A Quick Tip: When to schedule your most important work
I’ve been thinking a lot about how hybrid work has changed the rhythm of our days. But there are some productivity tips that are universal and apply regardless of where you are working. And one of these relates to when to schedule your most important work.
This is a “quick tip” you can put into action straight away: schedule your most important work during the most productive part of your day.
To do this, you need to figure out when that is for you. Are you an early bird or a night owl? Do you experience a slump after lunch or when you get the 3 pm munchies? Do you need to work around school or childcare drop-offs? Do you prefer exercising in the morning or at the end of the day? Regardless of whether it is these or other considerations, there are times when we are more efficient than others and more likely to get into the flow of our work.
This is supported by research showing that people have 90-minute cycles of high-to-low alertness.
If you can build your awareness of when in your day you are likely to have high energy or a slump, it can help you schedule the activities you can control to suit you as much as possible.
For instance, if you are:
An early bird, schedule your most important work first thing in the morning when you are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Early birds can churn out a presentation while watching the sunrise and before the day’s emails start flooding in.
A night owl, schedule your work for the end of the day when the phone has stopped ringing, and colleagues and clients have stopped trying to contact you, or at least gone a bit quieter.
Inclined to a post-lunch slump, schedule activities for that time that don’t take as much energy. It’s not a bad time to check your email, review your to-do list, or even make some follow-up calls.
Scheduling work that requires the most energy and clarity for the times of day when you have the most energy is crucial to boosting your productivity. Breaks, regular meetings, or other activities, such as taking a walk around the block, can be scheduled during your lower-energy times. And you can build your activity around those 90-minute energy cycles.
If there’s a topic you’d like me to explore, just hit reply and let me know.
More soon.
Karen