How to be more productive at work
Are you looking to supercharge your productivity and achieve more in less time? Here are six game-changing tips to help you reach new levels of efficiency and success:
Stop multi-tasking!
It's often tempting to try and multitask, juggling numerous workday tasks at one time. While this may feel productive, it rarely produces the best results. By focusing on just one task at a time, you will complete it to a higher standard and in less time, enabling you to move seamlessly on to the next task.
Set clear goals.
Large tasks or projects can feel intimidating and we often overestimate how long they will take to complete. You can create forward momentum by breaking tasks down into manageable, bite-sized milestones, which you can accomplish one by one until your project is complete.
Take a break!
Regular breaks can help you avoid burnout and increase your focus and motivation. Consider scheduling frequent short breaks of 10 minutes. Use this time to step away from your work, enabling your mind to have a rest and return with renewed motivation and potentially new ideas.
Time blocking.
Using time blocks is an established and well-known productivity strategy. By creating time block frames in your workday schedule, you make the conscious decision to dedicate a block of time to a certain task. Assign fixed time slots for focused work, meetings, breaks, and personal activities. You are more productive, motivated, and focused, than if you were distracted constantly. Time blocks are usually divided into 60 or 90-minute sections, but remember to include buffer time to account for unexpected tasks or interruptions.
Limit distractions.
Becoming distracted is very normal, and focus doesn't always come naturally. However, it is a skill that can be developed. Turn your notifications off, switch your phone to aeroplane mode, or use a productivity app.
Do the hardest thing first.
It can be tempting to avoid difficult or time-consuming tasks and instead focus on quick wins. However, by taking on your most difficult projects first, you can increase your motivation and focus for the rest of the day. Consider prioritising these bigger tasks first in the day, or when you feel most productive.
Remember, productivity is not about working harder, but working smarter. By implementing these tips and tricks, you can optimize your time, energy, and focus to achieve remarkable results.
The World Needs More Software Developers!
The rise of technology and digital tools in today’s modern world is evident. Everywhere you turn, you can see a student working on their laptop in a coffee shop or a kid playing games on their parent’s smartphone. The widespread use of smart devices is set to expand in the coming years, until one day, no one will be able to recall what life was like before phones and other gadgets.
Because of this, the demand for technical professionals has naturally increased. In fact, the role of software developer is the reigning “best job” in the U.S., according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Said survey identified jobs with the highest hiring demand, best work-life balance, and most competitive pay, among others.
Programmers aren’t just relevant in software development companies or industries that are “obviously” tech. Demand is growing in practically any industry that needs talented individuals to create digital applications. With the digital transformation many institutions are undergoing today, this growth in demand applies to the health sector, financial service industry, and education, to name a few.
What does this say about the future of software development and the increasing involvement of tech in various industries?
The Growth of Software Demand
More and more companies are on the hunt for software developers, but there aren’t enough people to fill the role. In the U.S. alone, there are over 200,000 open jobs for this role, and yet data shows that there are only around 30,000 computer science majors who graduate every year.
Following this trend, there will always be a shortage of software developers in the industry. It could take almost seven years to fill the current open roles. That’s not even accounting for the future projection that there will be about a million computer programming jobs expected to open by 2020.
Companies are understandably frustrated with this situation, but they still try to address the shortage in other ways. They are hard at work to make employees interested and excited about additional knowledge in programming, creating an emphasis on teamwork rather than technical know-how.
This means building opportunities in training workshops on coding, programming, and software development to current employees who might be interested in the field.
Homegrown talent is also a major trend in addressing the lack of qualified software developers.
Bloomberg featured the strategy of two businesses, JDA Software Inc. and Social Tables, who both have programming internship programs. A senior engineer is paired up with a rookie, and from there, the company will decide if a candidate will get absorbed or not.
While these techniques work for some businesses, not every organization is so lucky. There may be a lack of general interest in programming or too little resources to implement a training program, which points back to the need for software developers.
Quality Developers are Still Few and Far Between
Just as with any position, having people interested in the job is not enough for them to get hired. There may be existing programmers on the market, but their inexperience may throw off companies who want to hire someone with better skills.
Therefore, it’s not just the question of having a shallow talent pool to begin with, but also the skill level of those who do want to apply. Lack of experience is one of five hiring challenges for software developers, including lack of technical skills, high salary demands, lack of workplace competencies, and lack of formal engineering education.
Besides this, there is also a great struggle retaining talent in the software development industry.
