Ever heard the saying about working smart not hard? Sometimes it’s easier said than done. It doesn’t matter what the size of your operation is - from a large building or landscaping company down to a one-man team - being organised and efficient is the key to running a successful business.
People in all industries fall into the “busy trap” far too often, but being busy for the sake of being “busy” doesn’t just waste time and cause stress; it can also mean that you’re missing out on dedicating time to your personal life or pursuing other opportunities that can grow your business.
While we believe in hard work, we also believe in spending time with your family and doing the things you love. Read on below to see our top 5 tips for improving the efficiency and organisation of your operation (or at the very least, the work that you do within it). You’ll be amazed at what you can achieve when you change your habits and make an effort to put them in place!
Make Use Of Technology
We live in a connected world that is full of amazing technological opportunities. You probably have a smartphone in your pocket right now, and this one piece of technology alone, when utilized properly, can have a drastic effect on your organisation and efficiency.
Integrated email, document sharing and calendar platforms like G Suite have made it easier than ever before to keep your whole company connected, communicating and organised. Apps like Trello and Asana are also fantastic for creating to-do lists and workflows that can be used individually or shared with people in your organisation.
At Midland Brick, we’ve also joined the technological revolution in a bid to make our customer’s lives that bit easier and more efficient. To give you the flexibility you deserve, our new trade accounts allow you to quickly and easily apply your personalised price book to every order, every time - all you have to do is log in online and it’ll happen automatically. This means that you can do your ordering quickly and easily on your phone when you’re on the go - or on weekends and public holidays. Finally, you’re free from the tyranny of being chained to your desk!
Click here to learn more and apply for a Midland Brick Trade Account.
Plan Your Day & Prioritize Your Tasks
This might sound like an obvious one, but it’s shocking how much time people waste by not properly planning out their day and prioritizing their tasks. If you find that you’re stressed and feeling overwhelmed, setting some goals and giving your day some structure is a great way of keeping yourself motivated and productive.
Make a list of all the work you need to do and then divide the individual tasks into three categories of urgency and importance:
- Important & urgent: do these first.
- Important but not urgent: do these second.
- Neither urgent or important: do as time permits.
Performing this simple exercise will not only help you stay motivated and make you more productive, but it will also stop you wasting time on unimportant tasks when you should be working on more urgent ones.
Stop Multitasking
It can be tempting to think that doing multiple things at once - especially if they seem like small or easy tasks - means you’ll get more done, but this simply isn’t the case. In fact, there have been numerous studies by reputable neuroscientists that have concluded that it isn’t even possible for the human brain to do two things at once.
If you think that you can effectively juggle a phone call, work on a quote and eat lunch at the same time, you may actually be doing the opposite! Focusing on one task at a time and giving it 100% of your attention will mean you’ll actually get a lot more done.
Take Breaks
Another tempting myth is that working for longer means you’ll get more done. However, you have to take productivity levels and not just time into account when assessing how much work you can effectively complete.
You never work as well when you’re tired and burned out. The longer you sit at your desk hammering away at a task, the less productive you’ll be. Studies have shown that taking regular breaks helps boost both concentration levels and mood.
Get out of the office or pull the car over and take a short walk, or grab your team and go for a 15-minute coffee break in the afternoon. Yes, you’re taking a bit of time away from work, but this will be more than made up for by the boost in productivity - and morale - that it will generate.
Tidy Your Workspace
It doesn’t matter whether you’re in an office or on a job site - a clean, organised and tidy workspace is a more efficient one. It means you’ll waste less time looking for things that you need to do your job, but this isn’t the only reason that tidiness aids efficiency.
A clean and well-ordered workspace sends the signal that you take your work seriously and are committed to doing a good job. On an individual level, it can help keep your stress levels under control and help keep you motivated and on task. On an organisational level, it communicates to all staff members that you expect a certain level of dedication and professionalism, and this will manifest itself in higher levels of productivity and efficiency.
Work Smart With Midland Brick
Our trade account is just one of the ways in which we’re helping WA businesses to be that little bit more efficient and organised. We know that we only prosper when our customers do, so hopefully you’ll be able to implement some (or all) of the above tips to help take your business to the next level. If you’d like any more advice about how our trade account can help in this regard, just get in touch with us today!
All images via Pexels.