Work smarter not harder, Do you believe in that?

7 Ways To Work Smarter, Not HarderJesslynn Scott 

Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort makes all the difference.

Work with how you spend your time in a day. Develop habits that can help you know what is important, what is not. With discipline, planning and organisation, eventually, you would find yourself working more effectively without wasting time.

1. Take breaks

It sounds counter-intuitive, but taking a regular break during your workday actually increases your productivity.

It’s also better for your health. Whether you work as a freelancer or work in an office environment, walking away from your desk will minimize eye fatigue and prevent blood-clots in your legs.

Research shows that even five minutes away from work is enough time to renew your focus. When the afternoon slump hits, take a break. For even more energy in the afternoon, skip the coffee and incorporate brain-boosting snacks like blueberries and walnuts. The healthy fats and antioxidants will give your tired brain a much-needed boost of energy and focus.

2. Make rituals a part of your day

Believe it or not, most of what we do everyday is actually habitual. So if we can develop healthy habits, then we can be moved to success with less pain and efforts. If we are used to doing the same thing at the same time in the same place, the environment and the habit itself can condition us and make us more efficient in what we want to do.

Start your day off right by using a morning ritual during the workweek. Incorporate ideas like morning pages, meditation, and exercise into your early hours to improve your focus. Great morning routines start the night before by prepping for the day.

End each workday the same way as well. Shut down your office. Clear off your desk of any clutter so that you can start each morning fresh. Whether working from home or an office, make a point to start a ritual that says it’s time to end the workday.

3. Have a “Do Not Disturb” block of time

The best part and worst part of working from home is that you work from home. People living with you can pop in and out of your office during working hours “just to chat” or discuss little things. Make it clear that between certain hours, you are not to be disturbed unless it is an emergency. Guard that time.

For working at the office, the same principle can be used. Inform co-workers that you don’t want to be disturbed.

4. Check email and social media at certain times only

It’s so easy to check email or social media several times a day. The problem is that quick looks derail your focus. It takes almost  minutes to return from a distraction. Shut off email notifications and stick to a regular email time—once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Do the same with social media. Everything will still be there when you’re ready for it.

5. Make a top3 priority to-do list

Pre-planning your day is a must if you want to get things done. But instead of making a long to-do list, make a list of the three most important things you need to accomplish. By limiting your list to only three priorities, the list becomes manageable and not overwhelming.

6. Develop a time management system

Filofax, Erin Condren, and Franklin Covey are all very popular pen-and-paper planners. There’s something to writing things down. Evidence even shows that writing longhand improves memory. An added plus: decorating your daily pages can be inspirational.

If you aren’t into your own handwriting, there are apps and websites like Trello to help you out. Boards and cards can be broken up, labeled with colored tabs, and details can be added within each card. The possibilities are endless.

7. Organise your workspace

Make a regular effort to organize your cloud-based or desktop folders. This is a huge time saver. Use labels in Gmail or folders in Outlook for all your emails. Make everything clean and uncluttered. Learn to use shortcut keys instead of relying on your mouse.

Along with keeping your online workspace organized, keep your office organized too. Have a designated time (like Friday afternoon) to get rid of old papers. File receipts and invoices in a file cabinet or a portable file box. Having an uncluttered work area improves focus.

To work smarter, it isn’t just about having laser-focused attention and access to the latest apps and software. Know your limits and distractions and use that to develop a system that works for you. Keep yourself accountable. You’ll accomplish more without sacrificing all your time.

your question reminds me  of the universal law of life the stronger or the smarter who will last long ? alligators and their families were   very strong among creatures but their race has disappeared whether small birds are still alive so to live long you have to be smarter than stronger , to brief it work smart than work hard

Aim to achieve your goals, smarter way or harder way. Be goal oriented. Don't leave a task if you cannot find a shortcut. So working smarter doesn't mean find an easy way to do things. 

Work smarter and harder, either way achieve your goals.

both of  ,because a smarter one work hard only and some time work harder becomes smarter .

Work smart and hard. Success is on it's way.

Thank you for the invitation

Smarter work is an alternative to the tired muscle work so as to facilitate the process of life and increases production

Yes i do, When I really focus on what I'm doing and work hard, I'm usually surprised at how much I can get done. Something that should take half a day can be done in a couple of hours when I'm truly focused.

I believe in optimum work utilization, that means I work smartly, but if required, can adopt hard work as well depending on situation.

Yes i believe in working smarter not harder, reason being is time management the less time spent on a specific process the quicker you can begin and finish the next task. in a production point of view working smarter leads to being more efficient and wasting less time thus enhancing production output saving the company money and making more money by being able to supply more product.

Philosophical question indeed,

I believe that during initial phases of career, hard work always pays as it gives us opportunity to learn. the roles has less responsibility leading exposing us to wide spectrum of learning experiences.

Smartness is required during the advanced stages of career which involves balancing time between management reviews and subordinate reviews.

' more the baby struggles during infancy the stronger the immune system'

SMART means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Reliable and Timebound. If all these qualities ensured while doing a job, it needs no explanation. Harder does not ensure accuracy/perfectness of work.