It's easy to feel like all of your efforts are going in vain when you have a lot to do and accomplish. To deal with this feeling and to get the most out of your day, every productive employee will tell you that you must prioritize your tasks.
But that's not entirely true because there are ample techniques that can enhance your productivity and help you contribute to the organization more efficiently.
There is no one-stop solution that will resolve all your concerns. The strategies which are working for one person may not work for you. So finding the technique that works best for you is the key to long-term productivity success.
One technique that has significantly impacted employee productivity from the past few years is the 1-3-5 rule.
Not aware of the 1 3 5 rule?
Don't Worry. This blog will help you to understand it completely.
Come on, let's have a closer look at the 1 3 5 rule. Maybe it can be the exact technique that you've been looking for.
Let's start with the most basic question.
What Is The 1 3 5 Rule?
The 1-3-5 rule is a productivity strategy that forces you to be productive by taking periodic breaks from your work.
It's based on a simple three-step formula: pick one major task to accomplish, divide it into three medium tasks, and then divide those three medium tasks into five small tasks.
Because it ranges from major to minor and everything in between, you may be assured that you're making progress on significant projects without feeling like you're sitting down for hours and accomplishing nothing.
This technique is a great way to get started on something that has been on your to-do list for a while, but you haven't gotten around to it yet. By breaking your tasks into smaller parts, you can be more efficient with your time and feel more productive, even if you have accomplished small victories throughout your day.
Let's now jump to another question.
What Is The Connection Between Productivity And The 1 3 5 Rule?
According to Tim Ferriss in his book The 4-Hour Workweek, it is possible to double your productivity. All you need is a little planning, consistency, and a bit of motivation. The idea behind improving daily productivity through these three concepts is called the 1-3-5 rule.
The concept, as said by its name, requires you to work for 1 hour on the highest priority task, then break off working for 15 minutes, followed by another 1.5 hours of work on a medium priority task but still related to the first one and finally the task that has less priority.
This kind of pattern has proven effective and has seen great results in enhancing the overall productivity of employees. In fact, many organizations have experienced a serious hike in their revenue after adopting this technique for their employees.
The 1-3-5 rule not only improves daily productivity but also helps in building stronger relationships among coworkers. Moreover, it is easy to implement and proves to be very useful for improving one’s overall productivity.
This is one of many easy-to-implement strategies for boosting daily productivity and improving the overall performance of employees that can be implemented by both employees and employers.
We know what you are thinking, why should you give this technique a try?
Well here is your answer.
Why Should We Use the 1 3 5 Rule?
If you're looking to boost your productivity and really give yourself a leg up over other businesses, then it might be time to consider using the 1-3-5 rule in your office. This is a simple yet highly effective way of improving employee productivity while also simplifying the tracking process.
In short, each employee has three goals that must be completed under the assigned period of time. These goals can vary from anything but should include both large, medium, and small tasks. For example, one employee could have cleaned out his email inbox as one goal, sent invoices as another goal, and contacted new customers about an upcoming event as his third goal.
Other employees may opt to complete three work-related tasks such as editing photographs, updating client databases, and completing the paperwork associated with pending claims.
Employees who meet their goals at that time period get rewarded with a ten minutes break. It's as simple as that!
Remember, employees, are required to take five-minute breaks in every task no matter what they are doing or where they are working. This will allow them to clear their minds so when they return to work, they will be 100% focused on finishing any outstanding tasks or tackling new projects.
By keeping things easy and uncomplicated, employees will always know what they need to do during those designated periods of time and won't feel like there's too much pressure involved, which will ultimately lead to better production for any organization.
Now let’s understand how you can get the most out of this technique.
How To Make The Most Out Of 1 3 5 Strategy?
In order to make the most out of this strategy, calculate how much time your daily task will take and then split it into three parts. For example, if you have to write a presentation in one hour, you will work for 30 minutes, then take a 10-minute break, and then another 20 minutes to finish it. This way, you will ensure that you won’t overwork or let yourself get distracted by any other tasks, and your concentration level remains high throughout the day.
Once you get used to it, after a couple of weeks of such a work schedule you will notice a considerable improvement in your productivity, and this will also improve your ability to manage your daily tasks.
You can use a simple time tracking application like Workstatus to track all tasks that require at least 10 minutes of uninterrupted concentration so you can be sure that you are highly focused on your job.
Finally, don’t forget to reward yourself!
Take some time off and spend some quality time with your colleagues.
Just make sure not to fall back to old habits and continue working on projects that matter.
Let's go a step further and talk about some suggestions that will help you to incorporate the 1 3 5 technique into your working life.
