Are you guilty of having bad work habits? Here's an Effective Guide to Breaking Bad Work Habits.
Well, every person has their own habit every time they wake up in the morning or before going to sleep. Habits can be weird, unique, destructive or helpful.
A good habit in the morning would be waking up at 5:00 am and reading an inspirational book for a few minutes. A bad one is ignoring your screaming alarm clock, and checking your phone right away for emails and notifications. Of these two habits, I assume you already know which one is good and which one is somewhat unhealthy.
Successful leaders, as we all know, have habits that make them the people they are today. But they’re still human beings, and we’re pretty sure that they have bad habits too just like the rest of us. But what sets them apart from ordinary people is that they continue to perform and develop their good habits instead of focusing on the bad ones.
Habits, whether they are good or bad, can be challenging to break. They can affect your work performance and the quality of your life. If you want your business to be successful, get your dream promotion, or reach all your goals in life, you must change the way you start and end your day right from your bedroom to your office desk. Avoid the bad ones, cultivate the good ones.
5 Bad Habits to Avoid at Work and How to Break Them
1. Procrastination
There can be a lot of reasons you procrastinate: you hate the task given to you, you want a perfect outcome, you have poor organisation skills or you’re just simply not motivated enough to finish what needs to be done, and many others.
Sometimes though, all you need is a bit of procrastinating to process all the responsibilities aligned under you. However, in business, time is extremely precious and valuable, especially in a fast-paced environment. Procrastinating all the time will not only affect the people around your organisation, but also the business itself.
Overcome procrastination with these techniques:
- Start with your work right away without interruption. The earlier you start, the faster you’ll accomplish your work. Once you start working, dedicate at least an hour without any disturbance, so you can pour all your focus on it. It’s also ideal to reward yourself once you’ve finished the task on time. That way, you’ll be motivated to do the process again.
- Diminish your perfectionist thoughts. Your main objective should be about starting and completing the task and not doing things straightaway perfect. Remember that your work is in progress, so embrace imperfections and be realistic with your strategy.
- Start confidently and positively with your work. Don’t put a negative impression on your work. If you’re not confident about your task, because you believe that you can’t do it, get rid of this thinking! Treat every task, every project an opportunity, and not as a threat to your capabilities and growth.
- Change your work and thought process. If you think you’re becoming ineffective at work with your current process, the next best thing to do is to change your strategy. By organising your tasks and prioritising things efficiently, you will be able to maximise your time more with less procrastination.
2. Skipping breaks
Regardless of how busy you are, give yourself a break. It’s not smart and healthy to work nonstop without taking your eyes away from your computer screen or getting up from your seat. By taking a break at the right time, you can boost your level of concentration and refresh your tired body and mind.
Here are a few ideas to help motivate you in taking breaks:
- Eat your lunch on time
- Avoid eating at your desk
- Take a quick walk outside your workplace
- Rest your eyes and take a power nap
- Grab your water bottle to keep hydrated
- Put a book or two on your desk to read during your break
- Invite a co-worker for a cup of coffee
3. Addiction to social media
Checking your personal social media account for more than ten times in a day will surely affect your productivity. Aside from social media addiction, visiting other websites not related to your work can also interfere with your work. So if you’re obsessed with social media but don’t want to lose your job, always keep in mind that there is always a time for everything.
Here are some steps you can take to help break your social media addiction at work:
- Turn off your app notifications or set your phone to Do Not Disturb mode so you won’t be tempted to check your phone and so you can concentrate more on your tasks.
- Implement rules for yourself such as staying offline as soon as you leave the house and during working hours.
- Stay focused on your work and clear your mind from the latest happenings on social media.
- Once you’re successful in breaking this habit, don’t forget to congratulate and reward yourself for a job well done.
4. Tardiness
Being late is a sign of disrespect to someone else’s time. Constantly arriving late to your work or any appointments can create a negative impression on how you bring yourself to work. If your workmates or your client can arrive on time, why can’t you?
Start building a habit of getting to work early or on time, and encourage yourself to make this a habit every day. By doing this, you’ll arrive at the office with a clear head and in a happy mood.
Here are some simple ways to help avoid tardiness:
- Go to bed earlier so you can easily get up in the morning without rushing and panicking.
- Do not set your alarm on a snooze option to avoid falling back to sleep.
- Always leave your home early to avoid the rush-hour traffic.
- Prepare your things, or any documents, the night before so you’re not in a rush in the morning.
- Manage your time effectively by being mindful of your schedule for the next day, paying attention to the time spent on your morning routine, and planning out your breaks and lunchtime the previous day.
5. Stagnation
Stagnation is not a sign of growth. If you don’t have the desire to try a new system or develop a new skill, you will surely fall behind in the rapid changes of the modern world. Whatever talent and skills you have right now, you must continue to cultivate them, and never settle for mediocrity.
Get your inspiration back with these tips:
- Set goals that challenge you. Setting a goal can give your future an exciting direction. Ask yourself what you really want to happen. Encourage your team to hit your quarterly goals. Show your boss that you’re worthy of a promotion. By setting challenging goals, you become unstoppable and hungry for success.
- Start a new routine. Doing the same activity at the same place can make you sluggish. Start developing new and different practices that will keep you excited about going to work.
- Get out of your comfort zone. Commit yourself to a task that will challenge your skills. Don’t be afraid to take a risk. Treat it as a training ground to utilise your critical and creative thinking in a thought-provoking way.
- Continue to learn new things. Don’t put a full stop on what you can do. Motivate yourself to learn new things. Read books about things that you’re passionate about. Start a conversation with your colleagues and lead it by asking questions. Attend seminars and workshops that can help take your career to the next level.
You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine. ― John C. Maxwell
It’s Time to Develop New and Healthy Habits!
Do you have habits that are affecting your productivity, time-management, and personal growth?
Wherever you may go, distractions can be all around you. With a distracted mind, you can easily lose your focus and commitment on things that you’re passionate about.
What you need is to practice effective time-management to help you develop good habits and get all your priorities straight.
At Life Intelligence Group, we have the tools you need to help you detach from everyday distractions for a stress-free, organised life. Expect a whole new experience of managing your life using our products and services. Our agile tools are built to help you stay focused on things you want to accomplish for today and in the future.
Now, you can be confident that you’ll always stay on track no matter how busy you are. Bad work habits no more!
