You’ve no doubt heard the saying ‘more haste, less speed’, which means if you try to do things in a rush it will probably take you longer. The problem for small business owners is that there is never enough time in the day to get everything done, and consequently, the battle between time and productivity just rumbles on.
However, when it comes to improving business efficiency, there are a few popular myths.
MYTH 1: You’ll get more done if you multi task.
FACT: It does depend on your definition of getting more done. You may be able to complete several jobs at once by multi tasking, but will you achieve the best results?
A team of researchers from Stanford University in the USA found that multitasking is a less productive way of working than focusing on one task at a time. They deduced that people who are regularly bombarded with several streams of electronic information find it more difficult to focus, recall information, or switch from one job to another than those who work on completing one task at a time.
Multitasking also increases the risk of making mistakes, not to mention stress levels, and in terms of business efficiency, will only slow you down in the long run.
MYTH 2: You’ll save energy by leaving your computer running.
FACT: It is true that in years gone by people were encouraged to leave PCs switched on because constantly turning them on and off resulted in many of the computer’s components becoming worn out.
This is no longer the case with modern computer equipment, which is built to withstand several on-off cycles every day.
According to the Carbon Trust, a single monitor and computer left on 24 hours a day will cost around £45 a year. Multiply that by the number of computers in your business and you can calculate how much it could be costing you. Getting into the habit of turning off computers when leaving the office can lead to huge savings. Peripherals like printers and scanners should also be turned off when not in use. There’s lots of helpful energy saving tips and advice on E.ON’s website, which can help you identify where you could make savings.
MYTH 3: Skip lunch and you’ll get more work done
FACT: Missing out on a midday break is actually the worst thing to do for your productivity. Taking a proper lunch break gives your brain an opportunity to rest after a busy morning’s work. Failing to take time out can actually impact your thought processes and your ability to be creative.
By pausing your activity and taking your mind off the task in hand, your brain has time to recharge, while processing information acquired during the first part of the day. Some quality time out can actually boost your productivity.
Eating lunch at your desk isn’t a sensible option either, no matter how busy your schedule is, as you will be unable to truly switch off if you are staring at your inbox while you eat.
A lot of business owners treat their lunch break as a networking opportunity; a chance to meet potential new clients or partners in a fairly relaxed setting. Good things can come from an hour away from the office.
MYTH 4: Anything less than eight hours’ sleep will affect your ability to run your business properly
FACT: This is another productivity myth that doesn’t have any real substance. Everybody is different in terms of how much sleep they need to feel fully refreshed the next day. Some people feel they need more than eight hours for optimum cognitive performance, others can manage on less. Much less.
Baroness Thatcher and Sir Winston Churchill both famously survived on just four hours sleep a night, and researchers in the US now believe that genes could be responsible for allowing some people to function normally on far less sleep than is recommended.
Other factors that affect how much sleep you need include age, and the time of year. The only real trouble is when you struggle to get your own optimum quota of sleep.
MYTH 5: You won’t get any real work done unless you are in the office
FACT: Before flexible working went mainstream in the UK, many business owners took the view that if they couldn’t see their staff, they weren’t doing any work. The concept of doing work at some place other than the office was seen as detrimental to business output.
With flexible working now a well-established option in many organisations, there is research to show what a difference it can make to efficiency and productivity.
A 2013 report by the Institute of Leadership and Management found that 82% of managers saw flexible working as beneficial to their business, reporting improvements in productivity. Those with experience of flexible working were the most positive, particularly business leaders who were likely to have worked flexibly themselves (88%).
Improved mobile and broadband connectivity has enabled staff to work more efficiently and more productively from home, or some location other than the main office, simply by cutting out the commute to work.
MYTH 6: A tidy desk is a sign of an efficient worker
FACT: The idea of a clean and tidy desk being a sign of someone who is well organised and highly productive is another myth. Your desk may look immaculate and pristine, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it is well organised. As Albert Einstein once said: ‘If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?’
As a platform for productivity, a well organised desk should have the most used items within easy reach, and less frequently used objects tidied away, but easily findable.
And it may not pay to convince the owner of a messy desk to tidy it up. A messy desk is a sign of an innovative mind at work, rather than a disorganised one, according to researchers, who also say that people with messy desks can be highly productive.
Content on this page is paid for and produced to a brief agreed with E.ON, sponsor of the Efficiency hub.
