Veronica Farmer, Negosentro | We all want to be as productive as possible. However, what most people fail to realize is that being productive is not just about working hard, but also working smart. That’s what the old “make the most of each day” saying actually means.
This may be easier said than done, but’s it’s certainly not impossible. And you’ll start working smarter when you finally manage to give up those bad habits that are sabotaging your every move. In an effort to help you be more productive, we have a few things you should stop doing as soon as possible.
The Snooze Button
Let’s start by talking about something that most people do first thing in the morning – press that snooze button on their alarm. And why is that so bad you might ask. All it does is give you some additional rest that will help you start the day fresh.
In reality, this does not help you feel better at all.
As soon as you come around, the endocrine system starts to release certain hormones that alert you to get and prepare for the day ahead. When you go back to sleep, you slow this process down. And keep this in mind: those five to ten extra minutes won’t give your body the deep sleep it needs to refresh.
Checking Your Email Too Often
We’re all connected to the Internet 24/7. This has its good sides and bad ones. For instance, this constant access leads many people to check their email million times a day.
But every time you respond to an email, you end up losing roughly 25 minutes of your work time. Plus, a recent study has shown that constantly checking our emails makes us dumber.
So instead of looking at your phone or opening a new tab every five minutes, you should close everything and put your phone on “Plane mode” for half-an-hour-chunks of deep-diving work.
Choosing Your Work over Sleep
All of us need a good night’s sleep to recover, however, some people prioritize their job and decrease their sleeping hours in order to keep up with all of their work. As the best-selling author, Arianna Huffington explains in “The Sleep Revolution” not only do you need sleep to feel satisfied but you also need to stay focused and make good decisions.
Moreover, a recent study discovered that there’s a direct link between work inefficiency and lack of sleep. The part of your brain that’s in charge of problem-solving gets degraded when you don’t get enough sleep. Plus, your IQ actually goes down after a sleepless night.
Basically, that’s a cognitive equivalent of coming to the office completely drunk.
Final Thoughts
As you can clearly see, some of your habits may sabotage your life, without you even noticing it. Essentially, you may be killing your productivity, just because you’re too unfocused to recognize these harmful habits and too lazy to change them.
That’s why you need to make the necessary adjustments as soon as possible and stop wasting your talents. It may take some time and effort to correct things, but trust us – it’s definitely worth it.
