Task management is crucial for employees and leaders. Many people are unable to do effective task management, which affects their work-life balance and quality of work.
According to research, only 50.2% of a manager’s time is spent on productive tasks. This time can be increased with practical task management skills. Managers and team members can benefit from such skills and practice to improve their physical and mental health and achieve efficiency at work.
5 Effective Task Management Skills to Get More Work Done Faster
The following task management strategies can be used anywhere by anywhere to get their work done faster
1. Start Your Day by Prioritizing Tasks
The first thing to do when your day begins is to create a list. It should have all the tasks and work you need to do and prioritize them by the time required, importance, and due date. Some jobs may require more time, but others might have a tight deadline.
This should motivate you to proceed from one task to another on time.
Managers can also use calendars and project management tools to monitor the list’s task status and team progress. It will save them time and effort.
2. Use Digital Tools and Practices
Digital resources like www.meistertask.com have become integral to business operations since they help yield greater productivity. These tools are beneficial for both leaders and team members.
For example, a digital project management system like Kanban help keep track of projects and tasks. The practice lets to take an overview of progress and completed tasks. Other tools allow leaders to use digital whiteboards for effective communication and data delivery.
Teams can also benefit from digital project management tools. They can see tasks, briefs, comments, deadlines, and media files. Moreover, they can communicate and collaborate in no time.
3. Avoid Distractions
Distraction is one of the biggest impediments to productivity and output. Statistics show that 50% of employees are distracted by their phones, while 98% of the workforce is interrupted at least three or four times a day.
During working hours, you can take measures that can reduce distractions. Social media and entertainment applications like Netflix, WhatsApp, and Facebook are one of the primary reasons people use their phones often. When working, put your phone on silent and place it away to avoid distractions.
Another issue we face is an unnecessary and frequent interruption from friends or colleagues. Tell them politely that you are working on something important it requires utmost focus. However, you will get to them as soon as you finish it. Not only will these practices allow you to do your work peacefully, but you’ll also get more done in less time.
4. Avoid Multitasking, Focus On One Task at a Time
Most people think they can multitask, which will be a piece of cake. In reality, only 2.5% of people can perform multitasking. While the rest try to do but end up in poor mental health, low-quality work, and being productive.
If you attempt to do more than one or two tasks at a time, you will have poor work quality. Multitasking also decreases productivity as you can take a longer time to do a simple job because of constant distractions.
Another considerable disadvantage of multitasking is that it badly affects your mental health. When you work on different tasks, your brain switches from one detail to another. It will increase anxiety and stress, affecting your mental health and performance.
5. Set Realistic Deadlines for Your Work
Setting deadlines for your tasks effectively increases productivity and helps complete more work. However, take a logical approach and set realistic deadlines. Do not overburden yourself to get more done in less time. It will only disturb your mental health and quality of work.
As a manager, you should set deadlines to discuss the tasks with team members and leaders. This way, more work can be done in a limited time while maintaining the quality. It also allows measuring the KPIs of teams and individuals.
Ending Note
The collection of the above skills will have a significant impact on you and your team’s productivity. You can use the above practices to gain new skills or polish existing ones to get the job done effectively and faster. Through these practices, you can also achieve a work-life balance.
