Productivity is one of those measurements that cause a lot of worries. Businesses are constantly looking for new ways to improve employee productivity. Economists are constantly having debates about the decreased growth of productivity and what to do about it. Often enough, businesses turn to technology for solutions to problems with productivity. And there’s a wide range of tech to choose from. Everything from AI-powered automation software to agile project management software is routinely used by businesses to maximize their output.
But productivity is not a concern of businesses alone. Individuals can also decide to lead more productive lives. And there’s a thing or two to be learned from businesses that are successful at increasing their productivity levels. For example, you can learn how to leverage tech to improve personal productivity.
Figuring Out What To Improve
Before launching a crusade against low personal productivity, you need to determine what are the areas that need improvement. For example, you might have excellent focus, but you need to spread it across many small tasks simultaneously. Or, you might be having trouble concentrating even when doing one thing at a time.
It’s very important that you understand what’s been holding you back from being more productive. However, you should also know that many of the things in our lives can’t be changed using tech. And some shouldn’t, even though they can be changed using tech.
For example, tech cannot substitute human connections, although it can facilitate them to a certain degree. Choosing to communicate with friends only online might give you more time to focus on other things. But it might also have an adverse effect on your social life, and your overall wellbeing. And whatever causes damage to your wellbeing is also likely to make you less productive.
Using Automation Tools
One of the major ways businesses increase productivity is by using automation tools. These tools can be very simple, like an email auto-responder. They can also be very complex, like an AI-powered chatbot that seems almost human. What they have in common is that businesses use them to rid their employees of having to perform the simple, time-consuming, and often repetitive tasks.
You are probably already familiar with some types of automation that are used by individuals to increase productiveness. Think about all the time you’ve saved not having to do the dishes because you own a dishwashing machine. Now, you can also get a robot vacuum cleaner, and use tech in a couple of other ways to keep your home clean without having to do much work. You can further automate the things in your life by using things like diet automation apps, scheduling apps, and apps that let you set up automatic actions.
Dealing With Your Habits
You can use tech to deal with bad habits. For many people, procrastination is one of the biggest hurdles standing between them and productiveness. If you suffer from procrastination, you could use the tech you already own to fight it. Everything you need to do is set the timer on your mobile phone to a reasonably short time period, like 10 or 15 minutes. Then try doing the task you’ve been putting away for that period of time. Once it expires, simply allow the momentum you’ve built to carry you further.
Apps can also make you more effective by helping you concentrate better on your tasks. You can, for example, use an app or a website and structure your work according to the Pomodoro technique. After each 25-minute interval of work, you get a five-minute break, with every fourth break lasting for 15 minutes. That way, a period of focused work is followed by a short rest.
Finally, apps can help you organize your time better. You can use time-tracking apps to track the time you spend doing things on your computer, for example, and then calculate how much time you’ve spent productively. You can use schedulers to map your days, and reminders to let you know when it’s time to perform important tasks. Spreadsheets can be very helpful for an in-depth analysis, whether you’re analyzing how you spend your time or how you spend your money. You can set daily goals that will help you stay motivated.
Tech can be your greatest ally in your fight to reach higher levels of effectiveness. However, you shouldn’t be using it too much. Setting up all the tech can become a time-consuming task that makes you less productive. And let’s not forget that tech can be a source of distraction. But if you manage to balance it well, there’s no reason why you can’t do more with the time you have.