21 Productivity Tips for Consultants - Part 1
Do you want to be more productive? Who wouldn't want to, right?
Success in getting the most tasks done in the least amount of time is all we strive for. In fact, there is a lot of scope and thousands of books have been written about how to be more productive, but despite this there is a problem.
The problem, my friend, is that learning how to become more productive has become so complicated that following checklists and keeping charts organized with more schedules and special programs all make being a productive person a work in itself.
So, I want to give you 21 tips to become more productive and they are easy to implement in your life. My saying that it is easy does not mean that you do not have to change anything in your life, but rather it means that you can apply it directly and it will take direct results as well.
Answering the phone every time it rings doesn't help you be more productive.
1. Be Meticulous About When to Check Your Email:
Most people check their emails every few seconds expecting the next email to arrive, and worse yet, those who receive notifications of new emails coming in, that could be the first horribly killing thing in productivity.
Don't do this. Instead, set a specific time to check and respond to your email during the day. If this is a big shift that you can't make, I advise you to close your email app when you perform some priority tasks and check the email before and after completing these tasks. If you check your mail once or twice a day, you can create an automatic reply so that whoever sends you messages will receive the content of this automatic reply that says that you check your email at specific times of the day and you will answer them at those times. The automatic reply is not essential, but it is excellent for your peace of mind and for the person who sent the message. Who can't wait 4-5 hours for an answer?
2. Turn Off the Phone:
I do clients and customer calls besides coaching on customer and sales calls every day and I schedule and plan these calls in advance and sometimes I schedule them for weeks to come and I never answer the phone, why? Because it is a distraction and a waste of time.
It takes me away from the core of my work and my priorities and away from the things that I can offer my best value for. If the caller wants to talk to me about an emergency, they can call me back and may repeat the call more than once. In fact, how often is the phone ringing for an emergency? Do you know a service called Voicemail? It is a service where the caller can leave their message in order for you to respond to it later, do you remember it? Use it now! Answering the phone whenever it rings does not help you be more productive.
3. Don't Be Too Attached to Social Media:
Just as there are many people obsessed with checking email, there are also social network addicts such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (and others) who check their social media many times during the day, usually more than once in an hour. What happens when you do that? You end up reading articles, watching videos, clicking here and there on different web pages. If you are not in your break, it does not help at all. If your business is marketing or social networking work, be aware that the activities you do are about work and about expanding your business.
4. Focus on not being unfriended:
I wrote an article about how to say "no" better and how this experience helps you be more productive. It's not always easy to apologize for an invitation your friend made to meet or have coffee together, but when you need to complete some priority mission in your work, saying "no" becomes substantial and you will see that as you become more successful in your work that more people want to meet you and they will take your time, that is great and you should appreciate that.
But, you must not allow others in their quest to take you away from your goals and the achievements you seek. I remember that when I was launching my first business, there were many friends who invited me to meet with them or to waste time with them. I often said “no”, and it was not because I did not respect them as friends but because I have my own priorities, did they think I was crazy? Perhaps, were they saying I'm not a socialite? Sure, they said that, am I not interested? Not exactly! When you have a clear goal in mind, then you should focus on it only. This does not mean that you are not social or not having some fun, just make a balance between your priorities so that you do not deviate from your pursuit.
5. How clean and tidy is your office?
The more organized my office and work environment becomes, the more focused I feel, nothing distracts me, the papers aren't piled all over the place. It's an easy change you can make, but the effect is great. Look at your workplace and ask yourself, “Does this place help me be more focused and more productive? Or is it crammed with distractions? So, treat it accordingly.
6. Be Close to Music:
I listen to music a lot during my day. Music is an essential part of my life and even as I am writing this article now, I am listening to some relaxing music. Music helps you focus on what you're doing, but it has to be the right genre. In my case, I find music with a lot of words distracting, while listening to jazz or some deep music really helps. I wasn't really a fan of classical music although I really enjoyed it and found it great when I write or focus on my work.
7. Do Exercises and Activities:
The best ideas come while I do sports or when I'm swimming. Exercises play an important role not only in physical health but also in mental health as it provides clarity. Whatever it is, like exercising 40 minutes after you wake up, at the end of the day, or even in the middle of the day, as long as you're doing the activity, that's what really matters. The health benefits are clear and well known, but movement and activity also make your mind more focused and relaxed. When you return to your job, you will be more productive. If you don't already do this, make sure you do.
But remember that the sooner you get up, the more you can do before the rest of the world wakes up.
8. Magic Recipe:
One of the great secrets of being more productive is saying what you do, so few people do it. Here’s how: Put the first priority at the beginning of each day, as this has a huge benefit to your productivity.
If you postpone your most important priorities until the end of the day, you will most likely not do it or you will be powerless to do it to the fullest. The solution is to start your day fully focused on this first priority. Doing this for 5 days a week will get you 20 substantial work per month which in turn helps you move your consulting business forward in a beneficial way.
9. Leave things as they are:
If you really want to be more productive, you have to learn how to leave things as they are. Delegating is the best solution to this instead of doing everything yourself because you “can do it right”, you can give the work to others, hire consultants or support staff who can do the routine administrative work. Why do you do a job where you can pay $10 an hour at a time when you can focus on more valuable and more rewarding work that could make thousands of dollars?
Choosing the right people for the job may take you a few days or even weeks, but when you do this, you will not go back to how you used to be. you will spend more of your time doing the work you love and creating additional value while not doing the work you don't like that someone else can take care of for you.
10. Rise and Shine:
There are countless articles (such as this one from the Guardian) that show how the most successful managers get up early and start their day at five in the morning. Does this mean you have to get up early too? No, not necessarily. But you have to believe that the earlier you get up, the more you can accomplish before anyone else in the world wakes up. You will have fewer emails, phone calls and other distractions. This will save you time to accomplish and complete the first priority even before the people around you wake up.