Optimize Your Day With the Science of Productivity

Sometimes there is resistance to the idea of a routine, but the most productive people follow a routine-www.bakadesuyo.com. Putting the things we need to do on a regular basis on autopilot allows us to focus on more important matters. Studies have revealed statistics about the effects of interruptions and multi-tasking, the best environments for productivity and more. Do some experiments to see how you work best, and shape your daily routine (as much as possible) with these results from research in the area of productivity. While some aspects may not be within our control depending on our workplace, others may be possible to regulate.

via easel.ly download at Slideshare

A Daily Routine based on the Science of Productivity

• Exercise = 23% more productivity. Source: Wired Innovation Insights. Exercise in the morning to enjoy it more and reap the feel good benefits throughout the day.
• Happy people are 15% more productive-University of Warwick. (Or 31% more productive-Forbes.com) Gain a whole lot of benefits by making time to add happiness habits throughout the day.

AM

• Dan Ariely, Professor of Behavioral Economics, concludes that generally people are most productive in the morning for two hours after fully waking. Don’t waste your most productive time from New Republic.
• We can’t store much in our memory, and it drains energy if we try. We can only remember about 7 things (plus or minus two)- research at wikipedia.
• We’re much more likely to do something when we write down when and where we will do it-theweek.com.
• We tend to under-estimate how much time tasks will take-Wikipedia.

Breaks

• Breaks that follow a rhythm are best- Want to Get More Done? from Success magazine.
• Tony Schwartz, CEO of the Energy Project, suggests the Ultradian rhythm: 90 minutes of work followed by a 15 minute break -idonethis.com.
• The Pomodoro Technique: 24 minutes of work followed by a 5 minute break.
• The Draugiem Group Study showed the most productive people worked 52 minutes followed by a 17 minute break. The Exact Amount of Time You Should Work Every Day from Fast Company, Want to Get More Done? from Success Magazine, and Use the 52/17 Rule at 99u.
• Peter Bregman advocates a short break each hour, which is backed up by a 2016 study.

Multi-tasking

• IQ drops an average of 10 points while multi-tasking-Forbes.
• We’re not nearly so good at multi-tasking as we think: research from npr.

Interruptions

• It takes an average of 25 minutes to refocus after an interruption: A Focus on Distraction from the NY Times.
• A task takes 25% longer to complete if we are interrupted-hbr.org.
• Knowledge workers spend 28% of their time on email-www.bakadesuyo.com.

Workspace

• The Ideal Office at Huffington Post
• How to Deal with an Open Office from success.com
• Optimize environment with sound, temperature and lighting- Bufferapp.
• Ambient noise of about 70 decibels is helpful: Working From Coffee Shops Could be Destroying Your Productivity from homeofficehero.com
• The Best Music for Productivity from businessinsider
• Ergonomic Workspace Guide from mayo clinic

PM

• 95% of us need 7-8 hours of sleep-Wikipedia.

Time Use

• Charts from the American Time Use Survey from the Department of Labor
• Wasting Time at Work Survey from salary.com
• The Simple Science of Getting More Done (in less time) from Sparring Mind
• A helpful practice is a time audit.

Learn more about productivity at the free tutorial Time Management 101. See also the Science of Goals infographic.

Book: Read “When” by Dan Pink, Watch interview at CBS News

About dailyplanit

I seek to create order from the chaos of complex information. Join me at the Daily PlanIt to gain insights, inspiration, and information to increase skills for a better life. I unlock the power of teaching reading with phonics in the pursuit of literacy at www.phonicspow.com. In my spare time I explore books and movies, often choosing titles available on both screen and page.