Technology. It’s quite incredible when you think about what a major impact it has had on our work and our life over the past decade. It’s opened up communication lines, given us social media, allowed us to have access to emails on the go and so much more. But the question is, are we letting technology control us and is it having a negative impact on our lives? If you look around, you’ll see someone on a phone, another typing away on a laptop and someone else plugged in listening to a podcast. Technology is everywhere and it’s letting us live more flexible, mobile lives. But why do leaders still see their employees being tied to a desk as a sign of being productive? The pressure to be seen working from your office desk is still alive and well, even with the increase talk of work–life integration and flexibility in the workplace.
The stress associated with these pressures is in fact unproductive stress, and neuroscience shows this has an effect on our overall health. We’re expected to be ‘on’ 24/7, but how can we turn this around so we feel in control of our work and our lives again?
3 ways to use technology towards living a more productive, less stressful life:
1. Use technology for creativity
I bet that’s not a sentence you ever thought you’d read! But due to the flexibility that technology allows us to have at work, why not use it to relocate and work from somewhere inspiring. A café, a park or from home, find a spot where your creative juices flow and work remotely from there.
2. Use technology to be more efficient with your time
Sick of sitting in peak hour traffic watching the minutes (or hours!) go by thinking of all the work you could have done in that time? Open the dialogue with your manager and see if you can work from home in the morning and come in a bit later. This will lead to a more productive and stress-free day! You’ll be in control of your tasks by mid-morning and will arrive in the office feeling productive and with more energy!
3. Embrace using devices to your advantage
Technology has allowed us to be contactable 24/7. So why are we still glued to our desks from 9-5 and beyond? Use technology to live a more flexible life. Wake up earlier and work from home so you then have time to run errands during the day. Feel in control of both your work and life by using technology to your advantage and integrating it into your day so you can get the most out of it.