How Can You Be a More Productive Leader?

The business world isn’t getting any slower. With how intricately we tie our productivity to our work lives, leaders are discovering that true efficiency and productive leadership goes beyond the latest app. Mental and physical health play an enormous part in how effectively we collect information to make crucial decisions – but carving out enough time to keep ourselves healthy can prove a titanic task.

So, to pinpoint this new paradigm of “wellness as an efficiency anchor,” I’ve gathered the best info from productivity experts – ranging from the deep expertise of business coaches with a finger on the pulse of trends, to C-suite executives about their current day-to-day.

If you’re seeking a helpful guide, full of productivity hacks, discover what these experts reveal below.

Implement a Time Template

"Creating and using a time template is a productivity hack that has been instrumental in my growth as an effective business leader. By categorizing chunks of time in your calendar, you can focus on one type of thinking at a time, enabling you to batch tasks and work more efficiently.

"To craft an effective time template, begin by listing all your tasks on paper or in a project management system. Then, categorize those tasks and use those categories to structure your time template.

"Time templates don't just enhance efficiency; they aid in decision-making as a leader. With your time mapped out, saying yes or no to the right projects can become more intuitive. It also can provide colleagues with insights into your day, enabling them to approach you with questions at the most opportune moments."

—Jamie Steele, Productivity Coach and Consultant, Tidy Your Time LLC

Set Time-Bound Goals

"Setting up time-bound, long-term and short-term goals has helped me achieve things that looked impossible. It is extremely important to set goals and also divide them into long-term and short-term categories. What is more important is to put timelines on all such goals so that they can be evaluated over a period. What is evident and practical is that not all goals can meet their fate within the estimated timelines; however, if we practice this, we can easily see 70%-80% of them getting fulfilled within the set limits.

"Setting up goals has been extremely important, and I try to factor this properly against anything that I want to achieve, be it my professional targets or my personal aspirations. From the time I started allocating timelines to these goals, I have found immense differences in the way I could achieve them."

—Gyanesh Kumar, Business Leader, Marlabs LLC

Build a Holistic Leadership Foundation

"The main hack I learned from my 10+ years of experience in leadership roles was to stop looking for a single hack that would do the trick. It just doesn't exist. Becoming a more effective business leader is a challenging journey, and you should try to build a strong foundation first.

"It comes down to taking care of your physical and mental well-being and clarifying your personal vision, aspirations, and ambitions. Choose whatever works best for you – sports, meditating, practicing mindfulness, limiting social media consumption, reading, or connecting with others. Once you have this foundation, you should try to work on your hard and soft skills.

"Leading by example is crucial. So, try to work on empathy, active listening, and public speaking to lead your team and inspire other leaders. Consider mastering prioritizing tasks, delegating responsibilities, and time-boxing your work. To sum it up, there are no shortcuts to leadership success, but building a solid foundation is crucial."

—Dmitry Graf, Engineering and Software Management Leader

Adopt the 3-5-7 Method

"I call it the 3-5-7 method. It's simple. At the start of every day, or the day before, I make three lists. The first one is where I list out the three things that are most important to accomplish. If those things aren't completed, the business day will not end. If they're completed, then I know my day was spent well. After that, I list out five nice-to-have things. If I get to them, fine. If not, fine. Then, I list out seven things that aren't a priority but that I'd like to keep on my radar and handle if possible. The things on the five and seven lists often move into the three list over time, but it's just as likely that they get delegated or removed altogether. A surprising thing is that I have fewer meetings to touch base because those meetings are almost never a priority."

—Daniel Ndukwu, CMO and Co-Founder, DoxFlowy

Apply the Two-Minute Rule

"One productivity hack that has been a game-changer on my journey as a CEO is the implementation of the Two-Minute Rule. Whenever a task lands on my plate, if it can be completed in two minutes or less, I tackle it immediately. This simple yet impactful approach can prevent small tasks from piling up and consuming mental space.

"By swiftly addressing quick tasks, I ensure they don't become distractions or hinder my focus on more strategic aspects of leadership. This practice has not only kept my to-do list manageable but has also freed up valuable time for critical decision making and visionary thinking."

—Sanket Shah, CEO, InVideo

Visualize Your Workload

"One significant productivity hack that elevated my effectiveness as a business leader is the visualization of workload. Here's how it works: try to put each task on a sticky note and move it to the Today section. When ready to tackle the task, shift it to Doing. Crucially, I limit work in progress to no more than three tasks at any given moment. Once completed, the task finds its place in the Done column. More than any other system, this visual method empowered me to do the right things at the right moment.

"Giving tasks a tangible form not only reduced my mental clutter but also allowed my team and me to synchronize our efforts seamlessly. This clear view of our responsibilities ensured focus on what truly mattered. The real magic [was in] in the act of visualization itself. This simple yet effective tool transformed both individual productivity and team alignment, catering to varied needs and personalities."

—Maria Wade, Senior Executive Coach, Maria Wade LLC

Accelerate Learning With Speed Control

"In today's world, the plethora of productivity techniques available can be both a blessing and a maze. Over the years, many have been explored, with time-blocking using a Pomodoro Timer and scheduling personal timeouts being two of them. However, the one tool standing out as most beneficial has been speed control on audio content.

"Given the essential nature of continuous learning and growth for a business leader, speed control on podcasts, audiobooks, and video seminars has been a game-changer. With the ability to listen at twice the speed, twice the amount of information can be ingested in the same time frame. This 'productivity through accelerated learning' approach has greatly amplified knowledge and expertise, making decisions and strategy formulation more effective."

