Someone asked me the other day how I was so efficient in work. This got me thinking about everything I do which may feed into this. I noted down a few thoughts but as well as this, I reflected that this has a lot to do with my personality in being highly conscientious. Of course, personality-wise, we are all different so it always easy to advise people to just be “more conscientious” in how they work! I did realise there were some practical tips I could give which may (or may not) be useful in giving some advice on this. This particularly relates to research tasks and academic writing, but some could equally apply to other aspects of working.
Work with your natural rhythm
It is important you have an awareness of the times of day you work best. For example, I am 100% not a “night owl” and I know my productivity decreases throughout the day. I plan my work around this. I get up and into work early (usually in around 7:15am) to capitalise as much as possible on the morning period when I know I will work better and more effectively. An early start therefore can mean an early finish, whilst still having done a full day’s work. Even going home at 4pm means a working day of nine hours.
Planning
Often efficiency in working is attributed to being an effective planner. Having clear to-do lists or schedules to identify when things need doing, with clear timelines is helpful to being efficient in getting these done. One of my strengths are my planning and organisational skills and these certainly come in handy when negotiating the workload which comes my way within the academic year.
Don’t compromise your leisure time
Sometimes it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that sitting in front of a computer all day means you are working. This often is not the case. If I am having bad writer’s block or not getting anything done, I turn off the computer and do something else. Often this may be something for leisure (e.g., going for a walk), and this isn’t something you should feel guilty about. Factoring in time for yourself and leisure is fundamental to helping you work effectively. Leisure time can often allow you to think more clearly which overall can help in the long-run, so it certainly isn’t something you should compromise for the sake of convincing yourself you are working by staring at a computer screen.
Place is important
As part of writing days, it is often worth considering where this is taking place. Place is psychologically powerful and can be influential to how well you may work. My writing days are often informal residential days where I have a writing buddy over at my house, or we meet in a public library. Public libraries are beautiful places to work and can provide a suitable setting for writing. Take time to seek out places you feel suit you and your working preferences.
Work collaboratively
In relation to overall efficiently in the research process, working collaboratively can be very effective. For example, there have been times when I have had multiple projects on the go and having colleagues who are running aspects of these means there can be efficiency in the research process because this is shared across numerous people. When looking at any successful academic’s Google Scholar citations per year, take a look at the amount of publications which are multi-authored. Efficiency in getting research out there is usually based on a team effort. So seek opportunities to work with others in research as this can support your efficiency as a researcher.
Schedule in writing days
I have mentioned this in another of my blog posts, but scheduling in designated research or writing days is really important to make sure you have time for research. We always schedule in our teaching hours but we don’t always factor research into our schedules in equivalent ways. Research is often a core part of our job descriptions so it absolutely should be identified on our timetables.
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