A new year is a clean slate for professionals and businesses alike. Now that your Q4 reports are filed away and you’re just digging into Q1, it’s a great time to make resolutions to boost productivity to your work-life and your workplace. The following ten New Year’s resolutions can help you accomplish exactly that.
5 Resolutions for Personal Productivity
- Simplify your workspace. Nothing drains productivity more quickly than a cluttered and unmanageable workspace. Use the New Year as an excuse to re-haul your space and create a more workable environment.
- Declutter your work-life. Ambitious professionals want to do it all — but trying to tackle too much can set you up for failure, not success. Take a close look at your calendar and the tasks you’re tackling on a weekly basis, then find commitments you can cut and responsibilities you can delegate.
- Get healthier about being healthier. Exercise and eating right are the two most common New Year’s resolutions, and the first ones to fail. Why? A combination of unrealistic goals and vanity metrics. Get serious about your health in 2018 by thinking of ways that you can actually feel, work, and live better. That means manageable goals that focus on wellness, not appearance.
- Make one difficult monthly decision. Stop avoiding the tricky and thorny decisions that you keep kicking down the road. Each month, try to identify at least one major problem that should have been solved weeks ago, then develop a clear plan to address it by the end of the month.
- Learn a new skill. The professional world has never moved more rapidly than it does right now. Whether you’re an executive, a mid-level professional, or an intern on your first gig, keeping pace requires constant adaptation. Identify a new skill that can help you work better or open new doors, then set aside a small amount of time each week to start learning.
5 Resolutions for Workplace Productivity
- Help your office unwind. Studies have found that just a five minute break can help workers minimize stress and improve productivity. So why not start the new year by creating a calming space in your office where workers are free to take short breaks to recharge?
- Generate positive vibes. Another great way to reduce stress and negativity is to have workers focus on positive aspects of their work-life. Make a goal to touch base with each member of your team at least once a week to ask them what’s going right instead of what’s going wrong.
- Improve visibility and breathability. Lighting and air quality are two of the most underrated productivity boosters in the typical workplace. If your space is too bright, too dim, or too dusty, you may need a new lighting system or indoor air quality strategy.
- Start a new monthly event. Team events are a great way to break up the workweek and help build a sense of community in the office. Consider adding a new monthly event to the calendar, using input from your staff to help you choose the “what” and “when.”
- Greenify your office space. Proximity to plant life is proven to improve workers’ moods and their overall productivity. Take stock of the plant life in your office: Can most workers see greenery from where they’re sitting? If the answer’s no, consider adding some office-friendly plants to give your space some natural color.