—Joseph Lalonde, Leadership Coach and Author of Reel Leadership, Reel Leadership

Recharge With Vacation Days

"My productivity hack may sound counterintuitive, but hear me out: I take vacation days and encourage my employees to use their paid time off. Just as regular short breaks in the work day can boost productivity, so can vacations. PTO motivates my team to complete their tasks efficiently so that they can unplug and relax on vacation.

"For me, time away from the daily grind helps me recharge and improves my mental health. When I return from time off, I'm hyper-focused on driving business growth and maintaining a company culture that values work-life balance."

—Larry Cone, Founder and CEO, Kitepipe

Allocate Time for Feedback and Delegation

"I set aside an hour each week to gather feedback and delegate work.

"While it’s easy to settle into a fixed routine and stick to what works, I believe that a little disruption and rearrangement every now and then breaks the monotony and keeps ideas flowing. I ask my team what worked for them the previous week and what didn’t, thereby allowing me to understand how we can structure our days better.

"Since we work in a creative setting, my team’s requirements and the demands of various projects are dynamic. This is why I believe the time I take every week to reflect and reassess is invaluable in keeping my team productive and ensuring employee and client satisfaction, too."

—Marc Bjerring, Co-Founder, Spivo

Reduce Unnecessary Meetings

"One productivity hack that has helped me become a more effective business leader is cutting back on unnecessary meetings and being more protective of my time. It's important to understand whether the meetings scheduled in your calendar require you to be a participant or to be informed.

"For essential meetings, instead of always selecting them to be an hour, sometimes I try to reduce them to 30 or 15 minutes, if it's sufficient. In addition, for these key meetings, I have the organizer set a clear agenda with objectives to be more efficient."

—Christian Ofori-Boateng, CEO, ChristianSteven

"There are no shortcuts to leadership success, but building a solid foundation is crucial." —Dmitry Graf, Engineering and Software Management Leader

Use Do Not Disturb Mode

"Having a constant do not disturb mode on all my devices has significantly contributed to my effectiveness as a business leader. In this mode, I can decide when to check for new messages, emails, and other notifications, rather than being constantly distracted.

"Taking this approach helps me control my attention, reduce stress, and minimize dopamine releases triggered by constant notifications. I create a focused work environment that promotes deep work and minimizes interruptions by using the do not disturb mode. Then, I can devote uninterrupted time to critical tasks and engage in meaningful work.

"Intentionally managing notifications enhances my productivity and improves my relationship with technology. Rather than reacting to every notification, I select specific moments throughout the day to check for updates. My mindful approach to business leadership helps me be present, make more deliberate decisions, and achieve better results."

—Heather Renze, Chief Technology Officer, theDifference

Master the Art of Saying No

"Becoming comfortable with saying no when it's appropriate can help you maintain a high level of productivity. Attempting to juggle too many balls at once can make everything feel overwhelming, hindering your ability to perform at your best. Prioritizing others' needs over one's own can lead to exhaustion and burnout. However, having the confidence to decline tasks or commitments that might overload your day or distract from your core responsibilities helps filter out distractions, so you can focus on what you really need to accomplish. Being able to decline extra tasks without fearing you'll upset someone can safeguard your peace of mind."

—Emily Onkey, Co-Founder and CMO, Aplós

Make Every Meeting a Working Meeting

"At my firm, every meeting is a working meeting. Sometimes that means billable work for one of our awesome client companies. Other times, our meetings leverage teamwork to remove each other's success barriers and enable each other to move forward on important projects. As a bunch of outcome-oriented executors, nothing drives us quite as crazy as meetings for the sake of meetings! When we meet with customers, we make sure that we clearly outline next steps, deliverables, and estimated due dates to keep our clients and ourselves on track."

—Susan Snipes, Owner and Principal Consultant, Employ HR Pro, LLC

Schedule Deep Work in the Morning

"Time is our greatest non-renewable asset, and managing it is one of our greatest roadblocks. Small tweaks can make big changes in mindset and outputs. Scheduling calls, meetings, and client work in the afternoon and focusing on deep work in the morning can be beneficial.

"Using the Pomodoro Technique of timed 25-minute deep work followed by 5 minutes of stretch or movement can keep one fresh and focused. It also can give the momentum to tackle one more task, knowing the time is short to accomplish it. Limiting the use of email checking on a phone, as well as social media usage, to later in the afternoon can keep one less prone to distraction.

"Finding your best flow time and working with your natural state, not against it, can make you feel productive and accomplished. The to-do list is never done, but the feeling that we're moving forward can give us the boost we need."

—Michelle B. Griffin, The Brand Therapist and Fractional Chief Brand Officer, BRANDthority, Inc.

Combine Apple's Siri With Reminders App

"One of the greatest hacks I've ever discovered was combining Siri with the Reminders app on my iPhone. The second something pops into my head that I need to do, I just talk straight into my phone or watch: "Siri, remind me to email Chris at 2:35 p.m." A reminder is set, and when I'm sitting at my desk that afternoon, I get the alert that I need to email Chris. It's that easy. 

"Essentially, combining Siri with the Reminders app allows me to be a goldfish. The second I set the reminder, I can afford to forget it and move on with other, more productive business. Before leveraging my phone like this, I used to waste time running through mental to-do lists, trying to recall everything I had to get done. Now, I just let my phone alert me at the exact moment in time I need to do something. This has the double benefit of freeing me up to work on more productive matters, while simultaneously giving my team the perception that I never miss a beat."

—John Ross, CEO, Test Prep Insight

Photo: Getty Images