How to build a strong work ethic

We have all been in the situation of feeling un-energised and un-productive in the office. It cripples productivity and reduces efficiency. This can create procrastination, which is something we don’t need in the workplace. Read below to find out how you can build a strong work ethic.

Eliminate as many distractions as possible

To build a strong work ethic, you need to eliminate distractions. This can mean turning off your phone notifications, for example, or working in a quiet workspace where you will have fewer interruptions or even turning off your emails and only checking them at certain times in the day.

Therefore, you can focus and work hard on the activities that are going to deliver you the best results. No matter how you remove your distractions, to become a more hardworking person and achieve your goals, it is important to have you dedicated time and focus spent productively.

Set your own standard of excellence

To some people working hard might mean working 20 hours per week but to other people that might mean working 60 hours, maybe even 100 hours so, you need to set your own standard of excellence. Then, your goal should be to hit and exceed that standard to push yourself further continuously.

If you’re not a naturally hardworking person, but you want to strive to improve, you need to set a goal for yourself and look at the average number of hours you have worked and what you have achieved that week to use as a benchmark.

For the following month, you should then aim to achieve more in that given time frame, which will help keep you in line and focused.

Work a flexible day

Working a flexible day is subjective and what that means to you can be different compared to the next person. Depending on your personality, occupation, values, the activities you do in your day-to-day life, and more, flexibility can look very different.

Some people are early morning birds, and some people are night owls, however, use what works for you to be flexible and accomplish what you set out to do as that’s all that matters. If you need to do the school run in the morning and can’t work as early as other people can, that’s not a problem.

Or if you need to leave earlier and therefore start in the morning that’s also not a problem. Set a flexible day for yourself and then focus on achieving those results that will help you build a hardworking mentality.

Don’t let mistakes ruin your progress

The last point is, don’t let mistakes ruin your progress. They say it takes 66 days to build a new habit, but if you let mistakes ruin your progress, you’re never going to be in a position to build a strong work ethic.

If you’re someone who’s not naturally accustomed to this, but you want to make yourself better, you need to accept that you’re going to make mistakes along the way and that’s part of the process.

Once you make a mistake acknowledge it, see how you can prevent it in the future, and then try and brush that aside to carry on with the activities that you need to do.