Originally published on healthtian.com
Being efficient is one of the most fundamental skills that you need. As entrepreneur Adam Ferrari explains, being efficient can help you get more things done in a shorter amount of time, allowing you to be more productive.
Efficiency doesn’t just apply to work, either. You can be more efficient in handling daily tasks and in all aspects of your life.
If you’re looking to become more efficient in work and your life, follow these basic rules to help you reach your goals.
One Thing at a Time
Many people think that multitasking helps them get more done quicker. But, in reality, it does the exact opposite.
The human brain has a tough time focusing on more than two tasks at once, and this is even more true if the tasks are complex and require a good amount of focus.
So, if you’re looking to build your efficiency, a great way to do so is to do one thing at a time. By putting all your focus and energy into that one task, you’ll be able to accomplish it in less time and at a higher level. Then, you’ll be able to move on to the next task at hand with a greater sense of accomplishment.
Don’t Do It All Yourself
No matter how superhuman you might think you are, no one can handle everything themselves. Learning to delegate tasks to others is one of the keys to building efficiency.
When you’re able to delegate tasks properly to other people, you’ll be making yourself more efficient because you can focus on the tasks that you are good at and that are most important to you. At the same time, you’ll create efficiency within your company because the right people with the right skills will handle the right tasks.
Even if you’re the CEO of your company, there are some skills that your employees will have that are better than your own. Figure out what these are, and delegate appropriate tasks to them that meet these goals.
Communicate Better
Clear communication is key to any relationship, whether in a professional or personal environment. When you don’t clearly communicate, you not only cause a lot of confusion, but you waste a lot of time, too.
If you want to master efficiency, you need to master the art of clear communication. Know how to communicate most effectively in each situation and with each person.
Understand that there is no one standard of communication. What resonates with one person may not resonate for another. In other words, you need to practice being clear and concise while also remaining flexible with your language and your modes of communication.
Set Timeframes
Structure is a primary component of efficiency. When you can create structure in your daily life, you can stay on task more easily because you have a blueprint.
It can still be easy to fall off the rails if you spend too much time on one task, leaving you with not enough time to get everything else done.
One way to work through this, as Adam Ferrari explains, is to set timeframes for all of your tasks. When you make your to-do list for the day, assign a period of time in which you want to get it done. This should be done for everything from answering emails to conference calls to cooking dinner.
You won’t meet these time goals 100% of the time, but setting them to begin with will help you stay on track and not get distracted.