Have you had one of those days at work when you are given a huge list of tasks, but don't know how you will complete them all? In these situations (especially if you're a person who enjoys being lazy) everything seems complex because of the sheer size of the list.
Successful business leaders are faced with these situations every day. In order for them to run huge companies, they need to be as productive as possible. Every business leader has their own set of productivity hacks, as illustrated by this LinkedIn survey. A number of influencers (including CEOs, founders, and other high level executives) were asked to share their productivity hacks. Here are the results that we found the most interesting:
Sallie Krawchek, CEO and Co-Founder of Ellevest
One of the most prominent figures in modern corporate America, Sallie Krawchek prefers to work at 4 am in addition to usual business hours. She keeps these hours for one simple reason: she could not say no to regular email checking and it constantly distracted her. Most of the emails were sent during the day, so Krawchek’s productivity suffered because she was, “addicted to the rush of endorphins that occurs when one receives a batch of emails.” To increase her productivity, she wakes up at 4 am and drinks coffee, thus keeping her mind and inbox clear of messages later in the day.
Brad Feld, Managing Director at Foundry Group
Does cutting off business travel sound unusual? That’s what keeps one of the most successful venture capitalists in America more productive! According to Feld, he traveled 75 percent of the time during the week and visited many cities throughout the nation, but he lived in the suburbs of Denver and had to drive a few hours just to reach the airport.
To become more productive, he simply canceled all trips he had and declared a “no-fly” policy to have more time. To connect with the partners and customers, Feld used video conferencing tools like Skype and Google Hangouts.
Kevin Roose, News Director at Fusion
The problem faced by Roose is encountered by many people every day. According to him, his productivity suffered because his computer was constantly distracting him from work: emails, notifications, and so on. To eliminate the issue, Roose went to the flea market and bought a typewriter to ensure a distraction-free environment. Unfortunately, the solution was only temporary. Eventually he realized that had to spend more time because of the need to type over errors, hit the carriage return, and align sheets of paper.
To find a better solution, Roose turned to Freedom. This Mac application prevents distraction by disabling the Internet connection for a limited time specified by the user, thus allowing him to work without annoying notifications. This app is also used by many people who work at professional essay writing services to speed up the work by limiting distractions. Roose also recommended using WriteRoom for those who use a PC.
Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group
Do you know what Richard Branson thinks is behind his great productivity? His glasses! He used them from the very beginning of his career because he had to concentrate and deal with a lot of texts. Later in life when he had his business, he found that wearing one reading lens in one eye tricked his brain into automatic adjustment and focus. He also claims that glasses protect the eyes and help them to maintain their health much longer.
With people spending so much time looking at the screens of their smartphones, tablets, and computers, it is very easy to damage the eyes and creativity. The rest given to the eyes can help to relax the mind and create some space for new ideas, which are incredibly important in business, says Branson.
Neil Blumenthal, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Warby Parker
According to Blumenthal, being really productive is about maximizing effectiveness, rather than the number of affairs one tries to complete as fast as possible. He finds delegation as the best way to achieve the highest effectiveness, and therefore productivity, so he follows a specific five-rule plan that he developed. As a result, he says, delegation helps to empower employees, develop their skills, improve their engagement, and increase the amount of free time available.
As the survey from LinkedIn showed, many successful people have their own productivity hacks that they developed with time. If you do not wish to wait to develop the hack that works for you, feel free to pick up some of the ones described in the article. They can really boost your productivity and even save you some free time.
