As a developer, I know maintaining productivity and efficiency is no easy task.
One minute, you’ve planned your day and you can’t wait to get started, and the next you’re hunched over your computer trying to find a solution for the line of code you’re working on.
This isn’t the only reason we stumble and find ourselves struggling to maintain productive days, but it is a big one, at least in my experience.
For that reason, I thought I’d write a list of everything I use to live a productive and efficient life as a developer.
Get A Full Night’s Sleep
Yes, I’ve definitely had periods where I convince myself that staying up all night to work on a piece of code is worth it, as I’m sure we all have.
If I’ve realized anything, however, it’s that my productivity levels are rubbish when I wake up tired on three or four hours of sleep the next morning.
Instead, I make sure I’m strict with the time that I finish working, choosing a reasonable time that allows me to relax—and sleep—for between 6 and 8 hours before I wake up the next morning to do it all over again.
A lack of sleep can also make you more stressed and make you less able to focus, which isn’t great when we have to deal with complicated code on a daily basis!
Wear The Same Clothes Everyday
Every decision we make from the moment we open our eyes requires mental energy.
I used to wake up every morning and choose different clothes depending how I was feeling on the day.
It wasn’t until I read about the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, who copied Steve Jobs in his decision to buy several of the same clothing items and wear the same thing every day, that I decided to try the same.
To do this, I purchased 14 shirts at 10 bucks each from screenprintthis, and have been wearing them everyday since.
Clean Your Desk
Distractions ruin my productivity and efficiency massively.
One minute I’m sitting there working on code, and the next I’m playing with a random ball of elastics I didn’t even realize I owned.
I’ve found that cleaning off my desk before I start working everyday helps me stay productive, as there’s nothing to distract my wondering eyes from the task at hand.
Learn To Focus
Something I’ve learnt is it’s impossible to complete a job to a high standard if you’re constantly thinking about something else.
For that reason, I started teaching myself to focus, by prioritizing tasks and focusing on one thing at a time.
This won’t go for everyone, but I’ve found listening to music is a major distraction for me.
I’ve become so much more efficient, and can complete tasks far more quickly, if I just turn it off and wait until I’ve finished work to listen to music.
Don’t Overwork
There’s nothing wrong with working hard, but you have to listen to your body and understand when it’s telling you to stop.
I used to realize that I was overworking and starting to become burnt out when I was working almost every hour I was awake, and it made it so much harder to complete tasks. My productivity definitely took a hit, too.
I’m absolutely not perfect now, and there are times when I slip up, but I try and catch myself at a point where I’ve pushed my limits but haven’t exceeded them.
I find this really helps to prevent burn out, which means I can continue working efficiently for longer. I actually get more work done now than I used to!
Set Goals
When I am faced with a longer development tasks that spans over the course of days, weeks, or even a month in some cases, tackling it all at once can seem overwhelming.
For this reason, I set goals throughout the process of completing any tasks that helps me stay on track and, in turn, keeps me productive when I don’t see an ending in sight.
Manage Time Effectively
I’ve learned that, in order to maximize success for you and/or your company, you can’t be doing random things at random times.
Instead, you want to be making sure you are doing the right thing at the right time, avoiding putting yourself in situations where you don’t know what to do or where to start with something.
To combat the latter scenario, I’ve started planning my working days as early as possible.
As well as planning work tasks, I will also take into account activities like meetings and lunch breaks.
I also make sure to limit my social media time to a few, short breaks so that I have allocated times to be distracted without these moments taking over my entire day.
Automate Tasks Where Possible
As developers, there are a lot of repetitive tasks that we have to do every day—or regularly enough that it makes sense to automate them.
I have automated many parts of the development process and it has made my life so much easier, and more efficient! These things include:
· Command line
· Text manipulation and log mining
· Refactoring
· Building, Deploying and Integrating
· Testing
Take Proper Breaks
I didn’t realize until I did some further research into it, but I used to take breaks all wrong.
I would stay sitting at my desk and use the allotted time to catch up on emails, text messages, or play a few games on my phone.
By doing this, I remained connected to the task at hand, and my eyes became tired earlier because I was still staring at screens, reducing my productivity levels much earlier in the day.
Now, I take the time to step away from my desk completely during breaks.
I might grab a cup of coffee, talk to someone, or step outside for some fresh air.
Whatever it is I’m doing, I definitely feel a lot more rested from my breaks than I used to!
Use An Insulated Bottle
I used to be so guilty of using coffee as an excuse to step away from my desk at least once every hour or so.
Most of the time, I hadn’t even had time to drink the contents, and the only reason I was refilling it was because it had gone cold.
Recently, I decided to make the investment into an insulated water bottle, and it’s made all the difference!
Now I have no excuse to leave the desk anywhere near as regularly, helping me stay focused and engaged with the task at hand.
To Conclude…
A lot of the things I did to become more productive and efficient as a developer involved changing my habits, and taking advice from those who were successful before me, like the clothing situation.
Since implementing the advice I have shared with you today, I’ve almost doubled my efficiency levels, and have been able to get more done than I ever thought I’d be capable of!
I hope you’ve taken something from this article and are able to use this tips to help improve your own productivity and efficiency levels going forwards.
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