10 tips for productive work without stress

How can you actually work productively and thereby avoid burdensome stress? A day has only 24 hours. Nevertheless, the list of our daily tasks often seems endless. There is only one thing that helps: productivity. Being productive without being stressed helps you enjoy your workdays more and feel the exhilaration of making progress.

So in this article, I'm going to give you 10 tips that will help you reach your maximum productivity.

1. create basis for productive and stress-free work

Imagine you want to drive a car race, but the transmission is heavily worn, the tank is half empty and the steering wheel doesn't really want to parry. Doesn't sound like the ideal conditions for a successful race, does it?

Even if you are not a car (as I assume), it is just as important for your body to be in good shape so that you can work at full throttle or simply work productively. There are enough good Tips to improve work life balance.

If you don't get enough sleep at night, it will be hard for you to be fully productive and stress-free the next day. If your diet consists mostly of fast food and energy drinks, it's very possible that you won't be able to perform at your best. Enough to sleepyou (at least to some extent) healthy diet and Regular movement strongly contribute to keeping your stress level low and your productivity high.

For example, look at the article Sleep better and Natural Health Blog an.

2. divide your day

"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."

Winston Churchill

A proverb that has a lot of truth in it. Plan is one of your most important allies for productive and stress-free work. The beauty of planning is it creates Order into the jumble of tasks and plans in your head and put them down on paper in a clear form. Once that's done, you don't need to spend a lot of your mental energy juggling your tasks. Because now your plan does that for you. 

Once your tasks for the day are clear, prioritize them from A (crucial), B (moderately important) to C (relatively unimportant), for example. 

This way, less important C-tasks don't get in the way of the crucial A-tasks anymore and you have a clear path to get started with the really important things and simply work productively and without stress.

At the same time, you'll divide up your day and set goals that will help you accomplish more in less time. At the end of the day, you can review your daily routine and think about why certain tasks worked well and others not so well. This will help you gain valuable insights that will make your future workdays even more productive and stress-free.  

3. say no for more productive work

Don't take more than you can carry. Even if it's nice to get more done: It's better to do four tasks well than to get five tasks just right and be completely stressed and under pressure. If everything is busy for you, then don't hesitate to turn down requests or orders. We all only boil with water.

Your superiors, employees or customers will understand. This saves you the stress and you can tackle your tasks with productivity and significantly less stress.

4. do the difficult tasks first

There are few things that weigh more heavily on us at work than putting off important projects. When you have crucial tasks like a project with approaching deadline or a important conversation then this triggers stress in you. This in turn affects your productivity in other tasks. 

Therefore: Approach the colossus on a straight path. Most of the time, it turns out that when you look at it in the light, it is a lot smaller than you had previously assumed. It can be enormously helpful for you, for example, to divide a large project into many mini-steps.

In the StartUp world, one speaks of the Eat-The-Frog Methodwhich means nothing other than completing the challenging, stressful tasks first. This makes it possible to work much more productively.

This way, your brain is less inclined to react with excessive demands and your progress in the project remains manageable for you. This, in turn, will make the task much more motivating for you, as you will feel a sense of accomplishment with the completion of each small mini-step.

5. take breaks for more productivity

Even though it can sometimes be tempting to work non-stop, taking regular breaks is an important part of your work. important counterweight for your workloadto keep your system in balance. Incorporating breaks into your workday will help lower your stress level and clear your head. Move around during your break. Get out into the fresh air when you can or open the windows. More oxygen will make you more alert and productive.

A short mindfulness meditation can also help you recharge your batteries. Then, when you get back to work, you can complete your tasks more productively and effectively with more energy.

Always articles More energy in everyday life you can learn more about it.

6. eliminate distractions

It's in our nature to get distracted by things. Especially when they are just easy exciting are. Whether it's a new message on your phone, an interesting-sounding article, or just the thought of looking at the weather forecast for the next few days: all of these can create an urge in you to spontaneously reprioritize your tasks.

