Finishing

In my world productivity is more than just being productive with my time, it’s also about finishing projects. Unfinished tasks tend to constantly interrupt your thoughts, a sort of auto-pilot system reminding you what needs to be accomplished. This can really affect your productivity as the more projects or tasks you have on the go the more difficult it becomes to focus. (See the Zeigarnik effect in the September 28, 2011 blog post ‘Do Your Tasks Take Too Long?) I came across a post by Dr. Jeremy Statton called ‘7 Ways to Help You Finish Any Project’.  I really like all 7 tips but one I really believe is important is ‘Have the Proper Tools’. Not having the right tools can really make the project take longer and often gives less than professional results. Something I am sure most of us can relate to with first-hand experience. Another tip I liked was around deadlines. Creating smaller deadlines rather than just one big deadline also made sense especially when you consider Parkinson’s Law, which states; work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion. I urge you to check out the post for the rest of the tips.

So how about those boring tasks that still need to get done before they clog up your focus. Often it is tough to find motivation to get those done but I subscribe to the newsletters from the Positivity Blog and in the May 22 newsletter they offered 6 tips on how to get those boring tasks done. My two favorite were don’t think about it just do it and focus 100% on the task. Often we can get that task done in the time it takes to think about ways to avoid it. As for focusing 100% on the task that reminds me of a favorite quote by Nadia Boulanger, ‘Life is denied by lack of attention, whether it be to cleaning windows or trying to write a masterpiece.’ Other tips included; do the task in short bursts of time, create a pleasurable distraction as you perform the task and reward yourself when it is done. Here’s hoping that helps you with those boring tasks.

Productivity is a measure of how much – work, time, effort, money, or energy – you have to put into something to get the desired outcome. For more tips and tools on how to get more productive please visit Blue Collar Consulting Inc. at http://www.bluecollarconsulting.ca/.