There is no one that I see in sessions or any group that we are working with who is happy with their workload. People who leave the office at a ‘normal’ time are a rarety – dare I say it – even a tad unpopular? But who’s got it right here? People who leave the office to have a life outside or the ones who stay to apply extra effort? As the old saying goes: “we all start out with the same number of hours in the day…” The more interesting question may therefore be not about when we should leave the office but about what should we be doing in the time that we’re there?

Here are 6 experiments to have a go at. Exercises that when repeated and absorbed into your routine may well ensure that you get the RIGHT stuff done and have a life too.

1. List – not by priority but by nice/nasty level.

Most time management schemes are too left brained – too logical. You and I need to address the root of why we don’t get things done. The drivers. Here’s the big one: there are some things I just find boring, difficult, worrying – all of these states are stress inducing and because I have a brain wired to avoid pain, that is exactly what I do. So, identify things by ‘stressiness’ rather than priority or importance and then make a conscious decision about how to tackle the nasty stuff.

2. Clear that desk.

Take a look at your desk right now. Are you happy to look at it? Does the sight make you groan or make you calm? If you don’t believe me that stuff that you have in your field of vision makes a difference to productivity by affecting your feelings, do The Pledge exercise. Get a can of, you guessed it – Pledge (or similar premium surface cleaner) and a brand new duster. Now take everything off your desk and give it a good dust. Now sit down at your desk and only put only the things you really need to do your job. That’s what it can look like. Notice how it feels and decide which desk state you prefer then keep it that way.

3. Turn off the sounds.

The Email ‘ding’ is one of the most powerful distractions. Like dogs we respond to the noises like hungry Beagles waiting for the pellet of dried food to hit our bowls. When I hear my phone or my Mac signal the arrival of an email everything else is, well, less engaging for that moment. It’s like hearing the letterbox rattling. It’s always a bill – but I still go and have a look to see if it is something interesting. Turn the sounds off for a day and watch the difference in your behaviour – especially your concentration and stress levels.

4. Lunch – eat it.

It’s not just important from a nutritional standpoint. It’s an important way of:

1. maintaining perspective,
2. giving yourself the mental break – and thus having better ideas a few minutes later
3. physical change of attitude – back, legs, neck

5. Be more focussed when tasks compete!

The problem is often that all the jobs tumble around in our heads and the moment when we resolve to apply ourselves to one of them the others pop into our conscious thoughts. We notice an email, a piece of paper peeking from a file on our desk. Or a worry intrudes: a face flashes across our minds and we switch track – again. Get the competition out of your head and onto paper where you can see it – here’s how to do it. Draw two crossed lines at right angles to each other.

Give a title to each of the four segments according to what you have going around in your head. If there are more than four competing areas of thinking, add more lines. Now go back to the task you are trying to get on with. Each time your mind drifts to one of the other areas scribble down the thought in a couple of words and then return to your task. You will notice that the tumble dryer of your mind stops going round once you have taken the clothes out of it.

6. Don’t sweat over problems – adopt the 10-minute rule.

We waste a lot of time combining tasks involving creativity, processing, collation, prioritisation, recording and communication. When we combine we complicate the rhythm of the task making it take longer and more effort to complete. So here’s the procedure with tasks requiring different skills or modes:

1. Split them up and focus on doing one type of thing at a time.
2. Be conscious about which bit you are doing i.e. “now I’m going to just have ideas,” “now I’m just doing layout,” “now I’m just editing,” “now I’m just phoning” and so on.
3. Set mini time limits (10/20 minute chunks) – you will contravene them occasionally but you will at least know that you have control of your time and your energy.

Do any one of these for a week and see what a difference it makes. But before you do, decide what you are going to do with the time that you free up. Giving up one time waster to make room for another will make you think that you have gone to a lot of trouble for no net profit – and you’ll be right.