Teledata’s favourite links of the week: being productive

There’s a list as long as your arm of the things you are meant to be doing. But, you are watching YouTube videos of kids saying funny things. Being productive is an art, and Teledata is here to help you master it! 

We have scoured the internet to find out why you aren’t as productive as you could be, and what you can do about that. Try the below suggestions.

An Audio Guide to Being productive

Earlier in 2016, American podcast Freakonomics did a series on self-improvement. One of the episodes quickly lays out how you can be more productive.

Freakonomics is an interesting podcast that using economics to answer big questions.

The episode, named “How to Be More Productive” is all about getting more done in less time – but as the host and the experts are quick to point out, there’s a big difference between being busy and being productive. One expert they interview has eight points you can follow for a more productive work and personal life, including goal setting and being innovative.

Simplify Your Way to Productivity

This talk by Yves Morieux is useful if you want to get employees or colleagues more productive. The Boston Consulting Group partner looks at why people feel miserable and disengaged at work. He tells the audience this is because of today’s businesses are increasingly and dizzyingly complex — and traditional pillars of management are obsolete. He offers six rules for “smart simplicity” in this TEDTalk, part of a series the world’s leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less).

If you don’t feel like watching it, read a condensed version of his six points here.

 

Let Your Computer Monitor Your Productivity

If you are serious about using your time better, then try RescueTime – a tool that allows you to easily understand and optimize how you and your team spends their time and attention. 

You install the app on your computer, and it measures which applications or websites you use actively.

It gives an accurate picture of how you spend your time to help you become more productive every day. You can see where you are wasting time and how to avoid it. The app encourages you to set goals, like spending less than an hour a day on email. Need an alarm to tell you if you’ve been on a site too long? This app can offer that! 

And, if you can’t control yourself on the net, then you can block sites. You can prevent yourself from accessing whatever site distracts you, for a long as you like.

It’s a way to get away from the busy but not productive mindset. If you want to increase your team or employees’ productivity, then this is a good option. As the website says “it creates a unique culture of workplace transparency by eliminating much the posturing, deception, and resentment that tends to be common in the modern office.”