If you look on social networks, it may seem like video, chat and email have replaced telephony for good. There’s an entire war going on about who does communication better. Hashtags after hashtags, studies and researches, everybody has an opinion. But when it comes to productivity, the traditional voice calls may be just what you need.
Does it ever seem like there’s a clock in your brain that wakes you at the same time each morning and sends you to sleep at night? No worries, we all have it ticking. Its scientific name is the circadian rhythm. And it regulates the cycles of alertness and tiredness you experience over a 24-hour period.
It’s no secret that hydration has an impact on your physical health. But just how crucial is it for your cognitive function? Like all influencing factors revealed in our journeys out of The Productivity Box, hydration has an unexpected effect as well. If you don’t hydrate enough on a daily basis, you may find your performance at work is affected in many ways.
The shift to summer brings along the much-needed sunny, warm weather we all have been waiting for after a gloomy winter. But are you aware that too much heat (or too much cold, for that matter) can make you less productive on the job? If the temperature in your office environment causes discomfort, it can impair alertness, focus, energy and workflow. And there’s scientific data to prove it!
No matter where you work, the environment you surround yourself with matters. Temperature, air quality, lighting, noise conditions, colors, and even plants, all shape your work performance. In other words, your workspace greatly influences your productivity. Therefore, it’s time for us to get out of the productivity box once again and learn more.
Regardless of what priorities and responsibilities dominate our schedules on a daily basis, time is a resource that all of us must learn to manage. How we make the most of each 24-hour cycle determines how much we will accomplish and how productive we can be.
When was the last time, you wrote something by hand rather than typing it on a keyboard or mobile device? In our fast-paced, digital work culture, it can feel like handwriting has become a lost art. Writing by hand is often seen as tedious and inefficient compared to the ease and convenience of typing. Yet, there are many cognitive benefits associated with putting an actual pen to paper.
Whether you’re battling the mid-day slump or can’t resist the pile of sweets in the kitchen, you may find yourself reaching for that stash of chocolate. Little did you know that eating chocolate actually provides a variety of physical and mental health benefits that can help elevate work performance too.
Whether you’re working from home or are back in an office, there’s a critical productivity element you may be overlooking: the lighting. In prior installments of this series, I talked about how exposure to lifestyle or environmental factors such as mental health resources, music, indoor plants, exercise, and natural caffeine can elevate your performance.
Do you have a coworker who always seems to have their headphones in, tapping along with the beat or mouthing the lyrics? Maybe you are that coworker who can’t get through the day without your favorite playlists. Have you ever thought about why music is so important to your workday, whether you’re only listening to a few songs or a whole opera?
