5 Ways to Keep Employees from Getting Overwhelmed
Filed under: Business Tips
All business industries have aspects that can be hard to handle for some employees, and it is essential that management takes a proactive approach to teaching the skills so that the team knows how to work through the situation. Are you currently working with a team of employees that is overwhelmed with their responsibilities at work? Here are a few tips to help the employees get past the barriers and back to productive daily tasks:
Jim McLaughlin, Business Coach
Set Goals and Priorities: One cause of overwhelm is that employees feel like there is too much to do. Set company or department goals for employees to follow, helping them to prioritize the way they use their time each day.
Centralize the Task List: How many times do tasks fall to the backburner because people think that others are handling the responsibility? Set up a centralized to-do list that allows managers to make task assignments to individuals. Trello or Basecamp are great examples of options that you might consider.
Manage the Environment: Sometimes employees have a hard time keeping up with responsibilities because they are distracted by other things that are going on. Look for ways that you can adjust the work environment to promote productivity. For example, you might set aside an office that can be used for an hour at a time if individuals need focus time away from the rest of the team.
Plan a Daily Work Flow: Set employees up for success by creating a workflow for the day. After you have identified the priorities and goals for the team, then you can look for times when employees are hitting their productivity peak. In addition to the focused work hours, also schedule times for breaks and lower priority activities. Chunking the schedule can be a great way to minimize distractions.
Reduce Multi-Tasking: More often than not, multi-tasking reduces productivity because of the distractions that are going on throughout the day. Find ways to clarify job duties for individuals so that you can reduce the trend of multitasking.
Are you looking for other ways that you can help employees overcome overwhelm in the workplace and be more productive? Contact Jim McLaughlin for Leadership Development for Business Owners and Managers to learn how to structure the right workflow in your business: (951) 225-2179
