I have to admit, I feel like a bit of a fraud writing this post. Ok, a lot of a fraud. Because I struggle a lot with productivity.
A lot of my issues I think come from just being easily distracted, going off on side quests when I really need to just get my head down and focus on the job that I need to get done.
So one tiny thing that is actually really helpful for keeping me productive is keeping a notebook on my desk when I’m working. That way any time a thought pops in my head of something else I should do I can write it down so I’ll remember to do it later. Which is far better than my normal practice of stopping what I’m doing to go and do that thing now, before I forget about it.
If you need a bit more than that little tip, then here are 5 more things you can try that’ll help boost your productivity and claim back an hour of your day for things you enjoy:
1. Set up systems
If you do the same tasks a lot for your business then set up systems to make them easier and more efficient.
This could look like creating templates in Canva for your social media posts, so you don’t waste precious time coming up with new designs each time you need to post something.
2. Outsource
If you can afford it then outsourcing certain tasks to a freelancer can free up at least an hour of your day to focus on other things.
You could hire a VA to handle your admin, a social media manager to take care of that side of your marketing, or an accountant to handle the financial side of things.
Think about the little things that you struggle with in your business, the things you don’t enjoy doing and that end up eating up your time because you don’t really want to do them. These are the kinds of things to try and outsource if you can!
3. Don’t multitask
I think a lot of us were brought up to believe that multitasking was the goal. Getting three things done at once has to be super productive, right?
Well sometimes yes, but most of the time trying to multitask actually makes us less productive because we never fully focus on each task.
So each one takes longer than if we just did it on its own.
There are times when it works to multitask, like writing out your shopping list when you’re in the queue at the post office. But most of the time, just don’t do it!
4. Batch Tasks
Instead of multitasking try batching your tasks instead.
So for me with writing blog posts this looks like planning all the posts for the next week/month in one session, writing them in another, and creating graphics for them in another session again.
This way when I’m in the flow of writing I can keep going, instead of chopping and changing between that and brainstorming other content and designing graphics.
5. Repurpose your content
If one of the biggest time sucks in your business is creating content to share on social media then you can easily steal back an hour a day by repurposing content you already have.
Let’s say you can write one blog post a week for your small business. Once you have this done you can easily pull out quotes and key points to share on your social media channels. If the post is one like this, with 5 main tips, then you can use those points that you’ve already thought of to create a reel or a carousel for Insta.
You can reuse your images too, instead of sourcing new ones for every social media channel. Just make sure you resize them (which is really easy to do if you have a Canva pro account by using the magic resize tool).
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