职场英语:较常见的3大效率谎言如何遥It’s easy to spot when people are lying to themselves—like when a co-worker confidently starts a huge project at 4:30, but has a 5 PM deadline. “Who’s he kidding? ” you might chuckle. But when you’re telling lies to yourself—well, that’s another story.
When it comes to productivity, you may think you have it mastered. You check tasks off your to-do list, multitask like the best of them, and stay insanely busy from morning until night. But it turns out, your so-called “productivity” may actually be a jumble of popular myths that make you think you’re getting more done than you actually are.
Lie #1: My Day’s Full of Activity, So I Must Be Super Productive 谎言#1:我一整天全是事情要做,所以我一定是个超遥遥的人。
These days, there’s no shortage of digital time-fillers that can make you feel productive. You can easily spend all day emailing, tweeting, searching, instant messaging, texting, and whatever else it takes to stay in the online loop. But while your fingers are busy typing and your eyes busy reading, all you’re really doing is getting hits of information—over and over again—instead of working toward a goal.
Solution: The Done List 解决方案:完成事项清单 To make sure you’re actually accomplishing substantial tasks each day, keep a “done list”—that is, a list of tasks you’ve completed instead of things you have left to do. When you stop to recognize each day’s accomplishments, you’ll be able to reflect more constructively: Did you spend your time wisely? Did you make any significant progress today?
Lie #2: Please, I’m a Multitasking Master 谎言#2:拜托,我可是个一心多用的遥 Multitasking can trick you into feeling like you’re a productivity superhero. After all, if you have the skills to simultaneously compile a budget, listen to a podcast, and catch up on your email, you must be running circles around your single-tasking co-workers, right?
Actually, multitasking can make you perform worse in whatever you’re doing. Studies show that when you try to focus on too many things at the same time, you’re less likely to be able to filter out irrelevant facts, switch between tasks effectively, and remember important information.
Solution: Practice Single Focus 解决方案:练习一心一用 Try focusing on one task at a time. Hear me out: It might feel less productive—or even be less enjoyable—to work on one thing at a time, but extreme focus will bring out your best.
Lie #3: No Worries! I’ll Do it Tomorrow 谎言#3:别担心! 我明天会做的 The power of procrastination is, well, pretty powerful. Without much thought, the top task on your to-do list can get pushed to tomorrow, and then to the next day, and then to the next. And in your mind, you truly believe you’ll get to it eventually—but “eventually” keeps getting pushed further and further away.
拖延的力量是很强大的。 可想而知,你任务清单上较上面的任务肯定是要被你推到明天去做了,然后又被推到下一天,然后又到下一天。 在你心中,你真的以为你较后能把它完成——但“较终”的含义就是不停的拖下去、拖下去、拖下去…… Solution: Find an Accountability Ally 解决方案:找一个问责盟友 The root of procrastination is often a lack of accountability—if no one knows what’s on your to-do list, no one knows that you’re not actually making any progress on it. To stay on track, partner up with a co-worker or group of peers—people who are committed to helping each other do what they say they’re going to do—and plan to check in with each other at least once a week. Whenever you meet (whether virtually or in person), review your progress, share your upcoming goals, and provide feedback and encouragement. You’ll be a lot more likely to finish your blog post if you have a friend who checks up on you: “I haven’t seen an update on your blog today—when are you going to post it? ” 拖延症的根源在于缺乏监督与问责——假如没人知道你任务清单上有些什么,就没人知道你是否真的有所进展了。 为了保持前进,找一个或一群同事来帮你——他们同意帮助别人完成那些他们自称会做的事情——然后每周互相确认至少遥。 每次你们相遇时(不管是在网上还是在私下),回顾一下你们的进展,分享一下近期的目标,然后提供一些反馈和鼓励。 要是你的朋友总是这么催你,你肯定会更勤地更新你的博客的:“我遥没看到你更新播客啊——你准备什么时候发啊? ”