Because of budget restrictions, start-ups have no choice but to hire entry-level programmers, whose skillsets may not quite cover all of the company’s needs. As the company grows, they will be able to afford mid and senior level developers who will inevitably spot the errors of their predecessors and fix it.This issue can get repetitive and tiresome for programmers. Instead of creating something new, they get trapped in an endless cat-and-mouse chase with errors and poor coding.
In effect, some developers willingly exit the industry after over-fatigue from repetitive work. It’s a difficult situation to escape from, seeing as the scenario above can turn into a vicious cycle.
Final Words
Here’s food for thought: How can software developers take your business to the next level? Just imagine all the possibilities.
Technology will continue to evolve at a much faster pace than most humans will understand. Even if there are enough software developers in the world, the opportunities that new tech will bring are infinite. There will always be something new to learn, and that’s an exciting thing!
In practically any industry you put them, software developers can help make the businesses more effective. There’s a high demand for them, and this will only grow in the coming years. Supporting educational programs and opening up training for people who are interested are good ways to contribute to the reproduction of software developers worldwide.
Are you a prolific software developer? We want to hear from you. Visit our careers page today!
Better is possible and real
We all wish, hope and want for good things to happen as often as possible in our life. Even from the beginning, we are all trying to be good kids, then, as teenagers to get good grades, as young people to graduate a good college, as adults to have a good job, to build a good family and live a good life.
Good is enough, is normal...is perfect. But let me ask you something: isn’t it interesting the fact that we are so used with the presence of good things in our life and we take them for granted because they are ordinary, but when something extraordinary, unexpected happens, we are so amazed and exalted and overwhelmed and we start wondering: how is this possible? How can be something good, better? What is this better thing that just happened? Why didn’t this happen before? When will it happen again? And so on. We have definitely heard that better is real and we have seen it in others life, but we have never experienced it in our lives.
Well, this is where I stand up and say: BETTER is real! Something extraordinary, unexpected, something better really happened to me and I want to share my experience with you.
Better is possible and real
I’ve always dreamed about a good job. I’ve tried to study as much as I could to gain all the necessary information I needed to be sure that I will get the job. It wasn’t easy… but time flew fast and I have graduated the college. Frankly being, due to educational system and society, I wasn’t 100% sure that I will get the job I’ve dreamed about. Anyway, I hoped and I have started looking for the desired job. The reality was cruel, but, in the end, the job offer was signed. Yeeeeey! I felt so good! I have a good job! Now I am satisfied! Once I got the job, I did my best to be a good employee and to fit in this new and nice environment. But after a while, I have realized that this job was just a good job and nothing more. The company I’ve worked for and the teammates I’ve been working with were good, the view from my desk’s window was good, everything was just good. I’ve started feeling that good was no longer enough. Therefore, when the window of opportunity was opened, I quickly flew like a shy but courageous bee outside of the good zone. Once I've escaped from the good zone, I’ve heard rumors about the land of the better.
Have you ever felt the need of better? Have you ever realised that good is no longer good enough and you want something better, you need something better even if it is sometimes impossible to get it? Well, I felt the same. Also, let me tell you that the impossible is achievable. How? With support from people who are ready to believe in you and help you to grow professionally and gain priceless experience within their team. This is how it happened to me. I have found a better job and a better company for me, for my needs (yes, I’m aware of the fact that good and better are subjective beliefs, we have different perceptions about what they mean). I have met here the most amazing team I’ve ever had the chance to work with (if you don’t believe me, just come and find out for yourself). From the CEO to the newest colleague, everyone is BETTER. I am telling you, they've welcomed me with such love and kindness. A better job is defined, among other things, by a better team you work with.
And did I tell you about the view from my desk’s window? You and I will probably never find a better view than the one I enjoy everyday. From an unbeliever in better, I am now a strong believer and I will remain the same. Why? Because I have now a better job and I work with better people for a better company. I thought it is impossible, but now I have it and I love it and I know, feel and believe that it will last a very long time from now on.
I’m now part of a “beehive" filled with highly intelligent, strong, hardworking, funny and talented “bees” which are ready to provide the best “honey” in order to uniquely identify the company from the rest of the world through the highest quality of friendship, projects and delivered products.
Better is possible and real!
5 Things I Love About My Job at IntelligentBee
Technical Support has been around since humans first developed complex machinery. Explaining to others what your product does has always been challenging and, nevertheless, rewarding throughout history.
5 things I love about my job at IntelligentBee
But, since products and industries evolved, so has the job of a Technical Support Engineer. Here are 5 things I’ve enjoyed so far about my job at IntelligentBee: