Ever asked yourself why are you so stressed with work? Work efficiency is one of the most crucial components in both small businesses as well as large corporations. As small business owners, you must learn to incorporate different strategies to improve work productivity at work. By managing your employees and their workflow well, you can focus on expanding your business that can boost your overall ROI. Business owners are constantly looking to save time and money, running your own business means being eager to make ends meet through efficiency and ensure healthy morale at work.
In this article, you will learn about 8 productivity hacks that you can implement in your small business which will make working smarter and better.
Priorities
Before you begin your day, it is important to have a list of tasks that you want to achieve for the day. These tasks can be related to meetings, clients, payments, etc which should be prioritized according to their importance or urgency. So as you are about to begin, arrange or sort your lists into must-do’s, want to do, and will do when convenient. This will help you plan out your day well in advance and look forward to a productive day.
Virtual Receptionist
Answering calls and talking to clients adds a personal touch for small businesses but it can take up a huge portion of your time. With the limited resources at hand, employees may not be able to offer their valuable skills entirely and not waste time doubling as receptionists. Adding a virtual receptionist will improve workflow and employee productivity for small businesses. Another great reason is that it is affordable compared to hiring an in-house receptionist.
Ensure a Healthy Workplace Environment
You may already know this but it can be very effective to improve productivity. A stressful environment at your workplace will yield bad results, disengagement, miscommunication, and less productivity. Creating a healthy working environment will encourage and motivate employees to work harder and smarter. For instance, rewarding your high-performing staff with a raise or provide incentives to those who excel beyond their targets. By doing so, they are likely to work harder which will increase productivity for your day-to-day goals. Maintaining a healthy workplace is staying connected with your employees in celebration times and in grievous times. During this time, drafting an obituary letter may seem challenging. Use this free template for the obituary letter so that you can professionally communicate the right message.
Delegate Work
It doesn’t matter whether you are a small business owner or part of a larger corporation, you must learn to delegate your work. Especially in small businesses, they are limited to a fewer number of employees. It is your job to recognize which tasks or jobs they are better at and let them handle those jobs for you. By doing so, you free up time for yourself to focus on other aspects of your business, knowing that the tasks assigned will be completed efficiently.
Mute your Smart Devices
Your gadgets can be a great time waster if they continuously ringing, buzzing, or chiming throughout the day. These notifications can be a distraction that can break your concentration during your work. A simple text can lead you astray for 25-30 mins where you could have finished a task for the day. Social media is another distraction that can leave you aimlessly browsing through your smart device. If you are handling the social platforms of your business, ensure that you are logged out from your personal account during this time to improve productivity.
Don’t Multitask
While most of us have heard that multitasking and juggling through different tasks at once is necessary for your workplace. But if you think about it, multitasking can do you more harm than good as it can cause people to make more mistakes and be more stressed out. Improving productivity does not mean just getting work done anyhow within the time given. But focusing on each task solely will make them more effective and less stressed while completing their tasks for the day.
Communication is Key
The best way to ensure that there is no confusion is to have a clear line of communication. By doing so, every task is completed to its optimum, and encourage your employees to communicate better within the company. It also helps set a clear direction for your employees and what they should expect from you. Clear goals and focus will help you avoid simple mistakes and increase workplace productivity. With the pandemic in effect, it is important to pay close attention to scheduling tasks for your employees. Taking into consideration the mental and physical stress on them during this time and as the owner, you can provide time flexibility for those working from home.
Automate Tasks
There are different free and paid apps available online that are designed to enhance workplace productivity. Businesses are usually fast-paced and keeping up may seem daunting. With the right tools and apps, you can improve workflow and ensure that your daily tasks are accomplished by the end of the day. Time-management apps, organizer apps, social media schedules, self-care apps, and so on are just some of the ways you can increase productivity amongst your employees.
These are just some of the hacks you can use to increase productivity at your workplace.