you can access important files quickly. Here’s a breakdown of some great cloud apps.
Know Your Goals – Keeping long term goals is one thing, setting daily ones make all the difference for improving your productivity. But don’t just think of your goal each day; constantly remind yourself of what it is. The simplest way to do this? Make your goal visible. Use the Chrome extension, Momentum, which is a motivational “new tab” page for Google Chrome that gives you an awesome background and asks you what your daily goal is. Jot down your goal in the provided space and you’ll see it every time you open a new tab.
Keep Your Device Fueled – The biggest downfall to using your phone to handle everything from email to calls to tasks is having it run out of battery. Make sure you’re doing your best to preserve your battery and also think about investing in a gadget that can help you do that. Mophie makes phone cases that actually charge your battery effortlessly. Check out their cases for both iPhones and Androids.
Carry Your Tools – Not the screwdriver, although that’s always helpful to have on hand too. Keep a couple pens with you at all times. Yes, you can make notes in your phone faster than you can write them. But you never know when you might need to fill out a form or sign something – especially when you’re on the go for work.
Keep Track of Finances – Having money and being successful isn’t necessarily the same thing, but they do go hand-in-hand. And an important habit to boost your productivity is to always know where your money is going. Balancing checkbooks are mostly (and thankfully) a thing of the past. Most likely, your bank has an app. Get on board with mobile banking and other apps that help you keep track of expenses. A few recommendations are Mint and Mvelopes
Manage Calls Smarter – Another habit of productive people is having strong communication skills. Make sure you’re returning calls in a timely manner and keeping track of your voicemails. YouMail Visual Voicemail is an app that replaces your carrier voicemail with a more intelligent service. In addition to letting you store up to 100 voicemails on the Essential service (a whopping 10,000 on Business), YouMail gives you a searchable inbox that you can access on your phone and computer. Optional services also include voicemail transcriptions and the ability to automatically send missed callers a link to your digital business card. Plus, get rid of spam callers! Check out all of YouMail’s productivity boosters here.
Improving your productivity doesn’t happen overnight. It takes dedication to build habits that will help you become a more successful person overall. These 6 habits aren’t difficult to get into. Start incorporating them into your daily routine and improve your productivity as you go.