Do you need to increase your company’s productivity but unsure as to how to go about it? In this excerpt from an interview between Dale Beaumont and Andrew May discover two great management techniques to help increase your productivity.
Andrew runs Switched On, a consulting company based in Sydney and London. He is one of Australia’s leading experts on performance and gives keynote presentations around the world and coaches CEOs and senior managers. He also runs PT Plus, a mentoring and coaching business.
What types of management do you use to increase productivity?
- Priority management – managing priorities is not about getting everything done, it is about deciding what is most important and getting that task done. It is about getting more done in less time.
When I started working on priority management, I suddenly noticed that I was getting a lot more done in less time. I started to feel much more in control, and friends, family and work colleagues commented that they noticed something different. Each day I sat down for ten minutes before starting on the ‘stuff’ and prioritised the five most important things to accomplish for the day. I stopped creating massive ‘to-do’ lists at the start of each day and made a ‘will-do’ list and started on what was most important. This also helps avoid time wasters, the things we do to put off doing the hard tasks that we know deep down need to be done. This approach has had a big improvement on my productivity and has allowed me to get more done.
When I coach people on this topic it is interesting to note that many people don’t really know what’s important. I mean they do know deep down, but they just haven’t allocated valuable time to thinking about the bigger picture. The key is asking yourself, ‘What is the most important thing I can be doing with my time right now?’
- Energy management – the highest level of productivity is achieved by managing energy. If you are a morning person (gazelle) then get into work early and do the high-end cognitive tasks while your brain is in top gear – avoid getting to work and doing junk emails for the first two or three hours! If you are an afternoon or evening person (bear) then it might take you a few hours to warm up and hit your straps. I know some bears who don’t actually get into work until 10.30 or 11.00am but they stay back later when they are more productive.
Defining the best time of each day and each week, when your brain works at its peak, and undertaking high-end cognitive tasks during these times is a key strategy to optimising performance.Then you can do lower-end activities when your energy levels plateau or take a dip.
For more of this interview and how to increase your company’s productivity check out “Secrets of Top Business Builders Exposed!“
