If you’re looking to add productivity habits into your workday, like prioritizing important tasks first or engaging in deep (non-distracted) work daily, then good for you—you’re ahead of many. But if you’re struggling to make these habits stick, you’re far from alone. Below are four suggestions for making productivity habits stick:
Keep them attainable. The level of success you achieve will be based off your goals, and if your habit goals are massive, like wanting to engage in deep work for five hours a day, they are less likely to stick. Instead, make sure your habits are realistic and attainable, like one hour of deep work a day.
Schedule them. If you work well under deadlines, schedule your new productivity tasks. For instance, block off an hour at the beginning and end of the day for returning calls and answering emails that may sidetrack you earlier on.
Track your success. Make sure to keep track of your successes—even the small ones. By noting if you were indeed able to engage in deep work five days this week or successfully prioritize your task list, then you will be better able to measure your success rate on a larger scale (Did you get more done this week?), and these habits are more likely to stick around.
Plan for setbacks. If you accidentally drop that new habit for a day or two, build in time the following day to catch up. When looking at your calendar, if you can see a busy day coming up that may interfere with your new habit, gently shift your schedule, or try tweaking it by arriving at the office an hour earlier or staying a bit later to catch up on those emails or calls.
Boosting productivity at work is easy once you establish habits and stick with them. Granted, there’s always the possibility of unforeseen setbacks and time constraints, but with the right motivation and plans in place, you’ll be well on your way toward more productive workdays.
