Think getting off to a good start doesn’t matter? Tell that to a team that begins a season slowly and misses the playoffs by one game. Or a sprinter who stumbles out of the blocks and loses a race by a fraction of a second. Or on a more personal level, recall a time you overslept and got into work late. Odds are that set the tone for the day and things headed south from there.
It’s difficult to overestimate the value of getting each day off on the right foot. With that in mind, here are seven things that employees – from line workers to managers to executives – should do every morning to maximize productivity and improve their focus.
1. Get up early. Even if you’re not a “morning person,” scientific studies show that it behooves you to become one. Early risers feel more in charge, are more proactive, earn better wages and – bonus points – sleep better at night, too.
If getting up early is just plain hard for you, ease into it by getting up a half hour early for a week and see how it goes. It can’t hurt to give it a try. After all, everyone from Ben Franklin to the late Steve Jobs were habitual early risers and things worked out pretty well for them, right?
2. Eat a healthy breakfast. Your mom no doubt told you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, yada yada yada. Truth is, studies show she was absolutely right. A healthy breakfast provides you with the energy you need after waking up early. Moreover, it staves off mid-morning hunger pangs that can send you to the nearest vending machine for an unhealthy, sugar-packed snack that in turn leads to a blood-sugar spike, followed by a steep energy crash that leaves you hungry again.
What makes for a healthy breakfast? According to the Mayo Clinic (www.mayoclinic.org), choose from among whole grains (such as whole-grain cereals, rolls and bagels), low-fat protein (like peanut butter, lean meat and hard-boiled eggs), low-fat dairy products (such as skim milk, yogurt and cheese) and fruits and vegetables (such as fruit-and-veggie smoothies or sugar-free 100 percent natural fruit juices). Together these food groups pack a powerful and energizing dose of fiber, protein, complex carbohydrates and yes, even a little fat, that leaves you feeling full and satisfied until lunch rolls along.
3. Be on time. Being fashionably late might work well for parties and other social gatherings, but it’s bad karma when it comes to the workplace. It’s not only unprofessional, but getting behind the eight ball time-wise can create a bad-vibe domino effect that totally derails the rest of your day. It also makes more punctual colleagues resentful of your lack of discipline.
4. Practice the 80/20 rule. According to this theorem, 20 percent of what you do every day produces 80 percent of your results. In short, over the course of a year, that means a lot of us waste a vast amount of time doing things that have a minimal or even no real bearing on achieving our daily or long-term goals.
The upshot: Analyze what you do in the morning and systematically eliminate the things that don’t advance achievement of your daily goals. Maybe it’s cutting out a morning bull session over coffee, or limiting the amount of emails you answer after you arrive at work. But whatever the case, figuring out the ultra-valuable 20 percent of activities that drive the majority of your results is time well-spent.
5. Tackle tougher tasks first. If you’re following the good-night-of-sleep-and-eat-a-healthy-breakfast game plan, your brain should be freshest in the morning – and you should have more energy and enthusiasm, too. As such, it makes sense to knock out the most challenging tasks when all pistons are firing.
Besides, crossing off one or two major items on your to-do list is like losing five pounds after just one week of dieting: It gives you a sense of accomplishment (and relief!) that just might inspire you to greater heights throughout the day as you sail along, no longer mentally encumbered by the onus of the Big Job. Save the smaller busy-work tasks for later in the afternoon when you’re less invigorated and perhaps not as focused.
6. Delegate one task. Handing off a project to a direct report is an easy way to whittle down your to-do list. Delegating not only frees you up to focus on other pressing matters, it also shows colleagues and/or reports that you trust them with more responsibility.
Of course, it’s imperative that you only delegate things that people are qualified to carry out. You also need to set clear and specific goals and deadlines. But after that, let go and learn to trust your team. It’ll pay dividends in ways you can’t even anticipate.
7. Read something related to your industry. This one is a little tougher for employees out in the field. But here’s a thought: Instead of sipping coffee during a break or shooting the breeze with colleagues, read an article in a trade magazine or a relevant industry blog. They can provide tips for improving your skills or offer insights into your profession that can help you advance your career – not to mention impress your boss at the next water-cooler encounter or business lunch.
BONUS TIP: Be forgiving. Every so often, you just might oversleep, miss breakfast, arrive late to work, practice the 80/20 rule in reverse, do the easier tasks early, refuse to delegate and read a comic book during a break. Don’t sweat it. You’re not a failure just because you didn’t cross a bunch of items off a to-do list.
The bottom line: Life throws us curve balls every day. Unanticipated brushfires – from surprise meetings to busted water mains to broken vacuum truck pumps – disrupt even the most organized employee who comes to work with the best game plan ever. Don’t beat yourself up. There’s always tomorrow … as long as you get up early and get off to a good start.
