Increase Your Efficiency At Work In No Time

We’re all guilty of it. Some time during the work day, we decide to ignore our to-do list and instead e-mail our friend about last night’s Gossip Girl episode. Or maybe we stretch our legs by heading over to the office kitchen, where we proceed to chat about the “no space heaters” memo. Or we pause our looming project to get a YouTube or Facebook fix.

To help combat the problem, Women’s Health consulted experts and came up with 20 genius ways to avoid workplace time-sucks that will help you get more actual work done at the office so you can get out of there — and get your life back. Nicole Blades of Women's Health was here to explain.

TIME-SAVING TIPS AND VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP...

1. First things first, you need to untangle the web of distraction. Here's how to start:

- Get off the lists - unsubscribe from any e-mailed updates, newsletters and press releases that do not pertain to your job.
- Tighten your e-mail filter - set your spam blocker to "high."
- Create a digital "casual reading" file - This is an email filter that, once set, sends all non-spam newsletters to a special file. That way, you won't be distracted by the intriguing headlines.
• Send less to receive less - The average person spends three months per year processing email. The reason you get so much e-mail is that you send so much-needlessly.
• Reply less to receive less: There's no need to respond to everything. Your "Thanks!" only extends a long email chain.
• Limit e-mail checks to three per day: If that's too cold turkey, try once an hour. Let people know that if it's urgent, they should call you.
• Turn off alerts: The seemingly harmless ding of an arriving message actually causes a massive disruption and it can take up to 64 seconds to recover the pace of your workflow after an email interruption.
• Change your send/receive schedule: This dictates how often your system connects to your server to check for and send new messages. The typical default setting is every 5 minutes. Make yours 30. This will save up to 80 interruptions daily.
• D it up: When it's time to actually answer email, immediately take some action on each one-do it now, defer it, delegate it, or delete it. If you defer or delegate it, just make sure you make a note of it so you don't forget to revisit it.
• Stop being so chatty: Make all your replies succinct. Email is meant for the quick message, so keep it to the basics of who, what, and when.

2. Sidestep Pointless Powwows
You can defer reading email until you have the brain cells to properly tackle it, but what about meetings? Women's Health had some simple ways to keep meetings from derailing your day. Here are their suggestions:

• Decide whether you need to be there: If your presence is not essential, send your regrets.
• Avoid meetings with no agenda: Ask for one, and if none is forthcoming, politely decline.
• Schedule meetings to last one hour: If you're in charge impose a strict time limit. That will give everyone a sense of urgency and commitment.
• Ask for three solutions per problem: Prepare a one-page agenda with three to five points. For each, limit everyone to no more than three solutions. This will encourage less talk and more action.
• Keep a jibber-jabber journal: For two days, note your casual rap sessions and whether they're helpful. You'll be surprised.
• Set limits on chitchat: Gently inform your gossipy coworker that you only have a certain amount of time. When time's up, say you must get back to work, suggesting that part two be continues after hours.

3. Rebalance your power
Studies show that productivity and personal effectiveness vary with the time of day and the day of the week. Make sure you're using your prime time for prime assignments. Here are some tips:

• Observe the 80-20 rule: Use the first 20 percent of your day to tackle the most important tasks. Then, even if some time wasters creep in, you will have made some progress.
• Reserve the toughest stuff for your prime times: Schedule "major cognitive tasks" for 8a.m. to noon, when your mind is sharpest. Night owls should adjust everything for three or four hours later. The day of the week also makes a difference. Research shows, we focus best on Tuesday and Wednesdays.
• Set aside time to organize: Choose half a day once every week or two to care of back-office things like clearing out your inbox, filing, and doing expenses.
• Do one thing at a time: Multitasking is making us crazy. Take the time to do a task right the first time and save your double-duty act for no-brainers like walking the dog while exercising.

For more suggestions on how you work less and do more, check out Women's Health Magazine or read more at www.womenshealthmag.com/life/get-more-done-at-work.

Nicole Blades of Women's Health Magazine