How to Get More Tasks Done At Work? 6 Easy Tips (2024)

Have you ever looked at your clock and tasks at the end of the day and wondered, “What have I really accomplished today”?

It is possible to spend a working day, but you hardly have the results to show your efforts and time. In short, you might occasionally feel that you are unproductive.

That is quite common, especially now that most people are working remotely. There are just so many distractions and things that come between you and your work. But, how to get more done at work?

How to get more done at work

The good thing is that there are practical hacks you can implement to increase your work productivity. Let us give you a few proven tips that will help you stay focused and accomplish more tasks at work. 

1. Set reasonable goals

For starters, you should only have realistic goals that you seek to achieve in a set period. Some will argue that the most successful people don’t set goals but you are better off with proper targets and timelines.

Working without goals will mean that you are not answerable to yourself and that it will be difficult to take account of the time you spend working.

For example, you may choose to write a financial report for two quarters of the year. The work will require you to pore over documents and generate data. To ensure that you accomplish the tasks effectively, you need to consider the realistic time it will take you and be disciplined enough to follow that time.

Setting goals for your work will help you stay focused on the task to realize the desired results. Additionally, you will also focus on yourself to find the best way to improve your work.

2. Complete the set tasks

To ensure that you are productive, you will need to complete the tasks that you set. That is, ensure that your goals are accomplished within the set deadlines.

If you start a project and fail to complete it, it piles into a hoard of incomplete activities that will only bother you. You will not have a way to measure your productivity. Besides, it will be difficult and stressful to start new tasks when you have incomplete ones staring right into your face.

Completing tasks gives you a sense of achievement and encourages you to take up further tasks, increasing your productivity. 

3. Improve your workplace conditions

You will be more productive if you are comfortable. Imagine straining to look at the work documents because your office is dimly lit. Or shivering due to cold because the temperatures are too low? Imagine being holed up in a working space surrounded by loud music.

To be productive and focus on the tasks at hand, you must ensure that your working environment is optimally organized.

If you do not like low temperatures, get a heater to warm your office space. Also, ensure that there is proper lighting, and if possible, natural light. Also, make sure no noise will interrupt you. Having optimum environmental conditions at your workplace will help you focus on the tasks at hand and improve your efficiency. 

4. Manage your time on digital devices

This might sound contradicting, mostly since most of the work is done on the computer and over the Internet. However, while heavy computer use might form part of your job, other digital devices such as smartphones can be a major source of distraction where you will have to access social media every so often. 

You can improve your work efficiency by being a good manager when it comes to using your smartphone or computer for work. You can even do tasks with the old-school method instead of relying too much on your gadgets.

If you are working on a computer and being distracted by social media notifications, disconnect from the Internet, and close the browser. The goal is to minimize the distraction as much as possible to avoid “play” eating into your working time.   

5. Learn productivity hacks on your work devices

Efficiency means that you spend a considerably short amount of time accomplishing tasks with less effort. You do not have to burn out to get more work done, though.

One way to ensure that you spend a short time executing tasks is to use shortcuts. For instance, you can learn the keyboard shortcuts that will help you get more work done faster!

If you are using a Mac computer, for example, and you want to copy multiple files to a new location then just click Option+Drag. If you want to create an alias for a folder or file, press Command+L.

There are tons of keyboard shortcuts that you can master with a bit of practice. It would help if you also learned other simple productivity hacks like how to stop Mac from sleeping randomly to avoid interruptions to your flow of work.

Many excellent third-party productivity tools can also boost your efficiency in your work devices. Find the best note-taking apps, password management tools, automated organization tools, shortcut tools, and others that will make your work easier! 

6. Take breaks between tasks

Are you stuck on an idea? Do you feel like you have so much work that you have no idea where to begin? Is your mind cluttered with activities to accomplish?

It is counterproductive to have a lot of things to focus your mind on at a go. If you worry too much about work, you will create a mental roadblock that will make it difficult for you to proceed with the work at all. 

Take a break each time you feel the need to rejuvenate. Engage in tasks that are entirely unrelated to your current work. For example, if you were writing multiple work emails, you can take some scheduled breaks to bask in the sun or water your office potted flowers. You can even take a walk to refresh.

Resting between tasks increases your productivity as it makes it possible for your mind to rest and ease the pressure of work. It is also healthy for you!

Conclusion

Spending too much time at your workplace does not necessarily mean that you will be productive. The key to working better is to manage your time better. Try finding the distractions slowing you down and handling them.

It is also good to establish the best working conditions to increase your comfort and productivity. It will also help if you use productivity tools and hacks on your work devices to do more tasks with less effort.