Five steps for a more productive work environment

Ciara Conlon is a Leadership and Productivity coach, author and international keynote speaker. Ciara runs a leadership and team development consultancy working with leaders and teams to improve well-being productivity and performance. She has delivered her programmes in organisations such as Deloitte, KBC, Savills, The Central Bank and Smurfit Business School. She is a member of the Professional Speakers Association in Ireland and is regularly hired to motivate senior leadership teams.

Ciara is speaking at the next IMAGE Young Businesswomen’s Forum on Tuesday, October 30 in the five-star Westbury Hotel. This month we’re delivering a masterclass in finance, self-management and organisation. Get yourself sorted for tickets by contacting IMAGE (email events@image.ie or phone (01) 271 9615) or visiting Eventbrite here

Our environment affects us more than we realise and having a work environment that fosters productivity rather than hinders it is an important place to start.

Keep a clean desk

This may seem like a minor element but it can have a powerful effect. A cluttered environment can affect our subconscious mind and inhibit our creativity and focus. Spend some time purging old documents and clearing the mess from your surroundings. Buy desk and file organisers so that you have a place for everything and you don’t’ have to waste time deciding where you have to put something. When you have an organised environment you don’t’ waste time looking for what you need and you can hit the ground running each time you sit at your desk.

Control your own patch

I often hear people complain about their open plan office or their annoying colleagues that make it impossible to focus. It’s important to not play victim to your circumstances and take responsibility for your own focus and attention. If you can’t focus sitting at your desk, go someplace where you can. Find a meeting room or a nice coffee shop. Stay at home until you get an important piece of work done then make your way to the office. You could also buy a good pair of headphones and listen to chill music or try out brain.fm or focusatwill.com for digitally re-mastered music to help you focus. There are many ways to make it work, focus on solutions not problems.

Be a good boss

Gallup research confirmed that people don’t leave jobs, they leave managers so if you want to create a happy and productive environment for your team, treat your people right. Spend some time with each of your team understanding what they need to do their best job. Acknowledge that each individual is different and that they may need different things to help them to perform at their best. Mostly people want to be recognised so listening will go a long way.

Clarity is King

One of the biggest hindering factors to productivity is lack of clarity so whether you work for yourself or for a large organisation make sure you start each day knowing what your priorities are. Having clear goals makes prioritization easy and once you know what your priorities are you are less likely to procrastinate and waste time doing work that doesn’t need to be done. Start everyday with a plan, schedule your priorities in your calendar and set boundaries to ensure you get it done.

Embrace Task Management

Using a task management tool will increase your efficiency tenfold. Whether you use Evernote or Asana, Teamwork or Trello choose a tool that will help you to focus and collaborate at the same time. These tools reduce the need to use your email to have conversations about work. Keeping your inbox clear and your head even clearer. If you don’t’ currently have a system, put some time into creating one. It is the key to your next level of productivity. If you want to create a more productive working environment, become more aware of what hinders your productivity and then you can seek out solutions to find out what works for you.

IMAGE Young Businesswomen’s Forum:
GET SORTED
A masterclass in finance, self-management and organisation

IMAGE invites you to a night of empowerment, inspiration and plenty of learnings at the next IMAGE Young Businesswomen’s Forum on Tuesday, October 30 in the five-star Westbury Hotel.

This month we’re delivering a masterclass in finance, self-management and organisation, enabling us to step up our game and get stuff done. On our panel this month, we will be hearing from three incredible experts in the fields above; including personal finance expert Sinead Ryan; leadership and productivity coach Ciara Conlon; and founder and CEO of Fetch Beauty, Lucy McPhail.

Each of these successful businesswomen will bring different learnings and perspectives to the panel as we touch on topics such as:

• Team management
• Time Management
• Organisational skills
• Finance
• Working efficiently

As always, there will be plenty of opportunity at the end of the event to ask the experts your own personal questions.

WHEN Tuesday, October 30
Champagne & canapés from 6 pm

WHERE The Westbury Hotel, Dublin 2

TICKETS  €45