How to be More Efficient and Productive in the Office
Does your workday often end up getting away from you? Perhaps you started the year with a good-intention-filled goal of being more productive, but you continue to find yourself distracted and procrastinating. Productivity is what makes a business thrive, and greater productivity levels create company-wide success and a consistent bottom line.
Marketing extraordinaire Seth Godin defines productivity as a measure of output over time. “All other things being equal, the more you produce per minute, the more productive you are,” writes Godin. “And economists understand that wealth (for a company or a community) is based on increasing productivity.”
Motivation and focus drive productivity, so cultivating these things in any office workforce is key. We’re going to talk about five techniques for efficiency and productivity that can be adapted to your office and personality.
1. Minimize Distractions
Declutter both physical and digital distractions. This takes intentionality on the part of leaders and individuals. Numerous studies show that decluttering can help our brains to focus better. Scientists at the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute found that the more cluttered our physical and digital environments are, the more energy our brains expend on filtering in order to focus.
For every tangible object in our environment, our brains must choose to ignore the object or direct attention toward it. The more objects or sounds that our brain needs to filter out to focus on a task, the more energy we drain from our brains.
Removing unnecessary objects from the field of vision can improve focus at home or work. Furniture Soup has storage solutions to ensure everything you need to keep has a proper home that is visually appealing and efficient to access when needed. With a freshly organized space, you and your employees or coworkers will set the stage for a boost in creativity and ramped up productivity.
Digital distractions are every bit the burden that physical ones can be, and it takes a conscious choice to resist checking social media unrelated to your work. Some professionals find it beneficial to install anti-distraction software such as SelfControl, an app designed to keep Mac users focused by allowing them to block sites they spend too much time on. Another option is Freedom, an app intended to block distracting apps and websites such as social media, videos, games, and shopping for specified lengths of time.
Putting away cell phones and working on one monitor instead of two can also help channel focus. Every job is unique, so while these suggestions may not work for you, the important thing is to talk with a coworker or someone else and brainstorm ideas to minimize digital distractions while you’re working.
2. Incorporate Movement into Your Daily Rhythms
Hundreds of years ago, our ancestors moved nearly constantly, strengthening their muscles as they worked to accomplish the most basic daily tasks for survival. Technology has made our routines easier, but that ease has brought a sedentary lifestyle.
Saving time has led to saving movement – something our bodies need to function at their best. Now more than ever, we need to be intentional about incorporating as much movement as possible into our schedules.
If you hit a productivity wall, a quick break to move your body and regroup is in order. Furniture Soup offers stand-to-sit desks that encourage switching positions and moving throughout the day. Office space designers can facilitate movement for workers by placing shared objects, such as a copier or water cooler, further from areas populated with desks. Doing so forces people to take a walk – however brief it may be.
Walking during designated break periods or lunchtime is another great productivity hack for workers. If your climate allows, take it even further and walk or bicycle to and from work – your body will reap the rewards, as will your brain’s capacity to focus. Walks can improve mood and recalibrate focus.
3. Seek Accountability
Whether you’re personally aiming for increased productivity or leading a group of individuals you’d like to see gain momentum, accountability is everything.
Weekly check-ins with another coworker might be what works for you. Find the right person to follow through and push you forward – not someone who may be just as likely to tell you it doesn’t matter.
Another tactic is to set goals and announce them to others – if doing so will motivate you to consistent action. If you’re working from home, you could ask someone who lives with you to check in at set points in the day.
If no one is physically present to make that happen, have someone call you instead. Or schedule a meet-up to work with a friend in a café or other public setting if you find yourself inspired when in the company of others.
Every workday is unique, but accountability applies to everyone as a source of help in improving productivity.
4. Prioritize Ergonomics
Employers can set employees up for success by investing in ergonomic office furniture. Designed to support good posture, ergonomic furniture will help employees who spend hours sitting at their desks to be comfortable and hopefully avoid back aches, neck pain, and other injuries common among office workers.
Ergonomic office furniture is designed to support people as they work and encourage healthy posture and a realigned spine. Have your office space designers purchase chairs, desks, and other furniture with adjustability, as one of the keys of smart ergonomics is knowing that one size does not fit all. That way, workers are not hunched over computers and can experience less pain. Injuries and recurring pain are huge distractions and understandably reduce a worker’s efficiency.
According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), practicing ergonomics – or fitting a job to a person – helps lessen muscle fatigue, increase productivity, and reduce the number and severity of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). MSDs can be caused by working in awkward body postures or performing the same tasks repetitively. By filling an office with quality ergonomic furniture, you will be helping your team to stay healthy and focused.
5. Use Furniture to Maximize Productivity
Setting up a work environment that is conducive to employee happiness is one of the best ways to encourage productivity. When choosing office furniture, consider how employees will feel seeing it and using it daily.
If you’re not sure where to start and you’re searching for commercial interior design companies near me in Lancaster PA, Reading PA, or the greater Philadelphia area, Furniture Soup is here for you.
Furniture Soup’s commercial interior designers can help you select optimal furniture and design spaces within your walls to allow for efficient and effective collaboration and individual work. We have great furniture to provide you with endless design possibilities and opportunities for greater productivity.
Our office space designers can also provide insight into how to optimize the lighting – both natural and artificial – in your workplace so employees can receive serotonin boosts for natural spikes of happiness throughout the day.
Office Space Designers Serving Lancaster, Reading, and the Greater Philadelphia Region
If you’re ready to make some physical design changes to your workspace and you’ve been looking for the best commercial interior design companies near me to make that happen, reach out to Furniture Soup. We offer commercial space planning and interior design services and quality furniture and accessories to take your vision for a space that fosters increased productivity and turn it into a welcome reality.