Creating habits that boost productivity

“Being able to focus on the task in front of you and get it done, no matter what is happening around you, is like a modern-day superpower. Most of us aren’t able to do this,” writes Jack Canfield.

The single greatest hindrance to top performance in our businesses and life generally, is distraction that comes from many sources such as colleagues, clients, technological gadgets we use and things happening within and around us.

Psychologists tell us that most of the things we do are habitual. Thus most detractions are entrenched in our daily habits. Fortunately, we can change our habits with input of some reasonable effort and time.

Developing a habit of finishing every task we start can catapult us to high levels of achievement we never imagined possible. Just imagine how much you could have achieved if you completed every task you started or implemented most of ideas and plans.

There are certain practical steps we can take to create good habits that reduce distractions and increase our productivity.

First, take deliberate breaks from technology. Technology is one of the greatest asset in achieving optimal performance but also the greatest distractor. We lose innumerable man-hours of aimlessly surfing on social media, checking our phones while working or in meetings, often getting pulled into online chats that distract us from our work.

Second, stop focusing on your goals and start scheduling. Most experts tell us the easiest way to success is to plan and write our goals and keep focusing on them. Some recommend you put them in front of you so that you can see them every day. However, from personal experience and testimonies of tens of people, that is not enough.

Once you plan what you want to achieve, the next important thing is to schedule actions or things you need to do continuously to achieve the goal and make doing them a habit. For instance, if your goal is to grow your business revenue by ten per cent in the next quarter, all you need to do is to schedule actions that if done well will enable you meet the target and focus on those actions rather than the goal.

It is recommended you start every day with a to-do-list prepared the previous day. This is the simplest and most effective time management tool.

Third, set aside huge blocks of time in order to focus on key activities based on priority. Most writers do this as they concentrate on writing without distraction. You can choose a time when you are most productive. It could be early in the morning or any time of the day when you have sufficient energy.

Forth, make a commitment to follow through your schedules religiously. There will be so many things demanding your time and resources and you will have enough reasons, but no justifications of not following through your plans.

Finally, avoid multitasking. In fact, there is nothing like multitasking. What we call multitasking is switch-tasking – moving from one tasking to another fast. Human brain can only focus on one task at a time. By doing one thing a time you are more focused, more productive and you don’t waste time switching.

Mr Kiunga is a business trainer and the author of ‘The Art of Entrepreneurship: Strategies to Succeed in a Competitive Market’