How to Apply the “Less Work, More Productivity” Mindset to Meeting Your Goals
A New Mindset (Just Right for Right Now)
In this day and age, where our work-life balance treads a tricky line and where work-exhaustion is a common occurrence, people are always looking for ways to get more done in a shorter period of time.
Here at #MDMC, we strongly believe in the old adage “less work, more productivity”. We firmly believe that this mindset can help you meet your goals, while avoiding burnout.
Shorter work weeks have proved to be beneficial for a number of employers, including Microsoft Japan. They found that employees were far more efficient with their time when they were given an environment that valued “resting” as much as it did “working”. When you’re well-rested you’re more prone to produce quality work that you and your team are proud of.
Companies like Microsoft Japan also believe in energy management; which is a concept where you think of results as a function of energy, and not time invested. This is true on so many levels.
If we give our bodies enough time to rest and recharge then the time we do spend working is more constructive and creative. And we’re able to dedicate ourselves fully to our work, without feeling over-tired or fatigued. For this reason, four-day workweeks are getting more and more popular both here at home and around the world.
A number of employers have found that four-day workweeks uplift the wellbeing of their employees, while also maximizing productivity. Additionally, employees find themselves more satisfied and committed to the company; and their stress levels are drastically reduced.
It may seem counterintuitive, but working more can actually lead to less productivity. We hit a certain point where our minds grow tired and the work we produce is not up to par.
When employees are told to work long hours they feel overwhelmed with too many tasks and can easily crash and not produce quality work. This leads to a more reactive mode, rather than a proactive mode, since there’s no clear strategy in place.
Equip Yourself with Tools
In addition to four-day workweeks, another great way to go about achieving your goals while working less is to invest in tech tools that increase productivity. Specifically task management tools.
Whether you’re a business owner, employee, or entrepreneur, task management tools will be your best friend! We’ve talked about them on our blog before. But as a quick refresher: they can help your business run more efficiently while saving you money and time along the way. They’re an easy and cost-effective way to track tasks digitally, rather than manually, and to meet your goals faster.
One of the best task management tools out there is Asana. It can help you and your employees stay on top of your to-do-lists, goals, calendars, and project progress. Another great task management tool is ClickUp. It’s easy to use and helps you collaborate with your team. It also tracks your progress and goals – ensuring you’re being as productive as possible, and getting as much out of each day as you can!
Task management tools such as these offer an easy out if you’re looking to work less but still meet your goals. Another productivity hack is to mute all notifications on your phone while you work. This allows for fewer distractions and more focus during work time. More focus paired with good delegation is the key to working less while maximizing productivity.
If you’re looking to zone in on delegating then you could look into hiring a virtual receptionist so that you’re not bogged down with answering calls and managing appointments throughout the day. Delegation is, after all, key when it comes to working less to meet your goals.
A lot of us are in the habit of working non-stop until we reach the realization that continuing to work is counterproductive, given how tired we are! While this is a common strategy, it’s an incredibly ineffective one.
For a long time now, over-working and under-resting was drastically glamorized. We were told, and shown repeatedly, that 9:00 – 5:00 wasn’t good enough and that in order to achieve our goals and our dreams we needed to literally work till we dropped!
The pandemic is what really put an end to this glamorization. It forced us all to slow down, take some much needed rest, and to finally prioritize our mental health. Before the pandemic hit, a lot of us were under the faulty notion that working should be our absolute #1 priority.
This caused a lot of us to bail on social plans, put aside weekend-getaways, and focus solely on work and accomplishments. Not only was this an exhausting way to live, but it was also a lifestyle that many found they could no longer keep up with. Just as our identities were starting to slip away, the pandemic hit and everything changed.
The pandemic taught us, as a society, to slow down. It taught us to prioritize rest as much as work, fun as much as productivity, and relationships as much as accomplishments. It also helped us realize that we can absolutely meet all our goals while working less!
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