Let’s face it; there are never going to be more than 24 hours a day or seven days a week, except between the pages of a science fiction novel. So, with our working lives getting busier, our to-do lists getting longer, and the demands on our time increasing, the need to stay focused and productive and make the most of our working hours without burning out or becoming side-tracked has never been greater. Unfortunately, the distractions have never been more numerous.
Tempting as it is to be candy crushing when you should be number crunching, tweeting cat gifs when you should be lead-generating, and updating your Facebook status when you should be analyzing sales figures, managing your time effectively is vital if you want to stay one step ahead of your competitors. Technology is a blessing but can also be a curse for business.
Using intelligent tools to maximize productivity, streamline processes, and manage projects is one way to achieve better results. There are hundreds of apps and programs out there, all promising to help you get things done quicker and more efficiently, but we’d like to concentrate on a few ideas that we’ve found particularly useful.
Trello
Trello is the ultimate project management tool. It allows users to see all tasks relating to a project or projects at a glance. Highly visual, it takes the form of various lists arranged horizontally on a page. Within each list are cards that contain items relating to the project — checklists, images, links, notes, and more. Cards can be dragged and dropped to other lists to record progress, reordered if their priority changes, and be updated by anyone who has access to them on any device. And because Trello updates in real-time, all team members can understand the status of a project from anywhere, avoiding task repetition and costly mistakes.
Clever Checklist
Clever Checklist is another web-based task management system that enables users to organize and track the progress of tasks. Checklists for each job are created to keep track of everything that needs to be done. Processes, procedures, and policies are documented to show why things are done, and records and forms are produced to show what work was done when it was done, and by whom. It keeps everything in one place, allowing for easy access and data analysis, and uses a series of customizable templates to make it highly user-friendly and versatile.
Cyfe
Cyfe is a powerful business data dashboard app that lets you display and monitor all your business and media data and metrics in one place. The beauty of Cyfe is that it can monitor a vast range of information and data — you add widgets for each aspect of your business that you want to track. Individual departments and multiple websites can be monitored by adding extra dashboards. You can instantly see social media engagement, and look at analytics, sales figures, and reports. Your entire business can be tracked in real-time. In an office environment, displaying a team dashboard on a flat panel display to share this information and coordinate projects can motivate your teams and help boost productivity.
Calendar apps
Staying productive is also about staying organized and managing time effectively; a calendar app can help with that. Don’t be the white rabbit, always late for that crucial meeting. Don’t over-schedule. Don’t double-book. If your job involves receiving many meeting requests, make sure you block out time on your calendar and encourage your team to do the same so that meetings can be arranged at mutually convenient times. A calendar app can usually allow you to specify free meeting slots, so everyone knows when you’re available. Make your team aware of them so everyone’s time can be respected. Everyone’s busy, so the more sync everyone is with everybody else’s schedule, the better.
Mixing work and pleasure
Notifications are the modern enemy of productivity. These days, we all get them constantly on our phones. Emails, texts, reminders, Facebook updates, retweets, mentions, and requests to connect on LinkedIn — and it can be difficult not to stop and check what you’re doing. We do it without even realizing we’re doing it. It’s incredible how much time can be consumed during the working day while responding to the barrage of non-work-related communications we receive. But there’s a time and a place, and they mustn’t distract from the job and affect productivity. If you’re the boss, set an example by putting your phone on silent, do not disturb, or even out of sight in your desk drawer. Encourage others to do the same. While many companies are relaxed about allowing employees access to social media sites at work, make it clear that it’s a distraction best avoided until they’re on a break. If you or your team members have to take personal calls during working hours, take them away from your desk to avoid disturbing others.
Even constantly checking work-related emails is not always a productive use of time. There’s usually no need to check every email as soon as it comes in unless it’s marked critical or directly related to something you’re working on. Set aside time to work through them at various points throughout the day so that you can concentrate on the task at hand and meet your deadlines. Remember: productive people focus.
