The Productivity Advisor

Strategic Scheduling Do you find it difficult to make time to work on the thingsthat are important to you? Are you trying to squeeze more into each day? Do you wonder where your working time goes? You may be surprised to know that the average worker spends  28% of their time dealing with emails. The average working day now extends from 7am – 7pm as technology means we are always connected. The average smartphone user spends 58 minutes a day checking their phone and they are, on average, never more than 3’ away from it. We’re probably closer to our smartphones than we are to our partners/loved ones. Do you recognise some of yourself in the stats above? I’m sure we all do but that doesn’t make them less scary does it? Add to that time for commuting and meetings and it’s easy to see how our work week can easily rush by without us feeling we have achieved the things we want to. One of the answers to having not enough might seem to do more things simultaneously – multitasking. Lots of people are proud of their multitasking ability and of course we all know that women are better at this than men! The only problem is that multitasking is a very inefficient way to work. It feels good because we trigger the happy signals in our brain. We feel busy, important and in demand which can all help boost our sense of self.However, multitasking is exhausting both mentally and physically. Not only does it require huge amounts of brain energy it also requires time to “switch”between tasks. This switching time is less in women, than in men – giving rise to the women are better at multitasking thing. However, losing time as we switch between tasks isn’t an efficient way of working. Just think of a factory with a production line flowing effectively. It wouldn’t be efficient to stop it and change what was being produced every few minutes, yet that’s what we expect our brains to do when multitasking. No wonder we often make mistakes and end up feeling drained and exhausted. Not convinced doing lots of things and being alwaysavailable is a problem? Well some research by the Universityof London showed that this type of information overload “info-mania” asthey describe it can cause an effect on your IQ similar to smoking marijuana,which I’m sure you would agree isn’t the most productive state to be in. So if multitasking isn’t the answer then surely throwing more hours at projects must be the right way to go. We can easily cut down on some sleep, miss our breaks and stay glued to our working space slogging away to get more done. If this was the case then Greece and Mexico would be the two most productive countries in the world or 46.6 per week (based on 48 working weeks per year). Germany, Norway, The Netherlands and Denmark are at the other end of the spectrum entirely. The average working hours in Germany are 1363 per year, or 28.3 per week (based on 48 working weeks per year). As this handy infographicfrom PGI shows productivity nosedives the more hours we work, dropping from over 50% for those with the lowest hours to less than 10% for those with the longest working hours.  Add into that thefact that those countries with the shortest working hours Finland, Denmark,Norway are also noted for being some of the worlds happiest over a consistent period of time.  In some countries the push to throw more hours at things has resulted in that unfortunate game of “who can be at work the longest/latest”. It’s not a great game because there aren’t really any winners, just more burnout, poorer productivity and strained personal relationships to deal with too. If multitasking and throwing more hours at things aren’t then answer then perhaps tim

Want a free program to help you achieve more by doing less? Check it out now! Do you want to; Make more progress on the things most important to you? Stop becoming overloaded and overwhelmed? Achieve a better balance in your life? Get more things done without working harder or longer?   Fantastic!   You are in exactly the right place :)   Want to read some articles on productivity? Time Management Techniques Time Management Skills What is Time Management   How to Measure Productivity How to Get Things Done Organization Skills Perfect Your Planning Skills Productivity Improvement How to Improve Productivity How to Increase Productivity   Why Set Goals? Achieving Your Goals and Objectives

Multitasking Do you want to be more productive without working longer or harder?  Do you find it difficult to work on the things that are important to you?  Are you trying to squeeze more into each day and feeling burned out?    It’s not surprising that we often feel overwhelmed and under pressure.    Research shows that the average worker spends 28% of their time dealing with emails and the average working day now extends from 7am – 7pm as technology means we are always connected.The average smartphone user spends 58 minutes a day checking their phone and they are never more than 3’ away from it. We’re probably closer to our smartphones than we are to our partners/loved ones.    Do you recognise some of yourself in the stats above? I’m sure we all do but that doesn’tmake them less scary does it? Add to that time for commuting and meetings and it’s easy tosee how our work week can easily rush by without us feeling we have achieved the thingswe want to.    One of the answers to having not enough time might seem to do more things simultaneously – multitasking. Lots of people are proud of their multitasking ability and of course we all know that women are better at this than men! The only problem is that multitasking is a very inefficient way to work. It feels good because we trigger the happy signals in our brain. We feel busy, important and in demand which can all help boost our sense of self.    However, multitasking is exhausting both mentally and physically. Not only does it require huge amounts of brain energy it also requires time to “switch” between tasks. This switching time is less in women, than in men – giving rise to the women are better at multitasking thing. However, losing time as we switch between tasks isn’t an efficient way of working. Just think of a factory with a production line flowing effectively. It wouldn’t be efficient to stop it and change what was being produced every few minutes,yet that’s what we expect our brains to do when multitasking. No wonder we often make mistakes and end up feeling drained and exhausted.    Not convinced doing lots of things and being always available is a problem? Well some research by the University of London showed that this type of information overload “infomania”as they describe it can cause an effect on your IQ similar to smoking marijuana,which I’m sure you would agree isn’t the most productive state to be in.    

