Your production directly affects your success and ability to reach your goals. If you are like most productive individuals, you wake up with a to-do list, but do you finish it every day? It’s easy to get distracted, and unexpected things come up throughout the day that may tear you away from your to-do list. These are a few tips to increase your productivity.

Prioritize Your List

You may have five, 10 or even 20 items on your to-do list, but they don’t have the same priority level. Some are quick things that aren’t very important, while others need to be addressed immediately. Therefore, choose three things on your to-do list that you absolutely have to finish that day. Then, prioritize the rest of your list.

Don’t just do tasks to mark things off your list. Instead, do the most meaningful, important tasks before you move on to the smaller, less important ones.

Make Time for Movement

Movement energizes you and gives your brain some much-needed oxygen and rest. It is important that you get regular exercise every day, but you should also exercise throughout the day. Some say that you should make it a point to get up and move around every 30 minutes, but this can be challenging if you are in the middle of a project and are making major progress. However, you should at least move around every 60 minutes or so. Even if you just get up to stretch, the benefits can be significant.

Be Accountable

As a business manager or owner, you may not have to report to anyone above you. However, accountability is vital to your efficiency, production and motivation. Therefore, consider working with another manager or colleague to keep you accountable for your tasks. You could also partner with a friend or family member to keep you accountable for tasks outside work. These individuals can also serve as valuable assets because you can brainstorm, share ideas and work closely with these individuals as well.

Avoid Multitasking

At the end of the last century, everyone was looking for ways to multitask. Getting more than one thing done at the same time seemed to improve efficiency and productivity. However, instead of doing a single job well, multitaskers learned to do several tasks acceptably. In addition, because your attention is divided, you actually do less in the same amount of time. Therefore, focus on one task until it is completed. Then, move on to the next.

These are just a few strategies you can adopt to help you improve your productivity. Consider testing them to see how much you can cross off your new to-do list.