Experience
Our Top 5 Work Productivity Hacks for 2023
Many of us struggle with organizing our time, finding the right space, and setting the right boundaries in order to do our best work. From distractions at home or at the office, to poor work planning, there are many things that can get in the way of productivity. In this article, we’ve compiled some helpful tips and productivity hacks to help you organize your workday efficiently and become more productive.
Prioritize your tasks with a To-Do list
You probably can relate to those days when you start out knowing exactly what you want to do, but one Slack message takes you a hundred miles away from your intended task of the day. For us at trivago, Slack is equivalent to emails. On average, a trivago talent can expect to respond to a minimum of 15 different Slack messages every day. Of course, this might depend on your role and the number of stakeholders you’re collaborating with. The point is that these messages can distract you from completing your major tasks. This is why we’d recommend you prioritize your tasks early enough with a To-Do list and stick to these priorities (or try to do so as much as you can). Before you start your day, ask yourself: what are my most important tasks for today, in terms of meeting my KPIs or achieving my goals? This will help you visualize your several major tasks and, more importantly, stop you from doing busy-but-less-impactful work.
Set and manage expectations with the colleagues
You can’t do everything at once, or fix every problem at the same time, and it’s only right to let your stakeholders know. Let them know that either you have other priorities for the day which would delay your response, or explain the core work you have to do and the consequence of not doing it. This helps everyone clarify expectations, and ensures that no one is bitter about something for which you already clarified.
Set blockers to organize your day better
Our next favorite tip is to set personal blockers on your calendar for focus time and deep work. At trivago, we are trusted to manage our own time. It’s the result that counts, and as long as you align with your lead (in other words, manager) on your core tasks, let your calendar do the blocking. Blocking time on your calendar (mostly) prevents you from getting involved in meetings that have little impact on your actual work. We’ve always been a fan of the saying “that meeting could have been an email or, even better, a Slack message”, and blockers help you to reinforce that idea. However, this can be trivialized so we’ll encourage you to set only important blockers that help you organize your day better. If it wouldn’t bring value to your work and the business, don’t set that blocker. And when you have your focus time, pause your email and Slack notifications to keep you from being distracted. Oh, and don’t forget to take breaks in between your tasks and stretch your body. This is crucial for staying energized and productive throughout the day.
Consider less urgent but still important tasks you have to do
You prioritize your tasks, clarify expectations, set blockers, but what about tasks that don’t fit neatly into your original time-locking plans? Recall that you still have colleagues who need your input. You have those Slack messages and emails to respond to, as well as other less urgent but still important tasks you have to do. By mapping a contingency time into your day’s schedule, you are taking responsibility for the other collaborative work. How much time you need to spare for this depends on your role and your day-to-day activities, but it’s definitely something to plan for.
Stick to your plan and be consistent
What better way to end this article than to remind you to stick to your plan and stay consistent. Productivity is all about doing the most important things consistently over a period of time. This takes tenacity! You’ll have to say no to many other things to develop and maintain this habit of productivity. Make sure to test and implement these tips to maximize your productivity in 2023. You can do it!
Thanks to our Employer Branding Specialist Ololade Ogeye for compiling this article!
Keep reading to improve your productivity when working remotely:
How to Rock Remote Work
Tips for Parents Working Remotely
