Real Productivity

Productivity is an important aspect of every business. Without it, you don’t get anywhere. But, what is it exactly? What is productive? The dictionary tells us that productive is:

1. Having the power of producing
2. Generative
3. Creative

These definitions are pretty standard. I don’t think anyone would be surprised by them. I wasn’t, but one thing that caught my attention was definition #3. Creative is not a word you hear a lot when you are talking about “just getting it done”.

Creative is a word that brings more into the equation than just busy. That raised some questions for me:
Are we looking at productivity in the right way?
Can we improve productivity in a new way?

Both of these questions are on my mind regularly and I hope they are on the minds of business owners, executives and managers too. Any business can say that they want to get more done. That makes perfect sense. The more you get done, the better off you will be, right? Well, that is where my questions come into play.

When you are 100% on, you can get a lot done. One of the benefits of worksite wellness programs is getting employees more engaged and helping them to be more productive. It makes sense that someone with more energy is going to get more done. Businesses have understood this and taken full advantage.

But, the fact that people are more productive doesn’t just mean they are getting more done. There is more to it than just “more”. It is easy to get into a groove and feel like we are doing something versus nothing, but what are you really accomplishing? Asking yourself that question can help you a great deal. There is a question that can help you even more. That question is:

If your employees can ask one important question, you can get more from them:
Am I really being productive right now or am I just killing time?

More importantly, when they ask this question, they will get more from them themselves and take away more satisfaction from what they are doing. That is one of the ways that wellness has helped companies and employees change productivity. Not only do you get people energized and doing more, you help them understand goals and purpose.

Goals and purpose are the difference between busy and productive. When you set a real goal, there is purpose behind it. You know why you are doing something and you are looking forward to the reward of getting it done and done well.

We often think that because we are busy, we are productive. I hate to spoil it for you, but doing something…anything does not guarantee productivity.

This new definition of productivity brings us back to my questions:

Are we looking at productivity in the right way?
Most businesses are not. They are trying to make people more busy and using that as a measure of success. “If I am keeping this person busy, they are clearly productive.” is what you will hear from the business that is using the old definition of productivity.

Not taking purpose into account is a big mistake. The bigger mistake is not helping the employee find their purpose in the tasks they are completing. It is one thing to tell someone about the purpose, it is another to help them embrace their purpose within the organization and the tasks they are completing. Engagement is the key to success. Just doing something will only take you so far.

You have to be fully engaged and driven by purpose in order to be successful. Most companies that I have talked to, certainly all of the companies that I work with are looking for success. It would be hard to find a company that simply wanted to be busy or simply keep their doors open.

Keeping busy and keeping the doors open are the bare minimum. Those are good things when compared to the alternative, but they are they really what your business strives for?

Can we improve productivity in a new way?
Yes we can. Just as your business doesn’t strive for the bare minimum, your employees want more too. They want to set and reach goals. In other words, they want to be successful. If you want your business to be successful, don’t you want your employees to be successful?

Of course you want your employees to be successful. The best way to do that is to give them purpose and help them stay fully engaged in what they are doing. If an employee is busy just getting things done day after day, they may be productive by the old definition, but for how long? Even if they keep it up for a long time, what are they really keeping up? Are they getting things done or are they truly successful?

As a business, this may sound like a play on words, but there is nothing more important to your success than the success of your employees. I’ve said it countless times and I will say it again: Your employees are your most important asset. If they are successful, your business will be successful.

Success is not as complicated as many would think. Some think it’s a secret or luck, but it is as simple as setting goals. A wellness program that is designed around your business will create an environment that supports goals, success and productivity. A workforce with engagement that is based on setting and reaching important goals is what every company needs. Now, that is real productivity.