Self-Leadership & Personal Effectiveness: Work Smart, be More Effective and Stay Mentally Strong by Annika Kvist

It's Monday morning, and I feel excited and full of energy for the week ahead. As usual, I start my computer and open my inbox first to see if anything has happened since last time. While reading an email, I realize I need to go to my desktop to open a Word document. Once I'm there, I realize I need to open Excel to find a spreadsheet, all while my phone starts ringing. It's my daughter asking if I've registered her for the weekend basketball games. I open an app on my phone to double-check because I can't remember if I did or not.

Then I realize time has slipped away, and it's time to join Teams for an important meeting that's about to start. I feel like I haven't had enough time to prepare and start feeling quite stressed. I sincerely hope the others won't notice that I'm not adequately prepared. When I look at my screen, I suddenly have too many windows open, and I feel almost dizzy. 

The motivation I had when I started the workday has disappeared as if it never existed.

Do you relate to this? It happens to me all too often, so I constantly need to work on leading myself in a better way. Despite being aware that the brain can only focus on one thing at a time, I still find myself multitasking both at work and at home.

In today's busy work life, it's common to feel stressed, overwhelmed, and unsatisfied. A survey by the American Psychological Association found that 70% of workers reported that job-related stress negatively impacts their performance and productivity.

Even though lack of time is often blamed as the main cause of stress, the real culprit is a lack of focus. Being effective doesn't mean pushing yourself to the limit or trying to do multiple things at once. It's about working smart and understanding how our brains function.

Research shows that multitasking can decrease productivity and make it harder for us to focus, remember, and stay engaged. A study conducted by the University of California revealed that multitasking can result in a productivity decrease of up to 40% and takes longer to complete tasks compared to focusing on one task at a time. Trying to do multiple things at once also increases the risk of making mistakes, which negatively affects the quality and outcome of our work. To be effective, we need to focus on one task at a time and give it our full attention.

Our brains work in different ways. We have the conscious brain, also known as the adult brain or prefrontal cortex. This system is responsible for our cognitive functions like learning new things, making decisions, solving problems, and maintaining self-control. However, the conscious brain has its limitations. It's small, energy-consuming and has limited memory resources. Moreover, it can only focus on one thing at a time and is easily distracted.

The unconscious brain also known as the limbic system or the teenage brain. Its purpose is survival and reproduction. This part of the brain categorizes the world around us into things that will either harm us or help us survive. The unconscious brain is dominant and responsible for 95% of everything happening in our brains. It has unlimited resources, is not easily distracted, and often functions on autopilot.

How can we collaborate with our brains and improve both our productivity and mental well-being? Here are five brain-smart tips that you can begin implementing today:
1. Prioritize 

Focus on what's most important and urgent and avoid exhausting your brain by trying to do multiple things at once. You can use tools like the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize and organize your tasks based on their importance and urgency.

2. Offload tools

Offload your working memory. Use tools like to-do lists, reminders and calendars to remember important things and prevent overloading your working memory.

3. Avoid multitasking

Focus on one task at a time to maximize your productivity and make sure to complete tasks before moving on to the next one. You can use techniques like the Pomodoro Technique, where you work intensely for 25 minutes and take a 5-minute break, to help you maintain focus and high quality during short, intensive work sessions.

4. Manage your motivation 

Manage your motivation through neurotransmitters. To stay alert and motivated, you need dopamine. Vary your day and set fun and meaningful goals. Celebrate both small and big successes along the way and listen to music you enjoy staying on top of your game.

5. Avoid distractions

Write down thoughts and distractions. Distractions drain energy and attention. Write down these thoughts and schedule time in your calendar to reflect on and process them. This helps free up mental resources and maintain focus on your prioritized tasks.

To become more effective and mentally resilient, it's also important to have a balanced lifestyle. Regular physical exercise, sufficient recovery and sleep, and a healthy and nutritious diet are crucial to support brain function and well-being. A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine showed that physical exercise during the workday can increase productivity and improve work performance. Participants reported a 15% increase in productivity and better concentration after exercising.

In summary, we need to understand our brain's needs and work together with it to become more effective and mentally resilient. By prioritizing, avoiding multitasking, offloading working memory, managing motivation, and handling distractions, we can optimize our brain capacity and achieve better results in the workplace. 

So, which brain-smart tip are you ready to implement tomorrow to become more effective and mentally strong?

I wish you the best of luck on your journey towards becoming more brain-smart, more efficient, and more mentally resilient. Don't forget to have fun along the way, because it's not just about reaching the destination, but also enjoying the journey itself.

About Annika:

Annika Kvist is one of our members in Business & Dreams. She really loves driving change. 

Her passion is to support individuals, leaders, and organizations in creating effective self-leadership and leadership based on the latest brain research and well-proven keys and methods.

Annika has extensive experience in corporate management, business development, marketing, and communication. She has held positions such as CEO, business, and marketing manager, and has worked in large companies such as Fujitsu Siemens Computers and within the Bonnier Group.

For the past 4 years, she has been running her company, Amazing Growth AB. Within the framework of her work, she works as a coach, author, speaker, and leadership consultant. Annika is also actively involved in various board assignments.

She is trained as an ICC Coach and a Certified Brain Based Coach from the NeuroLeadership Institute in London. Additionally, for the past 15 years, she has been an instructor in yoga and mindfulness and organizes retreats in Sweden and abroad with a specific focus on self-leadership and finding a purpose driven direction forward.

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