5 effective ways to help you work smarter

Time is money and it is also the greatest asset that we are given every day. However, many people "spend" time are wasteful, even ignorant and think that this is an unlimited asset. Time in some way is endless but anyone's life does not last forever.

So how to optimize time to achieve what we want?"Work smart, not work hard" seems to be the most suitable slogan. Work smart, not work hard. If you work all day, don't take a break but with an inappropriate method, the results will not be equal to spending less time doing but knowing how to arrange, organize, prioritize and take advantage of the tools available for support. Of course, if you work hard and work smartly, that's the best thing.

Here are 5 effective ways to work smart that anyone can apply.

1. Train fast reading skills

Reading is an activity that is rarely noticed even though we do it daily. Read books, read newspapers, read messages, read documents, read advertisements, read emails, read letters . and lots of other things to read. More accurately, reading is a skill that anyone must grasp even if they are not on the list of requirements or job descriptions. However, it should be emphasized here that fast reading is not just reading.

Quick reading is not an intrinsic thing but must be trained daily to be able to master. Once we have accelerated the speed of reading, we will save a lot of time during the day processing dozens of emails, news and documents.

One of the effective ways to help you practice that fast reading skill is "chunking" , in particular, instead of reading each word, you will read word groups (about 3 to 4 words) at the same time and ignore the words necessary . By reading many words (related) at the same time, you will not only skip through the content faster but also ensure to grasp the main ideas. Follow examples of "chunking" fast reading techniques here.

2. Make a list of daily tasks but don't have to do everything yourself

The term Outsourcing is very popular now, and is simply "outsourced". This is a solution that is being applied by many businesses when they do not want to set up a new department but choose to hire external services to complete the part of the project assigned by the company. Individuals / organizations that provide this service have professional staff, often work with many businesses, so they have a smart and effective way of doing business, while ensuring a balance between cost and also as the result received.

For individuals, "Outsourcing" is also a great way to increase work efficiency. You can make a daily task list, identify which parts to do yourself, what part of your work should be delegated to your subordinates, get support from friends or use outside services. For example, instead of going directly to the store, you can call fast food delivery service while on an important project; Optimize virtual assistant on your phone to save time. For areas where you are not in-depth, it is possible to transfer to colleagues who understand you better and ask for assistance to ensure completion on time.

3. Learn how to do many things at the same time

Do not misunderstand this method. Doing many things at the same time does not mean hugging, doing everything (returning to method 2, you do not necessarily have to do everything on your own) but it is the skill of combining the related work with each other to solve at the same time.

For example, a very creative teamwork that uses this method is "working walk" , specifically, the team members will choose the location (such as a park .), then go together. exercise kit and discuss project-related issues. This is essentially a meeting but instead of being held at the office, they choose to go out to change the atmosphere, create comfort for the members, and exercise and discuss their work very effectively.

4. Take advantage of waiting time

Think about all the times you have to wait: wait for an elevator, wait for a partner or customer in an appointment, wait for a purchase, wait for a ticket . All these "wait" times are expensive. Although you do not have much time for each time, but if combined, the number is not small. Instead of just waiting or playing a game to "kill" time, make use of them wisely. For example, take advantage of reading email (even, send a reply if you have smartphone, tablet, ipad .), list the items you need to buy, schedule for next week (using the calendar app on the phone) , read news, read newspapers .

Waiting is something that we may have to do this, so this is a very good opportunity that everyone should take advantage of to complete small jobs that may or may not be handled promptly.

5. Make important decisions in the morning

The first two hours after waking up is the time to make important decisions. This is the time when you have the most energy, the most alert and ideal to make the right choices.

Similar to the body, our brain will also be tired. This is called the "Decision Fatigue" phenomenon (when tired of deciding) when too much information is collected. Geniuses ahead of their time are the ones most affected by this symptom: photos of Albert Einstein show that he always wears a gray suit, Steve Jobs always appears in public in jeans - Black turtleneck T-shirt, and Mark Zuckerberg always wears a grayish-brown T-shirt with a hoodie. The reason they did so was to avoid wasting energy on deciding what to wear today.

Every day passes, the function of the brain is reduced slightly. This makes us spend more time and energy to make an appropriate decision.

In addition, you should also prioritize difficult tasks and require a lot of energy loss first, then complete the tasks easily. At the same time, when making a decision, don't focus too much on small details but pay attention to the whole picture and look out for larger scenarios.