It’s NOT about getting done More. The essence of work lies in delivering Quality Work
‘An infinite player does not begin working for the purpose of filling up the period of time with work, but for the purpose of filing work with time.’ ~ Finite and Infinite Games
I came across this powerful quote while reading Nat’s blog. It’s a powerful quote (Go ahead and read it once again). Essentially it draws that there are two kind of people:
- People who focus on filling the given time with more work. If you think, one will find this scenario mostly on factory floors where the productivity of machines and humans are measured in terms of rate of output per unit of input. There is an expected quota of output to be met in a given time. The aim is to get as much work done in a given time.
- It is the second category that intrigued my mind — the way productivity is perceived by this section. These are the people who want to put their time in the work they like. They are not bothered by how much work is done in a given amount of time. They are focused on the quality of work and the value it has for them.
So how do we produce quality work?
If we look at all time management books, self-employment / self-help books, productivity hacks, they are all focused to help us utilize our time better. The underlining factor is to provide ways to reduce the amount of time taken to do certain non-value tasks. This leaves us with ample of time to focus on the work that we want to focus on which eventually results in value and quality work.
This makes sense now when I reflect on my career. As a consultant, one spends a large amount of time working on presentations. If one is new, it might just take 3–4 days to make a presentation and is hardly left with any time to focus on the project. That’s where PowerPoint hacks and customized tools help. Knowing how to use them effectively can save efforts and time which can be utilized to focus on client’s problems and deliver value in the project. The aim is not to churn out more presentations in less time. The aim is to take less time to prepare presentation and have more time to focus on real-time problems faced by clients and provide valuable solution.
So in case you are struggling with productivity or with lack of quality work as an output, here are my top 3 suggestions:
#1. Know your Value Add tasks and Focus on it:
I learnt this concept of value add and non-value add tasks while studying Operations management. And found it fascinating enough to apply it in life. Value add activities are those for which my company is paying for me, for which my client is willing to pay to my company… whereas non-value add activities are which consume my time and cost but do not end up in any value (in monetary terms or otherwise). My aim is to reduce my time in doing non-value add activities and put my energy, time and focus on delivering value-add activities. This helps me to keep the work pressure in check by constantly delivering in value. There are tons of management tools and techniques(reusable templates, process automation etc.) to help you reduce the time and effort in doing non-value add work.
#2. Re-energize and focus by reducing work distractions:
It is easier said than done. We are often distracted with our never-ending office conversations. We should aim to reduce these unnecessary office distractions. One way is to say ‘No’ to unnecessary or extra work that may require efforts post working hours. And to be frank, I literally failed at saying ‘No’. Hence, I found a few ways around it. First, I never downloaded the office email app. This way, I was totally cut off after I shut my laptop and could easily let my mind slip into other activities that I enjoyed such as workout, cooking, reading etc.Second, I made very clear to my team that I have weekend plans ( even if it means reading a book!) — which means I am not available on weekends to work. And last one, when I had an important task to focus on, I blocked my free time on work calendar to prevent myself from being disturbed.
#3. Know what you want to accomplish everyday:
This suggestion is no surprise. Yet, we fail to follow it on most of the days. Always plan what you want to focus on. Knowing what we want achieve for the day helps us to navigate our day with less anxiety and stress. It does not mean we need to have 10 things on our list. Have just one or two key value-add tasks or work that we want to focus on so that when we retire to bed, we have sense of accomplishment and not a guilt of having wasted our day. If something urgent comes up, we are aware what things to de-prioritize.
Let’s add ‘value’ and ‘quality’ to your work
There are tons of productivity hacks and tools available online that you can read about. But the most important thing is to realize the importance of time you have at disposal and marry it with task or work that will add value to you to see quality results. Once this thought seeps in your mind, you will find it lot more easier to put the productivity hacks in action and see the results to maximize your efficiency without spending extra time on certain work.
Would love to know your views on productivity hacks and which are some of your favorite ones! As always, don’t forget to share your comments.
