同时处理多项任务，最终的成效并非更高，而是更低。如果你真正专注于完成一些小的关键任务，最终你会发现自己完成的工作更多。

双语：

This post is in partnership with Entrepreneur. The article below was originally published at Entrepreneur.com.

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本文为与《创业者》杂志(Entrepreneur)的合作内容，最初发表于Entrepreneur.com。

Everyone is looking for ways to boost productivity. Talks about productivity usually involve intense time-management systems that have you putting time into quadrants or downloading a new app. Despite good intentions, a week later you’re back to trying to remember everything and rushing around, feeling overwhelmed.

所有人都在想方设法地提高工作效率。关于工作效率的话题通常会涉及到紧张的时间管理系统，你必须把自己的时间放到象限里，或者下载一个新的应用。尽管出发点是好的，但一周后，你又将恢复到拼命记住所有事情、四处奔波、疲于奔命的状态。

The problem with most approaches to productivity is that they require too much adjustment in a person’s day-to-day life. Someone who is doing everything on the fly isn’t going to easily move into a structured schedule tomorrow. He or she needs more time to ease into making changes. Here are three small, but doable ways to become wildly more productive:

大多数提高工作效率的方法都存在一个问题：它们都需要对个人日常生活做过多的调整。一个整天忙忙碌碌的人，不可能在一夜之间便能适应有条理的时间安排。他或她需要更多时间才能改变。下面是三个虽不起眼但却可行的大幅提高效率的方法。

1. Create “on” and “off” weeks for meetings.

1. 明确设定会议时间和工作时间。

When you’re constantly rushing between tasks, client appointments and employee meetings, life feels more overwhelming, and there are a lot more interruptions. Instead, experiment with having weeks solely devoted to meetings and weeks solely devoted to completing work. During the weeks scheduled for meetings, you’ll meet with clients, employees and contractors, with work tasks filling out the edges.

如果你总是在工作任务、客户预约和员工会议之间奔波，你会感觉疲于应付，而且你还会遇到更多干扰。因此，可以尝试拿出几周时间只用于会议，几周时间专门用于完成工作。在计划用于会议的时间里，你可以与客户、员工和承包商会谈，中间的空闲时间用于完成工作任务。

During weeks it no meetings, work will be your sole focus, giving you time for a deep dive into projects and getting things done. Be protective of those weeks and don’t schedule anything then. Perhaps even use a highlighter tool to create a visual reminder in your calendar.

而在非会议时间，工作将是你的唯一重点，你要拿出时间深入研究项目，完成工作任务。要坚持自己的时间安排，在此期间不要计划其他事情。可以使用荧光笔，在日历上做一个醒目的提醒。

2. Create buffer days around all projects.

2. 在所有项目之前划定缓冲期

Working until the moment that something’s due is a recipe for burnout. If you’ve got a big talk coming up, an important client presentation or a project launch, decide that you’ll finish the preparation or the work 48 hours before the actual deadline ― and stick to the earlier due date.

在最终期限到来之际，还在为完成任务而奋战，必然会令人疲惫不堪。如果你有一场重要的会议，一次重要的客户演示或项目启动，你应该在实际最终期限48小时前完成准备工作，并且要始终坚持自己设定的较早期限。

Then you’ll have a buffer day before the real deadline for stepping back and getting some breathing space from the project, which will allow you to see everything clearly and perhaps even catch a few things in need of tweaking. Touch base with the content one last time before giving your presentation or turning in the goods.

这样一来，在真正的最终期限到来之前，你便有一个缓冲期，使你可以后退一步，得到喘息的机会，而且你可以更清晰地进行观察，甚至会发现一些需要调整的地方。在进行演示或提交商品之前，最后一次处理内容中的细节问题。

3. Use the Post-it trick.

3. 用好便利贴。

Instead of accomplishing more, people who multitask get less done. Research has shown that multitasking is not effective. Rather than adopting the “make a to-do list and start working your way through it” approach to productivity, start each day by looking through your task lineup and then choose only as many items as you can fit on a 3 inch-by-3 inch Post-it note. (Don’t cheat by using smaller than usual print.)

同时处理多项任务，最终的成效并非更高，而是更低。研究显示，多任务处理效率低下。因此，不要采用“制定一个待办事项清单，然后去逐项完成所有任务”的方法来提高效率，而是应该每天首先浏览一下手头的任务，然后选择自己当天需要完成的项目，任务数量到写满一张3x3英寸的便利贴为止。(不要使用比普通打印字号更小的字号来欺骗自己。)

Those tasks will your focus for the day. You’ll find that when you’re really focused on getting a few small, key tasks completed, you’ll end up getting more done.

这些任务便是你一天工作的中心。如果你真正专注于完成一些小的关键任务，最终你会发现自己完成的工作更多。

For most busy entrepreneurs, being 100 percent organized is a fantastical ideal, sort of like hitting “inbox zero.” It’s nice when it happens and certainly something to strive for, but chances are that more tasks will always arise. Rather than trying to rigidly control the minutes of the day in order to be productive, give yourself a wide fence. You’ll rein yourself in just enough to become more focused and get things done, without being overwhelmed or the pressure.

对于大多数繁忙的创业者而言，做到百分百井然有序是不切实际的幻想，就好像要实现“收件箱零邮件”一样。如果真能做到井然有序，当然是好事，而且也应该是每个人努力的方向，但未来总会有更多任务出现。与其为了效率而严格控制每天的时间，不如给自己更大的回旋余地。你会慢慢地控制自己，逐渐变得更加专注，完成自己的工作，但又不会感觉疲惫。(财富中文网)

译者：刘进龙/汪皓

quadrant n. 象限;[海洋][天] 象限仪;四分之一圆