Cut the interruptions: be productive

I surf the internet everyday looking for new and interesting content for my company's profiles on social networks. One of my favourites is Magazine Inc., an online publication focused on the business world, in general, and in companies, innovation, management and working people in particular.

This morning I found myself reading a really useful and simple article about how to stay focused at work. The writer of the article, a company's CEO, spotted 4 tricks she always keeps in mind to be more productive in her daily work. These are:

- Don't surf the internet: "if you are at work, work", she says. So don't chat with your friends or family and neither check Facebook or Twitter. She recommends to keep different email accounts for work and personal life. Doing that, you won't need to struggle to not open an email from a friend you don't know about for months.

- Get a routine: figure out which bar you are taking your customers/providers/collaborators to so you don't need to spend time thinking of it and go always to the same place. You are not only going to know how its service and food is, but also you will be conscious of the average time the meeting is going to take you off. The writer algo suggest that for the days we don't have gatherings, we should carry breakfast and lunch within a tupperware so we will be able to stay at work during the breaks (I personally think that's way too much!).

- Be prepared: I found this point to be the most useful one. The CEO says in the article that before going to bed she always do 3 things. It's a ritual. She checks the forecast, the calendar and write down three thing she wants to do the next day. So, if it rains, she will be prepared with an umbrella. If there's a meeting, she will have prepared a nice and appropiate outfit. And she will remember what three thing need to be done before the day ends. I will try to take this routine because I consider it very useful. I have been wanting to prepare my tomorrow-outfit for years! But, I'm too lazy. I crawl to bed and give a very pleasant and recovering sleep to myself. Let's see if this time is the right time!

- Save time for meeting and emails: I think this is also a good advice. What she says is that is much more productive to set apart some time just for meeting, to reply emails and to answer colleangues' questions. The difficult part of it is that you need to be accurate and respectful with the schedule, so if it's not the moment for replying the emails, don't do it!

I hope you find these advices interesting aswell. Let me know which are your tricks for making the day longer!