Does your work need improvement and Why ?
As said by Albert Einstein “ Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.” This line holds true to all of us but unfortunately not many one us do something about it.
Do these lines look familiar to you ? “ This is not easy ”, “ It’s not for me ” ,“ I don’t have time for that ” ,“ I am too busy. ”
Well if it is, Congratulations ! you are someone who realizes their limitations but gives more merit to produce further excuses than to overcome them. I am not trying to make you feel downhearted or regretful but to make you become more aware of your choices in life and to examine your answers to it. The way you respond to any situation, has a great impact in all the facet of your life. How many times have you seriously considered and tried hard to improve the quality of your work and more importantly, how many times have you been successful. Just ask yourself and listen to your inner voice. If you listen carefully, you may hear a faint voice saying “ Yes of course, I have tried and multiple times for that matter. ” But the voice may continue as “ Oh but truly speaking not that successful every time.”
Why don’t we crave for improvements ?
In this world of forever change, if we don’t transform or move forward we are actually going backward. Even if we don’t realize this reality in our current situation.
In all the work we do, there is always some scope of refinement. But the majority of the people just jump to finish a task at hand. The Completion of a task gives us a feeling of an adrenaline rush and the more tasks we accomplish, the more this rush advances. The Task execution in return also gives us the false satisfaction of work being done so now, we move ahead with the next task. The cycle continues and we feel elated by the quantity of the work done in a day. But we forget to reflect upon the other aspects and to ask the most important question “ Does my work reflect quality ? ” or shall I say, do we ever hold back and ponder, for instance “ Why does this work really matter ? ”, “ Can this work be done in a more effective way? ” ,“ Can I bring some positive change with my work in the society or my neighborhood ”.
Such questions seldom arise in our brain. But Why ? Why does this actually happen ? The answer is simple. We are too occupied to even think that something needs improvement. We are happy with our long term and laborious commitment at job, extracting money at the end of the month, doing shopping, tending to all our needs and necessities and so on and so forth. We are over burdened with our roles and responsibilities both at home and work. The little free time we get juggling between these fundamental chores are the ones where we relax our mind. How could anyone have the energy and caliber to extract the very best of our brain gravitate towards doing such excellent work of fruitful improvement at the tasks at hand ?
Let’s try to find out about the same in the next section ahead.
How can we improve the quality of our work ?
There is no stringent rule when it comes to improving the quality of your work. As each work is different and so are the people and the expected output from the designated work.
For instance, the work assigned to a Security Guard is very much straight forward and does not require a daily plan, deadlines to follow and a good deal of meetings blocking his calendar for almost the whole day ! Nevertheless he can definitely improve the quality of his core work like Being Alert, scrutinize the activities in his surroundings or neighborhood where he is employed and provide guidance to visitors, etc.
We cannot compare a security guard’s work with that of a Doctor or Professor or a Delivery Boy or an Astronaut, a Philosopher, a Singer, a Farmer or moreover any other profession. But there are certain points that each of us can contemplate and relate to in any job or role we may belong to.
- Daily Plan
A very famous quote by Thomas Alva Edison states “ Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets the planning.”
We all get the opportunity we seek, one day or the other but if we don’t really plan for it in advance it becomes a missed opportunity. Or worse we try and grab it but fail to do the justice by doing mediocre work. Plan your day with few tasks at hand and do your best at it. Do not be carried away with the thought that you can complete plenty more. Introspect your daily plan and keep it precise with a clear view of outcome. Quality improves when we achieve perfection and perfection demands significant time spent on a particular task so do not make haste to check off the list.
2. Stay Focused and Avoid Distractions
Keep all that distracts you at bay in advance. To name a few, time killers could be checking your phone constantly for mails, social sites, numerous apps, never-ending notifications, calls, internet surfing, gossip, unnecessary breaks and daydreaming. Make commitment to your work and avoid these distractions at any cost to produce profound excellence.
3. Do one thing at a Time (Don’t Multitask!)
Yes that’s true. Multitasking is a myth. You can absolutely do multiple tasks at a time but surely it wouldn’t be your best shot on the quality. You may believe that you are an expert on multiple things and can accomplish all of them together but actually you are doing the opposite. By trying multitasking you are prone to mistakes, a lot more stressed and your focus will be highly compromised. Try to do only 1 task at a time and dedicate your full attention to that single task. You will be amazed by the quality you would achieve.
4. Work on Your Weak Spots
By continuously working on your shortcomings, you will improve. Start small. Take one day at a time and keep going. It’s the most crucial factor that can make a significant change in your work standard and accelerate the performance. By acknowledging your weakness, you know exactly what needs to be done. The picture gets clearer day by day as you move forward towards daily improvements. Do whatever it takes to make you the best version of yourself.
5. Breathe and take a Break
To reach your peak productivity — STOP, take a Break and BREATHE ! By simply closing your eyes and taking a few deep breaths can help you relax and ease your mind off the stress.
As you cannot pour more in a fully filled glass, you cannot absorb more knowledge or do anything of high quality if your mind is saturated. So take a break and relax. Go for a walk around the corridor, listen to classical music by Mozart or Beethoven (they are my favorites) or anyone that you admire , have some coffee or any herbal tea, read a few pages of a Book or just be at your place and do a quick meditation. Anyone of mentioned ways will refresh you and keep you flowing with all the enthusiasm and energy of the world for bringing brilliance in your work.
