Work is work and we completely understand that. There is no way you can deny going to work. Even though some of you may love what you do, there are times you will get bored. And let us tell you that its completely normal to feel that way. But the good part is that you don’t have to be jobless the next time you feel like you are getting really bored at work. You can always stay more productive and busy by doing a couple of really interesting things. Would you like to know what they are? Then continue with your read. The following are few productive things to do when bored at work.
Things to do When Bored at work:
1. Organizing of Mails:
If you haven’t done this in a while, then it our personal suggestion that you begin to adjust all mails. There are a whole lot of mails in your box. While some are important, there are some that are completely irrelevant. So make sure you don’t put them together. Check your spam folder also. Sometimes important emails end up there. Some people tend to save all personal emails in one folder so that they can go through stuff when the need arises. Also make it a point to give feedback on the projects you have already received. Check all emails you saved for “later”.
2. Making a few phone calls:
Making phone calls is also something you could do. People usually tend to send text messages because phone calls make things longer. Often it could be a good thing as well. So when you have enough time in hand, make sure to grab the opportunity and make all the phone calls you thought you will deal with later. All clients and stake holders can be called during this time. Not only will you build a sense of team work but also trust among your co workers. There couldn’t be a better opportunity for you to improve relationships than this.
3. Try helping:
Helping is a third thing we would certainly recommend you to try. If you have time to spare, remember that not everyone in the office is probably not as lucky as you. This would actually be a great opportunity for you to learn about the different parts of the organization or even learn some new and extra skills. In fact you do something like that; your colleagues are going to appreciate it. You could also look for a couple of new projects and offer assistance to those who are having trouble. Trust us; your boss will be happy.
4. Read a bit:
Yes there will be those times when it wouldn’t be appropriate to begin a project or speak to a colleague or even unpack your website. So what should you do? If you have a little time to kill, make time to focus on your professional development. You should go ahead and read a couple of articles those which involve leadership, networking, and marketing. You may also look a couple of blogs and learn about the latest trends. Keep yourself informed on a regular basis by learning more and more.
5. Some succession planning:
A bit of succession planning would do you no harm. It is actually a very good and productive idea for those who have literally no work to do at work. When we ask you to plan something, we basically mean you need to plan things from beforehand so that when you are unable to come to office because of whatever reason, there will be someone else to take care of that. If there is no document for this yet, then create one already. Keep updating that on a regular basis.
6. Make most of the meetings worthwhile:
Work meeting turn out to be waste of time mostly. Another thing we suggest you do right away is make most of the meetings worthwhile. People tend to waste a lot of time during meetings. You should make them do some real work instead. If your meetings are too boring, make it a point to discuss the problem at first. You should also make it a point to have an open discussion with the manager and make sure that you guys have a clear agenda. If you actually try doing these things, you will keep people more engaged in the process and keep boredom away from work.
7. Get hold of some new responsibilities:
We would definitely suggest you to get hold of some new responsibilities if you don’t have enough already. Getting bored at work definitely suggests you haven’t had much to do. Or if you think you have achieved too much, speak to your boss and try to get more responsibilities. You may also try something else which is far more interesting than all of this. Try to swap work with some of your co workers. See what the two of you like the best and work things out accordingly.
8. Try to learn a new skill:
Something else you should do while getting bored at work is to learn a whole new skill. You are going to learn a whole lot in the process. A new skill will make you a much more interesting person and make you want to work harder. A lot of people like to listen to educational podcasts while trying to work on a project. Some also try to learn a new language. You may actually use a break and try to reinvigorate a new kind of project. There are some personal projects some of you may even integrate with the work you are already doing.
9. Track some of your accomplishments:
Several of us do not even have the time to keep a track of the accomplishments we have made so far. But if your day at work is going really slow, this is just something you have to try. It is important for you because of several reasons. The list will always open up for mind a bit more and you will actually know whether you are good enough to get a promotion soon enough. It also prepares you from beforehand and gets you ready. So make sure to try something like this.
10. Build some friendship:
This could also be a great time for you to build friendship and good rapport with your team mates. You should take your team mates out to lunch and talk to them for a bit. Usually it gets really difficult to get in touch with workers but if you can create a social setting, that problem will also be taken care of. It will always add this sense of community feeling which is so important in any kind of office you are working in. Plus you will also feel more involved. In short, boredom will be killed.
11. Dream a bit:
Sometimes it could be a good thing to dream when you are bored. You could spend an hour thinking on some new product ideas that you think will work in the future. Not everyone is that lucky to get enough time to think when they are at work. So when you have it, make sure to use it well. You should have enough space and your mind will process new things in the process. Late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam quoted that “’Dream is not that which you see while sleeping it is something that does not let you sleep. ”
12. Try to embrace your boredom:
One of the final things you could do is embrace the boredom. Always remember getting bored fosters creativity. When you let your mind wander, you tend to create better ideas. So next time you are feeling that way, do give into the urge and see what is really going on. Towards the end, there is boredom, distraction and procrastination which is very important in order to live a good lifestyle. So there is no need for you to fight that throughout the day. Learn to relax a bit.
13. Quit:
Sometimes boredom is just a constant. You will have to deal with it as long as you are in the business. You have to make use of it. There are other times you will feel that the tasks are completely crushing your soul. If you aren’t sure what you are doing at office, maybe it’s time for you to give up already and quit the job. You should actually speak to your employers and seek advice on this matter if that is the case. You may go ahead and look for a career opportunity that will help you grow as a person.
This completes our list of productive things to do at work when you are bored. It will make you feel lazy and help you get back into action once break is over. Many have tried these ideas and have absolutely loved it and we are sure you will love them too. On that note, here’s hoping that all your boredom will be taken away and you will be able to enjoy days at work in a much better way!
