Oftentimes, what is regarded as the reason for the success of a business is the efficiency of its people, its machinery, or system of converting inputs to outputs. In sum, what most likely spells success is productivity. What exactly is productivity? Productivity is one’s state of producing something; the efficiency of a worker or a group of workers. This explains why people who accomplish a lot in a day aren’t superhuman. Having a tidy workspace, getting enough sleep, planning and organizing priorities are just some that might very well affect ones productivity at work. But if there are a lot that one may do to increase his productivity, what then may hinder it? Here are five things that hinder your productivity:
Lack of acknowledgement
Sometimes, lack of skill is not the reason why employees are not able to perform well at work. When an employee has solved any problem, or has introduced any innovation, or even has just finally get his work done and the management does nothing about it, the employee might not work as well as he did the next time. Equally so, when the management does not provide an arena for growth, the employee might feel that his job is only about finishing what he thinks he is required to do by his contract. Thus, when an employee is not acknowledged, he may lose interest in providing the company with the highest quality of his performance.
Inadequate technologies
Jobs that necessarily require the involvement of the internet, information systems and tools may hasten productivity. However, just as it could help, at times when company technology has not been upgraded, the use of it may do more harm than good. Thus then, even how skilled a worker may be, when the tools he uses to perform his tasks are out of date, it will result to working at slower pace. Say, for an online bookkeeper, when the accounting software being used to cater accounting services is out-dated, the bookkeeper may not improve his workflow and worse, could not be able to meet the deadlines or provide real-time accounting services.
Stress and illness
No matter how skilled a worker is, or his tools newly-acquired and very much serviceable, when he cannot handle his personal affairs or the pressure at work, he may not be able to perform his job efficiently and effectively. Also, when an employee is ill or is disabled, making him unfit to work whether momentarily or permanently, it decreases productivity rate, not only of the said employee but may also be of the whole company.
Using the same illustration above, an online bookkeeper with an overloaded schedule may acquire stress or worse, illness. This is the danger in accepting too many clients. Since online bookkeeping is labor intensive, and because each project may take up a lot of time for analysis, the stressful situation of having too many deadlines to meet and with everything a bookkeeper has to do, may cause him to do his job by grabbing what’s quick and easy.
Food and diet
The individual’s lifestyle may also affect his efficiency. The type of food, the amount of intake, even the time of the day when he eats may, directly or indirectly, affect productivity. In support to what is often said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, experts say that skipping this meal results to loss of hours of productivity considering that failure of food intake before work means failure to provide the body the nutrients the produce energy.
In Canada, specifically in Toronto, culinary contributions have grown to a wider range. There are even prepared meal delivery options that might save you the time and effort in ordering for your next meal. Canadians are said to be “big eaters”, with meat dominating the Canadian meal. Since bigger meals may sometimes mean bigger you, this habit may lead to obesity. In relation to work, obesity affects productivity as it puts the person to a state where he is prone to back problems, or sleep apnea. “Presenteeism” then becomes an issue. Moreover, to balance things, it is ideal for employers to encourage their employees to gym memberships, or even conduct walking meetings.
Employer-Employee Relationship/Enjoyment of work
People who enjoy their work and have good working relationships with their bosses or their workmates tend to be more motivated and committed to their jobs; whereas those who are resentful at work, uncomfortable with colleagues, are likely to find escape and disregard the idea of giving his best in his work.
An individual’s productivity level can be influenced by numerous factors, physically, psychologically, and even by the environment where works or the behaviour of his fellow workers. Thus, to maximize employee’s skill and improve company status, improvement in productivity is encouraged as it also affects the well-being of individual.
Productivity is critical to employers as they want to get the most out of their employees. While it is a serious matter in spelling business success, it is equally threatening too for employees who, upon failure to perform effectively and efficiently, may have their long-term job prospects and security of tenure in trouble. Thus then, it may be safe to say that employees’ productivity is one of the most important aspects that could direct what is yet to come for the business, and the lives of the people in that organization.
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