Want to be more productive? You might think you need to push yourself harder and use every minute of the day to accomplish something, but that doesn’t always make you more efficient. You need to give your brain time to rest and recuperate so your attention, creativity and problem-solving skills don’t take a hit.
So, what is the best way to boost productivity? Using down time to recharge and refuel, according to experts, and that starts with the hours after work. How we spend our evenings has a direct impact on how alert and focused we feel the next day.
These are the things experts recommend avoiding after work if you want to up your productivity:
- Doing even more work - Sure, chipping away at projects after hours seems like it will help, but those who do are more likely to experience burnout and lower job satisfaction. Instead, give your brain some time off and spend your evening on low-stress activities you enjoy, so you’re recharged for tomorrow.
- Staying on top of work notifications - Even when you’re off the clock, reading email notifications from coworkers can keep your brain alert, according to the National Sleep Foundation. It’s okay to turn off those notifications after work and let your brain disengage from your job for the night, and you’ll be more productive if you do.
- Not having an activity to transition out of work mode - It can be as simple as changing your clothes or lighting a candle, but we all need something that tells our brains that we’re finished with work so we can shift into relaxing mode.
- Overloading your evening with other tiring tasks - Instead of trying to tackle that huge pile of laundry or long list of chores in one evening, spread it out so you still get some down time and don’t zap all your energy.
- Deprioritizing your sleep routine - This one may be the most important as getting good sleep is essential to productivity, performance, memory, creativity and energy levels. Create a wind-down routine to help ease into bedtime, so you snooze and wake up feeling recharged and productive.
Source: Buzzfeed