1)Stop Wasting Time
With so many tasks on our plate, it’s easy for us to become distracted by projects that are not long-term goals. One way you can combat these time wasters is through time blocking.
Start each day by scheduling time for your most important tasks. Block out all other distractions uring these times, including checking email or social media accounts. This will give you a better chance of actually focusing on what matters most.
Stay entirely focused on a single task at a time. Break big tasks into smaller ones and schedule specific blocks of time to work on them instead of fitting them into unplanned moments. Doing this will get more work done in a shorter period of time without sacrificing quality.
2)Stay Focused On What Matters The Most
This can be tough, especially if you work remotely. After all, when no one’s looking over your shoulder, it’s easy to get distracted by fun and unimportant tasks, like reading or answering Slack messages.
One of the finest ways to stay focused is to take advantage of tools that allow you to track where the time goes each day. For example, try using a tool called Workstatus in order to see which websites and apps are absorbing most of your time on a weekly basis. From there, set goals for what sorts of hours should be devoted to productive tasks each week and stay focused on the things that matter the most. You’ll feel much better about your results once they start coming in!
3)Make To-Do List
Create a to-do list for each day. The best way to track your daily tasks is to make a list, either on paper or on your system. Prioritize items that need immediate attention, schedule them on your calendar, and then cross off each item as it is completed.
This can help you keep track of what needs to be done without making you feel overwhelmed and will also prevent you from forgetting about something important later in the day or week.
This approach is beneficial because it allows you to plan ahead. It helps avoid procrastination and allows you to focus on one task at a time.
In addition, if any issues come up during the day, like an unexpected meeting coming up or someone walking into your office asking for assistance, you won't forget about all those other tasks that need completing.
To help yourself out, you can start using user activity monitoring software that can assist you in keeping your employees accountable by focusing on their productivity.
These software's will help you to make a list of prioritized goals and then set benchmarks to measure how well you're achieving them.
4)Keep Track Of Your Progress
The problem of making time for specific projects isn’t that you don’t have enough time, it’s that you don’t know where your time is going.
By tracking where you spend your time each day, you can get a clearer picture of where your extra hours are going and then use those same strategies in order to make more headway on your important projects.
A simple way to do so is by setting aside 10 minutes at various points throughout your day to write down what you accomplished, what project you were working on, how long the task took, and any other relevant information.
This process can be quickly done by user activity monitoring tools such as Workstatus, which will let you monitor your progress over time as well as set goals for yourself and your team!.
5)Spend Your Time Wisely
The 1-3-5 rule is a time management strategy that assumes you’ll spend one hour planning, three hours doing, and five hours evaluating. This means that as soon as you know what needs to be done, you should schedule time in your calendar for planning how it will be accomplished.
During those three hours of work itself, you should dedicate your full attention and energy toward completing your project. When finished, take some break and then take another five hours to evaluate whether you've achieved all your objectives or not.
There are two reasons why spending your time wisely is essential. First, if you didn’t finish everything on your plan, then maybe a different course of action is required. Second, if you did complete everything on your plan, then it might be time to set some new goals or priorities for yourself and continue achieving success.
You can also use Employee Monitoring Software which will allow you to analyze where most of your time has been spent so that you can fine-tune any issues which may arise.
6)Use Software And Apps To Manage Your Daily Tasks
It's always a good idea to practice time management principles, such as Allen's 1-3-5 rule. But if you find it challenging to adopt, you can also boost your productivity by using employee tracking software and mobile apps. Doing this will help you to figure out what items add unnecessary stress and which tasks are worth working for.
This might seem severe, but keep in mind these employee monitoring tools exist for your own well-being. If you aren't managing your daily tasks effectively, there could be significant consequences. That's why It's essential to use these kinds of programs responsibly to enhance your productivity.
With Workstatus you can perform productivity tracking and see whether it’s rising or falling. At day’s end, Workstatus will show you how productive your day was and what days of high and low productivity look like for comparison over time.
Most of us want to be as productive as possible. Using an app like Workstatus could keep you on track and help you to accomplish your futuristic goal.
So what are you waiting for?
Conclusion
The 1 3 5 rule is an effective technique for enhancing the productivity of your employees. It's easy, effective, and can assist you in getting organized.
However, the overall result is dependent on how you apply it. It's entirely up to you. You can modify the approach to get the most out of your daily productivity. Track your results for at least 30 days, and measure your productivity throughout each day. This way, you'll know if your company is driving benefits from this strategy or not.
We would love to hear about your ways that helped you to increase your productivity!
Leave a comment below!
Thank you, and have a wonderful day!
