Its tax season, one of the most stressful times of the year.

Structuring An Ideal Work Day

Are you maximizing your work days to the fullest?

Many people make the mistake of wasting precious time by tackling too much work without a solid game plan.  From the time you sit down at your desk to the moment you grab your keys to head home, make each moment work in your favor with these 3 steps.

 

Step #1 - Get a head start by plan the night before.

An ideal work day should actually be set up the night before. As you wind down the day, make a game plan prioritizing the unfinished business and to-do list for the next day. Having this plan waiting for you at your desk allows you to dive in without wasting time having to make decisions on what to start first.  This way, you can get a head start and ensure that the important things are in the queue.

 

Step #2 - Knock out the hardest project in the morning and set a firm cutoff time.

This is a time-honored piece of advice. Studies have shown humans have the most energy and motivation in the morning so tackling the toughest task first proves to be the most effective strategy for an ideal work day. Choosing what to work on can be half the battle but it is for this reason you made your game plan the day before.

Conversely, there used to be a nobility for burning the midnight oil. However, because hours on the job do not automatically equate results, you should set a firm cut off time and stick to it.

Ending the work day at the same time daily gets you in the habit of being incredibly productive in the morning rather than opening up a floodgate of procrastination and ending up working in the evening when energy levels are waining.

Sticking to a firm cutoff time at the end of the day (such as 6 p.m.) forces you to prioritize and get your most important stuff out of the way first.

 

Step #3 - Integrate feedback into your schedule.

Even with the perfectly scheduled work day, you are not productive unless you actually make progress towards accomplishing your goals. There’s no glory in trudging along and making a huge dent in your workload only to realize that you missed the target completely.

Reflection does not have to take a long time. It can be a brief but still remain an essential portion of an ideal work day. Reflection can actually be the key to turning your day-to-day work into strides towards your goals.

Scheduling a little time to get feedback on your work and make sure your efforts are fruitful at least one or two times per month will be well worth it.

 

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Kimberly Tucker

Written by Kimberly Tucker