November 12, 2015 (Updated March 7th, 2023)
What day of the week are you most productive?
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Do you have lots to do, a big project to complete or perhaps a deadline approaching? If so, you may decide to focus your attention on these tasks at the start of the week before your productivity drops.
As a study by staffing firm Accountemps revealed, Monday and Tuesday are the most productive days of the week for employees. In fact, a whopping 39% of managers believed Tuesday to be the most productive day of the week, closely followed by Monday at 24%.
Fresh and Focused
Returning to work after the weekend, most of us will have refreshed and restored our energy levels meaning we are ready and motivated to focus on the tasks we need to tackle. Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps says “many workers spend Monday catching up from the previous week and planning the one ahead”. He further went on to explain that “on Tuesdays, employees may begin to have time to focus on individual tasks and become more productive.”
However, as the week progresses productivity dramatically declines with only 14% of employees believing Wednesday to be the most productive day of the week. And probably coming at no surprise to you, the study found Thursday and Friday to be the least productive days with each receiving only 3% of the vote.
That Friday Feeling
As the week draws to a close and the weekend approaches, we start to wind down as we get excited for what’s ahead and many of us will tend to put workloads to rest or on hold until the following week. I’m sure most of us have looked at a task before and thought something along the lines of ‘there’s no point starting it now’ and ‘I’ll leave it until Monday’. However, we shouldn’t simply write these days off…
How to make Friday the most productive day of the week
With fewer meetings, emails received and activities scheduled in your calendar for a Friday, follow our 3 top tips to make the most of this free time and really give your productivity a boost.
1. Limit Distractions
We can all get distracted at the best of times, especially on a Friday when energy is low and others around us are winding down or leaving the office early. However, limiting interruptions and distractions will give your productivity a huge boost as each time you get interrupted it can take your brain 10 to 15 minutes to get back on track. Find a quiet place to work, or plug in some headphones to give yourself some space and prevent getting caught in conversation – turning off phones and closing your emails will also help keep you focused on finishing your tasks.
2. Tie Up Loose Ends
Generally speaking, most people won’t start big projects on a Friday afternoon. However, this doesn’t mean you should spend the time clock watching, browsing the web or refreshing Facebook. Instead, Fridays are the perfect opportunity to polish off and complete all of your to-dos for the week, close up conversations and prepare for the week ahead. After all, there’s nothing worse than returning to work on Monday and realizing all the stuff you didn’t do last week is still waiting for you.
3. Implement a Productivity Tool
There are tools available which promote a more efficient and organized way of working to boost productivity. DropTask helps you to manage to-dos and keeps you on track to achieve everything for the week. With a uniquely visual approach, on a Friday you can instantly see what tasks still need to be actioned, and with importance and urgency indicators, it’s easy to see where you should focus your attention first. Instead of having multiple apps and tools open at once -DropTask limits those distractions we mentioned earlier by keeping everything from files to conversations together in one place. What’s more, at the end of the week you can tick off your tasks and look back at everything you’ve accomplished with pride.
Change the way you work and make Friday more productive than ever with DropTask. Sign up for free today at www.droptask.com/signup