In the short term, it's more fun, but in the long term, it makes you less productive at work. Moreover, following such impulses gnaws away at your self-efficacy, which is a major component of your self-esteem.

To leave such distractions to the left, the first step is to look at them. To actually be aware of distractions. Every time you notice that you've been distracted - by anything - write it down, along with the time it happened. This way you'll recognize patterns to manage these distractions. You'll be able to work more productively and avoid stress in the future.

At the same time, create motivation to stay focused. For example, if you can manage to do all of your Workday without social media (unless they're important to your work itself), then reward yourself - for example, with a delicious dinner, a movie you've always wanted to see, or a much-needed meeting with friends. This will help your brain learn to associate distraction-free work with positive emotions, making it easier for you to be truly focused and productive.

7. put e-mails on a leash

Checking your email inbox unnecessarily many times a day can creep up on you as an unseen distraction. When it's not your primary task to respond to emails, set certain times to read and answer your mails. A good guideline for this is three times a day. Once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and once before you finish your work. So also turn off push notifications for new, incoming emails.

Also, once you've read an email, don't put off responding until later. Because that only takes up unnecessary space in your mental working memory. Instead, reply immediately.

8. create working environment for productive work

Your work environment also plays a role in a productive and stress-free workflow. Make it as supportive as possible. Try as much as possible Daylight as possible at your workplace. If there is no window nearby, you can also use a daylight lamp. Regularly airto have enough oxygen is also not a bad idea.

To find out what an empowering workplace looks like for you, you may need to experiment a bit. Perhaps having motivational or inspirational phrases hanging in front of your desk will make you more productive and focused. A little greenery from plants has also been shown in studies to have a positive effect on workplace mood. Or, place photos of family, friends or role models of yours in front of you. 

Whatever keeps you grounded, happy and motivated will most likely also make you more productive and less stressed.

9. specify concrete processing times for tasks

Have you ever had the experience of a Deadline for a task and just barely being able to complete that task by the deadline? Was that due to the actual scope of the task or how you approached the task? British sociologist Cyril Northcote Parkinson would have argued strongly for the latter in most cases. According to him, the scope of a task expands to the exact degree that you have time to complete it. 

If you have 24 hours to complete a project, you'll focus purely on the essentials to get the job done. If you have a week to complete the same task, you'll probably spend quite a bit more time on unnecessary aspects of the task. And if the deadline for that project time is a month in the future, you have a whole month to approach it unproductively. That's because you simply have less reason to be effective at work due to the "overflow" of time. This phenomenon is known as "Parkinson's Law."

To avoid falling victim to it and to work productively, set clear time frames for your tasks and projects. This will ensure that you focus on what's important and get to your goal effectively.

10. when your work is done, it is done

Set your working hours clear boundaries. When you are done with your work, close all windows on your computer and consciously end your workday. Leave your work at your work. Give your work email inbox and yourself a break until the next workday and have some fun in your free time.

Times of relaxation are just as important for your productivity as your work itself. Only when you're refreshed can you perform at your best in the long run and complete your tasks with effective vigor and without stress.

Productive work without stress

To this Advice you don't really need much time. Whether it's prioritizing and planning your workday, putting your social media into hibernation for a while, or saying "no" to a request instead of "yes" so you can complete the rest of your tasks more effectively: It's often small differences here that make all the difference. You can start today, if you want, and immediately boost your productivity at work.

You are just looking for a new job with real added value for you, the environment and society? Then take a look at the new sustainable job portal of CareElite. There you will find many job offers of exciting sustainable jobs that will fulfill you sustainably. And if you approach such a job with productivity and thus effectively make the world more sustainable - all the better!

Many greetings,

PS: In my Work & Finance Blog you will find more valuable tips for a healthy everyday life. For example, click through to the article When does a job make you happy? and learn more about an exhilarating workday.