Productivity Speed Bumps
Stop today and notice what it is that interrupts your progress.
By Cyndy Ratcliffe
It seems that what we think we can get done in a given day or week is almost always more than we accomplish.
Often we look back at a full day or week exhausted and can’t see the results we anticipated. Blame it on what I call "productivity speed bumps," the interruptions and sidetracking that we did not anticipate on our schedule but that account for a large portion of our lost day and consequently, our lack of productivity.
Many of us run into productivity speed bumps on a regular basis. We are running so hard and strong that we don’t take time to stop, examine and establish a plan to eliminate or minimize them in the future.
Take for example your morning routine of getting out of the house. What is it that causes you to slow down and then find that you have to make up for time on the road to work? Was it the fact that you noticed the plants out back were wilting when you let the dogs out so you took time to water them? Did you find yourself hyperfocusing on a segment of a television show without realizing the time had ticked away? Did you decide to throw in just one load of wash since you were out of socks? One load meant more than one, since the washer and dryer were already full. Stop today and notice what it is that interrupts your progress.
Observe your speed bumps at work. Does the two-minute trip to the coffee pot become 20 minutes when you strike up a conversation with a co-worker? Does your open-door policy encourage visitors and thus interruptions?
The next time you run into a speed bump, stop and recognize it, then make a determination as to what you can do to alleviate or minimize it in the future.
Let’s take the wilting plants as an example. If you set up a routine schedule for watering, the plants will not need to fall over to get your attention and will not sidetrack you in your morning routine. As a matter of fact, I recommend that you use a generic weekly schedule and establish set days for items like laundry, plant care and meal planning. Post your week’s calendar in an area where you will see it every morning as a visual reminder.
In the situation involving the television set, make a decision to get your news another way, possibly through talk radio on the way to work or reading the paper after work. You get the idea.
Some speed bumps can be delegated to another person. Small businesses are popping up everywhere that answer many needs for our busy disruptive lives. You can have your groceries delivered weekly and eliminate the one-stop-before-home routine. You can hire a cleaning lady twice a month if you are sidetracked by cleaning. Heck, there are even folks that will shop and run errands for you! If you struggle with delegation think of the good you are doing the folks you are hiring. You are helping to keep a business in business.
Speaking of delegating, a husband might ask, "What if my interruption is my spouse?" It's true; spouses can be some of the bumpiest interruptions. And normally what we need done, we need done now.
bumpity
bump
bump
A couple can work together to develop a plan. Here is where the ol' tried and true honey-do list can come in handy. Maybe your spouse can’t do it right now, but put it on the list, allowing him or her to have control of what will be placed in their schedule where.
Granted, there are speed bumps in our lives over which we have little control. An ill child that needs your care, the refrigerator that springs a leak on your way out the door, an engine that won’t start, and a computer that crashes. These are life’s little catastrophes. Trying to control these only leads to failure and frustration. What I hope that you begin to recognize in your daily activities are the interruptions that you’ve seen before but never stopped to acknowledge or planned to eliminate.
Be creative! The key is to find a proactive approach to eliminating or at least minimizing these speed bumps that slow you down.
Learn more about Cyndy Ratcliffe at www.organizingsolutions.biz.
| 
)
