No matter what your career is, you want to be effective and achieve your professional goals. Why? Simple: more responsibility, more job satisfaction, more personal growth, more leadership skills, more money.
Remember though, that being effective is more than simply checking off items from a to-do list. It’s about doing more of what matters and utilizing your strengths.
By making adjustments to your daily work habits, you’ll increase your personal effectiveness. When that happens, people start to notice you and what you can accomplish. From there, everything just flows.
Ready to make some power moves in your career? Swipe these habits of highly effective people, and prepare for positive change.
- Trim your to-do list. A big project or massive to-do list can be paralyzing. Limit your task list to 3 to 5 important items that must be completed that day. Focus solely on those. You can always add more as you check off tasks.
- Schedule everything. Block out your time for increased productivity. Reserve a slot for business tasks, breaks, and personal tasks.
- Stay organized. Personally effective people put systems in place. This helps them find what they need when they need it. Methods like David Allen’s Getting Things Done method (GTD) helps free up brain space by keeping reminders and ideas organized.
- Create Barriers to Distraction. Working effectively means performing at your best. Put away distractions like your phone. Log out of social media if you really want to be more productive.
- Say No. Prioritize any tasks and projects in your career that move you toward your goals. Say no to projects, tasks, and people which don’t align with those goals.
- Tackle important tasks first. Recognize what’s essential and what classifies as “busy work” in your day’s plan.
- Plan out your Next Day tonight. Create a short list of what you need to accomplish the next day. Include at least one moderately challenging task.
- Psych yourself up. Positive self-talk makes a huge difference. Simply changing your perspective can quickly boost motivation and energy levels.
- Communicate clearly. When collaborating with others on every level, clear communication is essential. Eliminate misunderstandings and thwart confusion by being clear and concise in what you verbally say as well as write.
- Do more of what you enjoy. The more interested, excited, and challenged you feel by your work, the more likely you are to be positively engaged with it. Look at the aspects of your job that bring you the highest level of satisfaction. Consider which skills you get the most compliments and praise for.
- Do what lights you up. Recall the types of projects that others ask for your help with. Once you have your list, remind yourself that these are the things you should be doing more of.
Also remember: not everything you do will be a passion project, and that’s okay. Doing the parts that bring you joy and delegating the rest helps you be more effective in reaching your career goals.
Thinking you’re ready to embark on a self-improvement campaign to become more effective? Once you do, you’ll be on your way to setting and achieving career goals. You’ll give yourself the gift of increased free time to do the things you want to do. And best of all, you’ll start to really love your life.
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