Want a free program to help you achieve more by doing less? Check it out now! Do you want to; Make more progress on the things most important to you? Stop becoming overloaded and overwhelmed? Achieve a better balance in your life? Get more things done without working harder or longer?   Fantastic!   You are in exactly the right place :)   Want to read some articles on productivity? Time Management Techniques Time Management Skills What is Time Management   How to Measure Productivity How to Get Things Done Organization Skills Perfect Your Planning Skills Productivity Improvement How to Improve Productivity How to Increase Productivity   Why Set Goals? Achieving Your Goals and Objectives

This episode discusses how to work at your best. It's like the difference between swimming against and with the tide. If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :) Squeezing more into each day isn't the answer  

Want a free program to help you achieve more by doing less? Check it out now! Do you want to; Make more progress on the things most important to you? Stop becoming overloaded and overwhelmed? Achieve a better balance in your life? Get more things done without working harder or longer?   Fantastic!   You are in exactly the right place :)   Want to read some articles on productivity? Time Management Techniques Time Management Skills What is Time Management   How to Measure Productivity How to Get Things Done Organization Skills Perfect Your Planning Skills Productivity Improvement How to Improve Productivity How to Increase Productivity   Why Set Goals? Achieving Your Goals and Objectives

Urgent Does Not Always Mean Important We often spend a lot of time dealing with things that are urgent. In this episode we look at how to move away from working on urgent, last minute things and work on what is really important to us. If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :) Squeezing more into each day isn't the answer  

Want a free program to help you achieve more by doing less? Check it out now! Do you want to; Make more progress on the things most important to you? Stop becoming overloaded and overwhelmed? Achieve a better balance in your life? Get more things done without working harder or longer?   Fantastic!   You are in exactly the right place :)   Want to read some articles on productivity? Time Management Techniques Time Management Skills What is Time Management   How to Measure Productivity How to Get Things Done Organization Skills Perfect Your Planning Skills Productivity Improvement How to Improve Productivity How to Increase Productivity   Why Set Goals? Achieving Your Goals and Objectives

Starting at the end is a great way to plan projects, goals and even things like saving targets. This episode talks you through how to do it.If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :)If you are interested in being more productive without working longer then head over to our website where you will find more free articles and podcasts.Squeezing more into each day isn't the answerMelanieThe Time AdvisorBecause time isn't money

Scheduling in and out days is a great way to be more effective by making your diary work for you and set you up for focussed working more easily. This episode looks at how to do that.If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :)If you are interested in being more productive without working longer then head over to our website where you will find more free articles and podcasts.Squeezing more into each day isn't the answerMelanieThe Time AdvisorBecause time isn't money

Save time and energy by grouping tasks together. It's an easy and effective way to get more done. In this episode we look at some things to do in batches.If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :)If you are interested in being more productive without working longer then head over to our website where you will find more free articles and podcasts.Squeezing more into each day isn't the answerMelanieThe Time AdvisorBecause time isn't money

Be More Effective by Getting Ahead for the Next Day Getting ahead for the next day is a really easy way to be more effective from the moment you hit your workspace. This episode gives you a few tips on how to do this. If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :) Squeezing more into each day isn't the answer  

Be More Effective by Getting Ahead for the Next Day Getting ahead for the next day is a really easy way to be more effective from the moment you hit your workspace. This episode gives you a few tips on how to do this. If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :) Squeezing more into each day isn't the answer  

"Flow" is amazing. It's being so absorbed in something that you lose the sense of time passing. It's a highly productive state and once you have experienced it you will want to do it again. This episode looks at how to experience and enjoy working in "flow".If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest to you :)If you are interested in being more productive without working longer then head over to our website where you will find more free articles and podcasts.Squeezing more into each day isn't the answerMelanieThe Time AdvisorBecause time isn't money

Ditch Multitasking As we are pressured to do more and more multitasking seems a great idea. In this episode we look at why multi-tasking isn't very productive and we look at some more effective alternatives. If you want to be more effective at work, get more done and become more productive this episode will be of interest. Squeezing more into each day isn't the answer