NCET Biz Tips: Science-Based Strategies to Increase Productivity

Milena Regos

If you’re a busy professional who thinks for a living, you want to get your most important work done, in less time, with less stress. In a world of uncertainty our brains gravitate towards distractions - it’s a natural response. We end up reaching for snacks, social media, or getting stuck in emails, putting us in reactive mode for most of the day.

How do you renew your energy, increase your capacity, and avoid decision fatigue so you can get your most important work done without increasing the hours of work done?

Here are five science-based tips to help you increase mindful productivity without having to work longer hours.

Know your chrono-type. Know when your body naturally needs rest and sleep and when it’s at its peak performance. Understanding your chronotype can help you decide when to do creative work, when to respond to emails and when to turn off your computer and call it a day. Working with your biology not against it means no more getting up at 5am if you’re not a morning person.

Spend 90 min in deep work in the morning. Doing your most important work in the morning when your willpower is strongest means protecting your time from everything else and putting your effort into what moves your business forward. Leave busy but not important work for when your brain is tired, later in the day.

Have designated time to work. Our brains associate our home with sleeping, playing, relaxing so it’s really hard to actually focus and get the work done in a place our brains perceive as separate from home. Having a designated time to work puts your headspace into work mode. At a minimum, do not work in your bedroom and change the tablecloth at your kitchen table if that’s where you work. You have to trick your brain into thinking when it’s time to work and time to relax. Separating work from home gives you the cognitive divide you need to create healthy boundaries. If you’re working from the couch, you’re doing yourself a great disservice.

Create certain rituals to prepare your brain for work. Whether that’s putting on work clothes, going to your home office, lighting a focus candle, listening to certain focus music when you work, rituals can help turn your brain on and off work. Having virtual commute time and being able to switch off work at the end of the day is how you can create the separation you need between work and living. Architect your day on purpose so your brain knows what type of activities you’re doing.

Going back to the office with an open floor plan? Studies have shown that open floor plans have reduced productivity and increased cortisol among employees drastically. Figure out how to reorganize the office so that your brain is not in constant scanning of the environment and can actually focus on the work at hand.

Learn more about science-based strategies to increase mindful productivity at NCET’s Biz Café at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center on Nov 17, 2021, from 3 to 4 pm with networking from 2 to 3 pm. NCET is a member-supported nonprofit organization that produces educational and networking events to help people explore business and technology. More info at https://www.ncet.org/ncet-event-calendar/strategies-to-increase-productivity

Milena Regos is founder of Unhustle www.unhustle.com. She helps overwhelmed leaders and exhausted entrepreneurs create greater impact with less effort, and more balance, joy, and fulfillment.