You don’t have to be tech-savvy to utilize top productivity hacks.
If you are like the average local government employee, you are passionate about your community and will do anything to serve better. You probably enjoy your work but wish you could do better.
However, the workload of an average local government employee is already too much. According to The National Employee Survey (The NES), only 36% of local government employees say they would be able to accept a heavier workload than they currently have.
What if you could be more efficient in the workplace? What if you could achieve more with less time, and perform at a level you previously considered impossible?
The truth is, there are many ways to become a high-performing individual. Productivity hacks work, and we will discuss some that can be particularly helpful in a local government setting.
Why Productivity Hacks are Necessary
The demands on local governments are becoming greater by the day. The community wants more from the government, and local government employees must be ready to deliver.
If you truly care for your community, you are willing to do what it takes to achieve more. That doesn’t mean you have to overburden yourself to bring the changes you want. You can achieve more without hurting yourself through productivity hacks.
The best thing about top productivity hacks is that they work consistently. Another wonderful thing is that you don't have to sweat over effective hacks. You don't even need to learn new tech skills or take any courses to enhance your productivity. A few changes to your normal digital setup will do the trick.
Top 10 Productivity Hacks to Enhance Your Performance
Regardless of your current role in the local government setup, you can do better for yourself and your community. Here are ten productivity hacks that can work for everyone, from administrators to town hall workers:
1. Use a To-Do List to Organize Your Day
It is easy to feel dissatisfied and unfulfilled when you don’t accomplish your targets in the workplace. The real reason most people fall short of their expectations is because they don’t set realistic workplace goals. How, exactly, can you set realistic targets each day and improve your chances of achieving them? Having a to-do list works for most people.
By simply writing down the tasks you intend to complete each day, you significantly improve your chances of accomplishing them. You don’t need an app to create an effective to-do list – you can write down the tasks on a piece of paper and cross them out as you complete them. You will be surprised at how magical and satisfying this can feel.
2. Adjust Your Workspace to Improve Productivity
It’s a known fact that the condition of a workspace greatly affects productivity. When your desk is organized, you will find it easier to concentrate and work on the things that matter most. Take another look at your workspace and identify the things you can do to improve your conditions.
Ergonomic desks and chairs are great for productivity. If your workspace feels uncomfortable, you can request a comfortable work environment. Meanwhile, you can do things to improve the way your own space feels until management decides to contribute to improvements.
3. Clean Up Your Desktop
The way your desktop looks also has a lot of influence on your work habit. If it looks like a junk drawer, it will limit your workflow in many ways. Cleaning it up will do you some good.
It is best to view your work desktop as a temporary storage space where you can keep only the things you need to use soon. Take away anything you use just once in a while, and store them out of sight. This way, finding the things you need to work with becomes a lot easier.
If you can’t seem to get your desktop organized, try using desktop wallpaper organizers. You will be surprised at how much they can help you.
4. Make Your Home Screen More Exciting
In addition to keeping your desktop organized, try to make it exciting. You may find it hard to believe that the boring operating systems logo screen can affect your performance, but that is the reality for most people. Tweaking the home screen to be livelier can positively influence your mood and attitude toward work.
Improve your home screen with something that inspires you. What works for your coworkers may not work for you, so you have to go deep to find what motivates you personally. However, be careful not to configure your home screen to be a source of distraction.
5. Optimize Your Internet Browsing Experience
If your job requires using the internet, then you’ll want to take some steps to improve your browsing experience. Latency – which refers to slow-loading websites – can affect your mood and undermine your performance. You can request faster internet support, but there are ways to make the best of what you already have.
There are a few helpful things that can make your online time smoother and more effective, including the use of a limitless Chrome extension. With stunning photo backgrounds and inspirational quotes, a smart notebook for reminders, and quick access to the sites you need most, you can make your internet sessions more exciting and productive.
6. Embrace Cloud Storage
Some five years ago, USB sticks were cool for storage and file sharing. These days, cloud storage has made collaboration in workplaces even easier. If your local government has an integrated system that utilizes cloud storage, take advantage of it.
Even if your office has yet to take storage and file sharing to the cloud, you can take the initiative. Services like Dropbox are great. You can get your team to embrace the most effective ways to save and share files.
7. Secure Your Gadgets and Accounts
Like other organizations, local governments can be the targets of cyber-attacks. Your office must have some cybersecurity measures in place, and you must take it seriously. You don't want to be watching your back every time you use your computer or work gadgets – it will affect your productivity negatively.
Take all recommended steps to keep your computer and work gadgets secured, like using long and complex passwords. Two-factor authentication for important services is also helpful.
8. Keep Learning
Let’s face it – it is impossible to find all effective productivity hacks in one place. This post, for instance, includes just ten hacks. You must be willing to learn more tricks and hacks to keep improving. As we’ve demonstrated here, you don’t have to be tech-savvy to learn highly effective hacks.
Search for productivity hacks in your spare time, and apply the ones you are convinced can help you perform better on the job.
9. Share Your Hacks with Colleagues
Another excellent way to get better at your job is to share your productivity hacks with your colleagues. If you can get your team to start using effective productivity hacks, then you are on your way to building a high-performance organization.
Sharing productivity hacks with your coworkers can be another wonderful way to learn more and expand your knowledge. You may be surprised to find that the unlikeliest people in your office can also share tips that will take you all to a whole new level of performance.
10. Give Yourself a Break
Your passion for your community doesn’t mean you should overwork yourself. Moderation is golden, and you need to learn to appreciate yourself.
If you work hard for your local government, then you deserve to give yourself a break. Take meaningful steps to be more productive, but don't beat yourself up when you have a not-so-fulfilling day. Work hard when you need to and take the breaks you deserve.
Make the Most of Your Hours in the Workplace
It is possible to achieve more at the workplace without burning out. The demand on municipal workers and other employees of local governments may be high, but you can become a high-performance worker without sacrificing your happiness and health.
Embracing productivity hacks will help you make the most of every hour you spend working for your local government and the community. The top hacks discussed here can be really helpful.
Have you considered using The National Employee Survey (The NES) to improve your workplace? It can be your ticket to job satisfaction in local government.
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