10 Surprising Productivity Hacks You Probably Haven't Heard About

1. Wear and eat the same things every dayrn rnMark Zuckerberg’s and Steve Jobs’ outfit shows it clearly: the less time you devote to mundane decisions, the more time you gain for doing great things, working better, achieving more. rnTry to standardize your work outfit and, if it’s not too much for you, also your diet. You will see how much time and effort you save for more important stuff. rn2. Surround yourself with colors. rnWake up early and find time for a walk to the park. Research shows that looking at bright colors (sky, trees, water, and flowers) can have a positive effect on your mood. rnVarious colors can boost both your energy and inner peace that you can use for working wiser and more efficiently. rn3. Work with your dog. rnSeriously. It may sound like a joke, but’s not. Of course, having a dog while working is a hard thing to do, but if you are self-employed or your boss is as understanding as the Buddhist monk, you could try this method to check how it works for you. rnAn experiment ran at the Virginia Commonwealth University showed that people able to bring up their dogs to work were much more productive and efficient. rnDespite sometimes having allergies and sometimes having to deal with the dogs barking, employees who participated in an experiment claim that the presence of a dog makes them feel more comfortable and less stressed. rn4. Laugh a lot. rnAccording to University of Maryland Medical Center’s research, laughter lowers your level of mental stress. rnGoing further, Robert Half International survey, showed that 91% of respondents believe people with a sense of humor are much better workers than sad and serious ones. rnSo, this is a tip for you: Stop being so damn uptight and let yourself get healthy with laughter. It makes you relaxed and more resistant to stressful situations. During your break time watch some Monty Python sketches or whatever that makes you laugh. It works! rn5. Divide your workday into fragments devoted to each taskrnDaniel J. Levitin of New York Times wrote, “If you want to be more productive and creative, and have more energy, the science dictates that you should partition your day into project periods. Your social networking should be done during a designated time, not as constant interruptions to your day.” rnYour homework: open your calendar and spend a while ascribing your tasks to chosen time periods, day by day. It can take some time now, but it will pay off in the future. Say goodbye to confusion with tasks all in order. rn6. Work out! rnGet up a half an hour earlier and do some exercises. I know you do not have the slightest desire to do it, but think about all those successful people waking up and running - do you think they all are kidding about it? No way, it will propel your productive energy like diesel fuel. rnWhen you are running or working out in the gym, your blood starts to run wild and you gain a high power oxygen injection. It’s a breakfast of champions for your brain and you mustn’t leave it unfed. rn7. Leave work earlier. rnPsychologist Henry Cloud, author of Boundaries for Leaders believes that leaving your work earlier makes you more productive. rnIt creates a pressure: when you are aware that you gave yourself more free time, you will be more determined to work this off. rnIf you can’t finish earlier, come to work a half an hour earlier - it works this way too. rn8. Give yourself half the time you need. rnExperienced soldier’s advice. Gary McCullough, a former captain in the U.S. Army says that he always gives his employees half the time they think they need for each task. Why? People always overstate the time they need, because they don’t want to hurry. But in fact, they don’t need that much time. rnTry to cut your time estimations in half. It will make your activities more concise, solid and simple. rn9. “The Pomodoro Technique.” rnThis productivity hack founded by programmers in 80` works today equally good. If you are wondering about the name, you should know that pomodoro is just a kitchen timer popular in those times. But let’s see how it looks: rnChoose one task and decide to accomplish itrnSet your timer to 25 minutesrnWork until it ringsrnTake a 5 minutes breakrnAfter four 25 minutes intervals take a 20 minute breakrnStart from the beginningrn rn10. Bring your work to the cafe (if you can). rnIf your boss doesn’t mind, take your laptop to cafe. You might not know this, but working in a middle - noisy and crowded place is not unproductive, as a lot of people think. In fact it can even help you get more things done. rnResearch shows that a moderate level noise alike cafe bustling (70 decibels) can increase creativity and concentration. And yes, it’s proven :)