Image by Gerd Altmann from
By Steve Conway
If you run a business and you have a team to manage, it’s crucial you do all you can to ensure that team works at its most productive at all times. If you can do this, not only will your customers be happy, but because of the measures you put in place to help your staff, your employees will be happy too. In the end, this will lead to more profits, a happier working environment, and a healthier business. Read on to find out some of the things you can do to ensure your team is at their most productive.
Create a daily to-do list
A to-do list might seem like a simplistic idea, but sometimes it’s the simplest ideas that are the best, and a to-do list can certainly improve the productivity of your team. Start by making a list of the things you need to do personally within your business. You can then see if there’s anything you can delegate to others. Once you know that, you can create a to-do list for the rest of your team.
In this way, nothing will be missed or forgotten, deadlines will be hit, and as the items are crossed off the list, your team will be more motivated to keep moving forward, and thus they will be more productive.
Ensure the working environment is a positive one
If you have team members working together in an office rather than remotely, you’ll need to ensure that the environment they work in is a positive one. You’ll want your team to be happy and comfortable because then they can focus on their work and that will help them be a lot more productive.
If you’re not sure how to make the office a more comfortable place to be, you could start by letting in more natural light, by making it open plan, and by offering a well-designed break room. The heating and air-conditioning should be set at a good temperature, and regular breaks should be encouraged. You can also play music if that helps productivity as long as you learn how to legally play music in your business first.
Remind your team to take breaks
Breaks are a hugely important part of being productive, even though that might sound counterintuitive. After all, wouldn’t taking time away from your current task slow you down and potentially cause you to miss a deadline or two? This isn’t what actually happens when you take breaks; in fact, the opposite is true and you’ll become more productive.
The mind can only work for so long before it starts to get distracted, and the body gets tired as a result. You should encourage team members to take breaks when they get to this stage (or ideally before they reach it) so they can recharge. It only needs to take ten minutes but getting away from their desk and work and ‘switching off’ can help. When they get back to it, they’ll be more energized and a lot more productive, quickly catching up and moving forward.
_____________
Content marketing and inbound marketing expert, Steve Conway is passionate about discovering new tech which will enhance his already well-honed digital marketing skills.
