1. They fight the tyranny of the urgent. The tyranny of the urgent refers to the tendency of little things that have to be done right now to get in the way of what really matters. This creates a huge problem as urgent actions often have little impact.
If you succumb to the tyranny of the urgent, you can find yourself going days, or even weeks, without touching the important stuff. Productive people are good at spotting when putting out fires is getting in the way of their performance, and they're willing to ignore or delegate the things that get in the way of real forward momentum.
"Time is what we want most, but what we use worst." -- William Penn
2. They never touch things twice. Productive people never put anything in a holding pattern, because touching things twice is a huge time-waster. Don't save an email or a phone call to deal with later. As soon as something gets your attention you should act on it, delegate it or delete it.
3. They eat frogs. "Eating a frog" is the best antidote for procrastination, and ultra-productive people start each morning with this tasty treat. In other words, they do the least appetizing, most dreaded item on their to-do list before they do anything else. After that, they're freed up to tackle the stuff that excites and inspires them.
4. They don't multitask. Ultra-productive people know that multitasking is a real productivity killer. Research conducted at Stanford University confirms that multitasking is less productive than doing a single thing at a time. The researchers found that people who are regularly bombarded with several streams of electronic information cannot pay attention, recall information or switch from one job to another as well as those who complete one task at a time.
But what if some people have a special gift for multitasking? The Stanford researchers compared groups of people based on their tendency to multitask and their belief that it helps their performance. They found that heavy multitaskers -- those who multitask a lot and feel that it boosts their performance -- were actually worse at multitasking than those who like to do a single thing at a time. The frequent multitaskers performed worse because they had more trouble organizing their thoughts and filtering out irrelevant information, and they were slower at switching from one task to another.
5. They get ready for tomorrow before they leave the office. Productive people end each day by preparing for the next. This practice accomplishes two things: it helps you solidify what you've accomplished today, and it ensures you'll have a productive tomorrow. It only takes a few minutes and it's a great way to end your workday.
"For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned." -- Benjamin Franklin
6. They stick to the schedule during meetings. Meetings are the biggest time waster there is. Ultra-productive people know that a meeting will drag on forever if they let it, so they inform everyone at the onset that they'll stick to the intended schedule. This sets a limit that motivates everyone to be more focused and efficient.
"The bad news is time flies. The good news is you're the pilot." -- Michael Altshuler
7. They say no. "No" is a powerful word that ultra-productive people are not afraid to wield. When it's time to say no, they avoid phrases such as I don't think I can or I'm not certain. Saying no to a new commitment honors your existing commitments and gives you the opportunity to successfully fulfill them.
Research conducted at the University of California in San Francisco shows that the more difficulty that you have saying no, the more likely you are to experience stress, burnout and even depression. Learn to use no, and it will lift your mood, as well as your productivity.
8. They only check email at designated times. Ultra-productive people don't allow e-mail to be a constant interruption. In addition to checking e-mail on a schedule, they take advantage of features that prioritize messages by sender. They set alerts for their most important vendors and their best customers, and they save the rest until they reach a stopping point. Some people even set up an autoresponder that lets senders know when they'll be checking their e-mail again.
"One man gets only a week's value out of a year while another man gets a full year's value out of a week." -- Charles Richards
9. They put technology to work for them. Technology catches a lot of flak for being a distraction, but it can also help you focus. Ultra-productive people put technology to work for them. Beyond setting up filters in their e-mail accounts so that messages are sorted and prioritized as they come in, they set up contingencies on their smart phones that alert them when something important happens. This way, when your stock hits a certain price or you have an email from your best customer, you'll know it. There's no need to be constantly checking your phone for status updates.
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