SUPERSTARTING YOUR SME

MANY leave corporate life with the view that launching their own startup or working for an SME will enhance their productivity by better serving their passions.

However, to their frustration, it's not always easy to remain focused without regimented structures in place.

Workplace provider Regus Australia has conducted a study through its database and its Queensland area director, Yusuf Oner, has concluded that four distinct things heighten productivity in small business and startup situations.

Time of the day matters

Of those working in a SME or startup, 51 per cent reported the early morning is the most productive time of the day. A small business owners' day gets busy very quickly with many urgent matters arising at any given time. It's best to get started on the harder tasks in the morning while the mind is fresh as waiting until the afternoon or evening to do something meaningful often means that it doesn't get done at all.

Mornings also set the tone for the rest of the day, so accomplishing something early often means workers feel more positive and have a better chance of remaining productive throughout the day.

Location, location, location

For small businesses, the home is a great place to work productively, however there is a significant difference between where you work within the comfort of your own environment. Working from a professional setting within the home (such as a well set up study or studio) topped the list of most productive locations at 69 per cent. Interestingly, the level of productivity dropped to 38 per cent for  those who didn't have a designated office space set up.

Working from business centres was also a favourite location for SMEs, demonstrating that working outside of a conventional office but maintaining an office environment really does ensure productivity success.

Know what pops your productivity

SME's found the top productivity killers were IT glitches (47 per cent), lengthy meetings (47 per cent) and traffic jams (36 per cent). It's important for individual businesses to know what external factors interrupt the workday and consciously find ways to manage these. For example, have a known and trusted IT pro on speed-dial and be conscious of internal meetings. It's not always possible to control external meetings, but keep team meetings short, snappy and inspiring!

Interestingly, the top productivity killers differed between small and large businesses. A small business found cold calls (24 per cent) and long drives to meetings (18 per cent) more distracting compared to larger businesses (12 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively).

Stop, recalibrate and listen

It's often hard to regain lost concentration and productivity, but according to the survey's small business respondents, two of the best ways to reignite your afternoon is to go for a brief walk (37 per cent) and change up your task (24 per cent). Whilst it is sometimes hard to get away from the desk, it really is worth it to take 15 minutes to walk around the block and switch off to help regain focus and productivity.

Often, a cup of tea in the afternoon goes a long way to firing up that waning productivity.