July has just begun, which means summer is upon us—at least here, in the Northern Hemisphere 🙂 Kids are already out of school, sun is on full display, days are long and hot, and vacations are in the works. No doubt, this is an enjoyable season—but if you’re not careful, productivity can take a nosedive. Is your team ready?
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.
To stay productive despite being tired is an often-recurring challenge. We’ve all been there. For whatever reason, we feel tired yet we have to work. Having to deal with the consequences of not getting enough sleep is one thing. Add to this feeling exhausted, anxious or burned out. Sometimes it is work pressure that does it.
Without reservation, prolonged wakefulness is today’s second-hand smoking. Yes, this has much to do with sleep deprivation. Prolonged wakefulness means that we are not getting enough sleep. In fact, most people sleep far less than they should. And this can have significant impacts on cognitive performance. We also overindulge on coffee, and spend far too many hours sitting on a chair. We procrastinate, misuse breaks, don’t breathe right and have all sorts of productivity issue. Despite all of this, we often find ourselves in an odd situation. We need to stay productive while tired.
Work time is a salad that mixes productivity with breaks. Undeniably, breaks can make you more productive, yet many of them eventually turn out to be ineffective or simply unnecessary. By default, work time is expected to be productive. Markedly, either by doing more or better or both. So far, these are the two main approaches to boosting productivity. And most types of work require a mix of the two.
