Top Productivity Tips Really Smart People Use

Nadia Tatlow

CEO - 27 Jul, 2018

They say time is the only thing we can’t get more of, which is why we’re so passionate about finding shortcuts that work.

Let’s face it—whether you fancy yourself a productivity master or not (yet)—we all need a little nudge here and there to help us re-center our day and focus.

Here are the productivity tips and quotes our Shift Bosses love:

Time block to maximize your day. Spending too much time on each task could cloud your thought process.
“Make everything as simple as possible. But not simpler.” — Albert Einstein
Take regular breaks, and schedule them into your calendar. A walk around the block can do wonders.
Some of us are night owls. Others are early birds. Know your most productive time, and use it wisely. ⏰
“Action is the foundational key to all success.” — Picasso
Don’t schedule more time than you need for meetings. A lot can get done in 15 minutes! ⌛️
Mute notifications on all of your devices when you need to focus. Head over to the bell on the top left or read this. Read this to learn how to mute notifications in Shift.
“The perfect is the enemy of the good.”—Voltaire
Plan to get one large task, three medium-sized tasks, and five small tasks done every day. A favorite app of ours to help you do this is Todoist, which you can enable right inside Shift.
“Focus on being productive instead of busy.” — Tim Ferriss
Reread your favorite book for inspiration.
Did you know that you can access your Shift account on multiple computers? Just sign in on each device with your Primary Account email.
Drink water to clear your mind, and maintain balance.
Laughing reduces stress. And if you want to keep up your productivity, you don’t want stress.
Write it down, or find an app for that! Free your mind from the energy spent remembering.
Collaborate with your team on Google Drive to share documents and spreadsheets with ease.
Set up automatic filters to immediately pull emails out of your inbox and into the right folder.
Try Sanebox or learn how to set up filters yourself here.
Try chewing gum when you really need to focus.
Use Boomerang to pull emails out of your inbox until you’re ready to deal with them. You can enable this tool inside Shift.
Group your meetings back-to-back to avoid having to switch from meeting mode to work mode.
“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” ~ Paul J. Meyer
Use deadlines and time limits to your advantage. Even if you don’t technically have a deadline on a task, set one for yourself.
When you stumble upon interesting articles, don’t let reading them now get in the way of your productivity. Try Pocket to save them to read later.
Stay on top of Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and Instagram, when it makes sense for you, inside Shift. You can add them right in the App Directory.
Reflect on the purpose of a meeting, if it isn't to make a decision or complete an action, cancel it (or nicely suggest that it might not be necessary).
Designate internet-free times every week. While a lot of our work does rely on it, there are still things we need to get done without it.
For ultimate focus, make sure none of your devices are set to ping you when new messages come in.
If you’re meeting someone outside the office, think about this: could your goal could be accomplished with a quick video call? Enable Zoom in Shift to get things done without the commuting time.
Stop trying to multitask! Studies show that we're not good at it. To get started, try a week or two aggressively mono-tasking.
“Don’t confuse the urgent with the important.”—Preston Ni
“The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas.” — Dr. Linus Pauling
Save your easiest tasks for the end of the day.