Tag: productivity tips

Simple Ways to Make Your Mondays Better

Simple Ways to Make Your Mondays Better

Monday would always be a day that most people dread. After the weekend of respite, you would feel the need to extend your rest but cannot do so for the first work day is coming. Monday is not at fault. It is simply the way things are. This is regardless of working in the office or at home.

However, starting your week right can be done in a better way. If you do not want your start of the week to pass poorly without even making your day at work more efficient, there are simple things for you to do:

Start with a plan. Monday is a good day to plan out the entire week. By planning, you would be able to prioritize the activities that need more attention due to urgency and importance. Furthermore, it is not always effective to just work as the tasks come. This could result in you concentrating on menial work. 

You could set a timeframe for each activity you will work on. For instance, for your current social media management project, market research may be done on Monday and Tuesday. Afterward, Wednesday could be a day to create graphics for postings, and so on.

Schedule meetings or appointments ahead. If you will be meeting with people, such as clients, suppliers, or contractors, Monday would be the right time to ensure that you would not be missing a slot on their calendars. The earlier you can coordinate with them, the better.

By doing so, you may also fill in your calendar accordingly. You may avoid conflicting schedules with your other commitments. By seeing your schedule ahead, you could manage your time more effectively throughout the week.

Focus on improvement. By treating Monday as an improvement check day, you could better yourself every week. Simply review how the last week had been and you would be able to do this.

You can check the lapses you had made previously, such as managing your time poorly, delaying a task frequently, or coordinating a concern ineffectively. Identifying these problems could keep you in check throughout the week. 

Touch base with co-workers. If you are working in teams, a touchbase meeting every Monday is a good way to start the week better. At the very least, you would have social time instead of focusing on work the whole day.

You can have a small talk about how the weekend has been. Furthermore, you may even share ideas on how you could spend the coming days more productively. 

Having a personal connection at the start of the week could be a boost to anyone, especially to those, who tend to feel less driven when working alone.

Wear positivity. If you want to feel better every Monday, then you should wear positivity. Think that if you would start your week right, you should begin with yourself. Smile as the day starts and think of affirmative thoughts. For instance, instead of fearing a big project to work on, think of how you would improve your skills by accomplishing it. 

The small ways mentioned above are your means of transforming your Monday into a friendly day. Think of it as your jumpstart to a productive week ahead and a more reliable you.

Five Best Practices Before Starting Your Remote Work

Five Best Practices Before Starting Your Remote Work

Working from home is not entirely different from reporting to an office far from your place. You perform the same tasks and coordinate with the similar group of people in your company. This also implies that even your productivity should not have any disparity despite the change in your location. You are still expected to deliver results and ensure efficiency daily.

Did you know what you do prior to starting your shift could affect your overall performance in your job? This is why it is fairly imperative that you develop a routine that will make sure to help you get the best out of your skills during your work.

To help you with the aforementioned matter, provided below are some best practices before starting your remote work:

Get enough sleep. Sleep would always be a crucial part of anyone’s lives, even in terms of work. Without getting enough rest, you would not have the energy to accomplish your tasks well. It may also impair your health, making you incapable of working at all.

According to The Cost of Poor Sleep: Workplace Productivity Loss and Associated Costs, a study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, an employee’s productivity is reduced due to sleep deprivation.

Also, without proper sleep, your reaction time may likely be affected, making a simple task of responding quickly in a conversation difficult for you.

Exercise. If you are a person who got used to sitting for hours during work, exercise is definitely what you need. Being stagnant will never give you either work or health benefits.

Moreover, in the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, a study by researcher Tim Puetz and Patrick O’Connor showed that exercising could boost your energy levels and decrease fatigue, which is highly helpful before working. Instead of having energy drinks or coffee, you might as well resort to exercise, which is not only beneficial to your body, but also to your mind.

Listen to music. To relax your mind before starting your shift, maybe some music would keep you in check. It could boost your mood and make you feel better before reporting. This could make you feel more motivated to carry out your tasks.

Music and work have long been associated in different studies. One study in 1995 showed that the employees’ work performance of a large retail organization improved significantly when they were allowed to listen to personal stereos for four weeks. This is in comparison to those who were not permitted to do so.

According to most researchers, music makes employees feel calm and focused. This is also probably the reason why some employers allow their workers to listen to music during work. This privilege has long been associated with better productivity.

Eating a healthy meal. It is always best to make sure your body is nourished with nutrients prior to working. Though many were used to simply having a cup of coffee to start their day at work, this may not be helpful to you.

A study in the British Journal of Health Psychology stated that people who eat more fruits and vegetables would benefit their mind. You will be more creative and more engaged at work. Moreover, your mood will be lifted, which is a great perk to anyone.

Preparing in advance. This practice should always be a part of a remote worker’s routine since it could affect how your day would start. If you prepare your workspace at the last minute before your shift, you would likely waste much of your time instead of getting on your priorities right away.

Making sure your resources are set properly is one way of avoiding delays. One good example is the possible update of your PC or laptop. If you would open it early on, you would not be delayed for a few minutes or hours before working. Virtual assistants, who get caught up by automatic updates, suffer late accomplishment of work and missed meetings.

With the provided practices, you would definitely have a better day at work. Remember, it is all about how you design your routine. Do not let any poor habit keep you from performing your job effectively. Plus, the given tips above are mostly beneficial to your health. Hence, you will win remarkably in many ways just by following them.

Quick Roundup of Productivity Tips for Virtual Assistants

Leave a comment

Virtual assistants could be considered among the busiest professionals at present. This is due to the fact that being in the online industry provides you the freedom to select different fields to enter. You could be an administrative VA while working as technical support for another client. Freelancing had given people a wider scope of opportunities to take advantage of. Nonetheless, this also implies that one may likely encounter issues with productivity one way or the other, particularly when tasks become heavier.

Every virtual assistant or even an office-based employee will find an instance wherein he or she will procrastinate. This is perfectly normal, but it does not mean that you should let it be. There are ways for you to remain productive in the midst of stressful environments and a stack of projects. Given below is a quick list of these tips:

Have a healthy meal before working.There is nothing better than ensuring your body is nourished properly before it goes to work. The more nutritious your food choices are, the more your system will have the energy to carry out both mundane and nerve-wracking projects at work. Vitamin C, B-vitamins, DHA, and magnesium are among nutrients that are found to boost productivity.

Get adequate sleep. Many would say that it is impossible to get enough sleep nowadays as a virtual assistant, but this is untrue. Regardless of being a night owler or a typical daytime employee, you have the power over the number of hours you doze off. All you have to do is get rid of the distractions, which keep you from sleeping well. The nuisances you may want to cross out are internet browsing, television, and social media.

Create a to-do list. By planning out your day, you would be able to prioritize the most important assignments and get rid of the tasks that are unnecessary. You could even allocate certain periods of time for every activity, helping you to make the most out of your day. You could create this list the day before or hours prior to your shift.

De-stress. You have to get rid of the stress of facing unfinished work, which affects your productivity. In order to do this, you should spend time with your family and friends. Alternatively, you may select hobbies that will keep your mind off your work.

Take a break when things get restless. You have to take a “real” break, which means you should clear your head off from anxieties and stress. This could be done while you are at work. A few minutes of breathing in and out could be a great thing to reset your mind and body. This could even give you a clearer judgment of what to do next with your work-related problems.

Follow the aforementioned pieces of advice and you could boost your productivity easily. Take note that you have control over your performance at work, both in improving and making it poor.