Three Mental Hacks To Increase Focus and Productivity Music, work breaks and a to-do list can go a long way in ensuring you give your best at the workplace

Let's face it. With technology taking over our lives and smartphone buzzing every now and then, concentrating at work can be a real challenge. Infact, a CareerBuilder study released last year found that one in five employers (19 percent) thinks workers are productive less than five hours a day. Mobile phones or texting, the study said, is the biggest reason for killing productivity at the workplace.

Here are some mind hacks that can help you improve your productivity

Write Down Your Frogs

Often founders and their staff work around the clock to ensure the success of their brand. In such instances, a to-do list can help them manage their time better, and help reduce stress. Mark Twain once said, "Eat a live frog first thing every morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day". He referred to the live frog as the worst task, which one should ideally complete first thing in the morning. After preparing a to-do list, get done with the worst task at first as it will further motivate you to complete other assignments.

Learn How to do Nothing

Go ahead and let your mind wander. It's okay to zone out. Detaching from work for a short time can help people feel energized. John Donahoe, CEO of e-commerce company eBay always believed in the formula, "Time off pays off." He believed that the time spent away from work to refresh and refocus is not really time off. It's just time spent better. Similarly, one should avoid burnout by taking out little time from their busy schedule to do simply nothing.

Put on Some Music

Do you listen to music while at work? If not, you should consider it. For this habit might add significant value to your productivity levels. Music can make you productive and focused. Teresa Lesiuk, the assistant professor at the University of Miami, US, said in her research that the time-on-task was the longest when the study participants were not listening to music. The research, which focused on the impact of music on workplace performance, found out that personal choice in music was essential. It also highlighted that the positive effect and quality-of-work were the lowest with no music. So, if you want to speed up your work, listen to your favorite music. Don't forget to use headphones.