4 Habits That Surprisingly Boost Productivity

Entrepreneurs are always trying to maximize their time, and squeeze as much work out of their hours as possible. Often, this goal results in working long hours, cutting sleep and constant multitasking – practices that often prove to be ineffective. Instead of burning the midnight oil and sacrificing your personal life for the sake of your business, try picking up the below habits to boost your productivity while also improving your quality of life.

Eat breakfast.

Starting your day out with a nutritious meal give you a boost of energy and increases your mental alertness. It also helps you stay more full throughout the day, which prevents your workflow being interrupted by hunger pains. Try working in brain foods like whole grain cereals, eggs, avocado, berries and leafy greens into your breakfast.

Let go of perfectionism.

Of course you want to strive for excellence in your business, but becoming consumed by perfectionism can often keep you from moving forward with important projects at all. Instead of focusing on everything being perfect before you make a big decisions, focus on simply pressing forward.

Make yourself unavailable.

Not all the time of course. But you need to block out a chunk of time everyday where you don’t take calls, don’t check email and aren’t available for meetings. Try to schedule this time during your most productive hours of the day. Devote it to your most important, daunting task and then fiercely protect it.

Take breaks.

Working through lunch and staying glued to your office chair for hours on end may be necessary every once in a while, but keeping this kind of grueling work schedule every day isn’t just bad for your health and personal life – it’s a productivity-killer. Even though you’re putting in more hours, the hours you’re putting in aren’t quality ones. By taking enough breaks, you can spend your working hours feeling energized instead of drudging through your to-do list.