10 tips to boost your productivity

We live in a busy world with multitudes of distractions, which is a recipe for burnout and chronic stress. It's no surprise that people are seeking ways to achieve higher levels of productivity both in and outside the workplace. 

The goal of being more productive is not to change external factors. There's nothing you can do about the number of things you need to do in a given day. But you can learn to prioritize tasks and focus better, which removes a lot of stress from the equation, if you practice the following tips.

1. Organize your to-do list

Author and productivity consultant David Allen recommends writing down everything you need to get done in your life—from researching college scholarships for your daughter, to preparing a work presentation, to ordering new HVAC filters—on a separate piece of paper or file card. You then address 1 piece of paper at a time. Take care of short tasks right away. Enter the others into a calendar app or break them down into smaller tasks. This method helps free you from the anxiety of having lots of nagging responsibilities out there.

2. Try the Pomodoro Technique

This technique to overcome procrastination and scattered focus was developed in the late 1980s by Francesco Cirillo, who named it for a tomato-shaped timer he had. All you need is a kitchen timer or a Pomodoro app (find free ones on the Apple Store and Google Play by searching “Pomodoro”). Set the timer for 25 minutes and commit to work only that amount of time. When the time is up, check off your progress and take a short break. Once you complete 4 sessions, you can enjoy a longer break. 

Cirillo claims that if you practice this technique consistently, you'll not only improve your focus but also reduce errors in estimating how much time tasks take to complete and "transform time from being an enemy to an ally."

3. Just do it

The Nike slogan has motivated a whole generation to don exercise apparel and move, and it turns out there is a strong connection between exercise and productivity. According to a study, workers were 21% more productive on workout days.¹

The type of exercise is also important. Although you might think vigorous exercise stimulates performance most, research shows that low intensity exercise like walking produces the best results.² Regular cardiovascular exercise has also been linked to better short-term memory and may decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.³

Struggling to exercise? Try wearing wireless headphones so you can stream a curated motivational playlist. AAA members get savings on Sprint accessories, including headphones.

4. Make small changes

Human beings are tempted to overhaul their lives. Not surprisingly, tackling your negative inclinations all at once leads to discouragement and rebellion, since we are creatures of habit and tend to revert to the status quo unless we really change behaviors that undermine productivity.

Behavioral scientist B.J. Fogg argues that lasting change results from any of the following 3 steps:

• Having an epiphany
  
• Changing your environment
• Taking baby steps

Few of us have a life-changing epiphany, Fogg argues, but all of us can take small steps to create new, more productive behaviors and make environmental changes to support them. Apps such as miniHABITs, everyday, and Fogg’s own Tiny Habits can be a big help.

5. Tidy up

Speaking of environmental changes, do you ever look around your home or office and feel weighed down by the sheer volume of stuff you have? The concept that our possessions affect our productivity has driven a whole social movement: minimalism. 

At the forefront of this movement is organizer and spiritual guru Marie Kondo, who believes that people are happier and more productive when surrounded by things that "spark joy." Her method for complete home reorganization involves sorting your possessions into categories and holding 1 item at a time to assess whether you need it in your life. Like Allen's method for visualizing your to-do list, Kondo's approach allows you to consciously engage with the things occupying the brain space you could use more productively playing with your kids or finishing a project. 

6. Swallow the frog

Mark Twain famously said, "Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day." The principle behind this adage is simple: To be more productive each day, tackle your hardest task first.

Michael McDevitt, CEO of Tandem Legal Group, says it's not even necessary to eat the frog first thing each day. People achieve peak performance at various times of the day, so some simply don't have bandwidth to tackle a difficult task straight on. McDevitt says employees at his company would instead identify their most difficult task and dedicate a block of time to focus on it. The idea is that prioritizing the most difficult challenge helps you invest your energy appropriately. This, in turn, increases productivity. 

7. Just say no

When you say "yes" to everything, you are effectively saying "no" to all of it, says mindfulness blogger Tyler Kleeberger. He continues that we have to "decide which things we are going to commit to, and understand that there will be certain things that we won’t be able to commit to as a result.” Kleeberger says people should allow their values to determine which activities take priority.

Don't worry that being more selective will hurt you at work. We say "yes" so much because people crave acceptance, but others in the office will respect you more if you learn to say "no." Thus, the benefits of being selective are twofold: You have more time to work on important projects, and you look better in the eyes of your coworkers.

8. Reduce blue light

A main factor that can undermine productivity is lack of sleep, and a leading cause of sleep disruption is the blue light electronic screens emit. During the day, blue light waves help increase our levels of attention. But as we continue to bask in their glow after dark, the light can interfere with our circadian rhythm and cause sleep deprivation. 

Fortunately, you don't have to unplug. There are many blue light filter mobile apps, some of which work by gradually changing the quality of light as you approach bedtime. 

9. Gamify your progress

Self-improvement can be a humorless endeavor that brings to mind Ben Franklin's lists of daily activities, people take cold showers first thing in the morning, and the habits of marathon runners. If that sort of thing doesn't appeal to you, try channeling your productivity goals through something fun: playing video games. Apps like Habitica, Do It Now, LifeRPG, and EpicWin take an activity you already love and allow you to program productivity goals, "play" for rewards, and work with other players to defeat common obstacles. 

10. Design a custom mobile app

Productivity goals vary from person to person and organization to organization. That's why designing a custom mobile app with Sprint can be a great solution, allowing a business manager to input tailored tools that help everyone on the team to focus on the tasks they need to get done. Streamlining tasks, encouraging team collaboration, and increasing productivity are simple when you focus on the specific needs of your organization, and you don't need advanced programming skills to make it happen.