Self-employed professionals can choose which hours they work. Likewise, many companies offer flexible hours and work-from-home options to their employees. This means that millions of working professionals now have the opportunity to work at the times they feel alert and inspired.
Performance coaches encourage workers to use the peak hours of the day for the most important assignments. Following a schedule that utilizes your most productive work hours will ensure that the important projects receive the energy they deserve.
Research suggests that our day is driven by cycles that affect how alert and productive we are. In chronobiology, an ultradian rhythm is a recurrent period or cycle repeated throughout a 24-hour day, on average in 90 – 120 minute cycles that run within the 24-hour day.
To find your most productive hours, you should research your own ultradian performance rhythm. At the beginning of the cycle, you experience heightened energy and focus, and at the end, you may feel groggy, tired and scatterbrained. That is when you have hit an energy dip.
A “workaholic” is not necessarily productive. Research has shown that productivity drops when people clock over 50 hours in a week. Working your best hours is therefore way better than working longer hours.
Use your peak time, when you feel alert and excited, for projects that involve problem-solving, making critical decisions and using complex thought processes. Routine and less complex tasks can be done when you are not as focused and energised.
If you know when to expect your next energy surge, you are more certain that you can and will achieve your goals for the day.
Taking a systematic approach is best to identify your peak hours. Chris Bailey, author of the book A Life Of Productivity, suggests scoring your focus, energy, and motivation out of 10 in daily hours for 3 weeks, taking measurements at the same times every day. This should only take you about 30 seconds every hour. (Don’t obsess over the numbers – the first number that comes up is the correct one…) A spreadsheet will automatically calculate the averages and produce your personal productivity graph.
After a week you will start seeing trends and after three weeks, you will spot the days of the week when you are super effective.
Ask yourself:
- What makes me more productive?
- Which activities, foods, or people drain my energy?
Then apply this knowledge, even if it means drinking less coke or coffee.
Keep in mind that some of your energy valleys are your body’s natural way of asking for a break. But being aware of your dips and working during your power hours, makes your day more enjoyable and way more productive.
