Ever get the feeling you’re not one of those orderly types able to finish an entire day’s workload by lunch? That, try as you might, something always gets in your way?
Whether you’re looking to maximise your time to look for a new job or simply looking to impress at your current one, here are some tricks to ensure you maximise your potential during the workday…
1. Get a good night’s sleep before the week begins
Does your Sunday night go like this? One minute you’re trying to sleep, the next you’re trapped in a vicious cycle of dread about the forthcoming working week. If so, try nipping it in the bud with the 4-7-8 breathing exercise, which can induce sleep in 60 seconds. Breathe in through the nose for four seconds, hold it for seven seconds, then breathe out of the mouth for eight, calming down the body and nervous system.
2. Listen to the rain
Scientific research has shown that office humdrum can have a direct, negative impact on performance (like you needed someone in a lab coat to tell you the thrum of photocopiers and Kiss FM is off-putting). Thankfully, with websites such as Coffitivity.com, which re-creates the ambient hum of a café, and the comforting crackle of a fireplace or torrential downpour just a YouTube search away, you can transport your mind elsewhere.
3. Play Angry Birds
That smartphone game you’ve been conquering on the commute may be more useful than you thought. According to some psychologists, gaming can be used as a way of relieving stress through the workday, whether it’s coping with a boring role or wanting to feel more in command. What better excuse to set a new high score over lunch?
4. MealPal
Big in New York, now in London, and also making waves in Singapore and other major cities, this awesome new food app allows you to pre-order your lunch from the best eateries in town. It saves you time from aimlessly wandering around and queuing up with the rest of the 1pm crowd. Wake up, Sheeple, the future of lunching has arrived.
5. Take your shoes off
Go on, do it. We’ll keep shtum. A study by Quartz revealed that an increasing number of companies were beginning to experiment with no-shoe-friendly work environments, and they’d be right to. Short of going all Brian Wilson and putting a sandbox under your desk, just a few hours typing away in your socks could improve your comfort, circulation and, all going well, that overdue Excel report.
6. Use the ultimate journal
Day One is the best darned to-do list on the app store. A swish journal, it’s designed to streamline your thoughts, ideas and tasks like nobody’s business.