5 ways to boost productivity like the Swedes
Stockholm on a Thursday afternoon. Not long until the clock shows 5 pm. Almost everyone has already left the office. Productivity at its highest!
Yeah, yeah. You have heard of that before many times already. You could say “Hey, this is a utopia that people outside the Nordics may not be able to create”. True. If you are in Sweden most of the productivity hacks below are safeguarded, not to say guaranteed. And many businesses offer more perks in an attempt to attract and retain great talent.
Or simply to have much happier employees. And you know what they say! Happier employees = happier customers. So, think about it!
Imagine you don’t do anything about it and you work long long hours. Little to no holidays. Not enough time for family, hobbies and… to take care of your health. What is the outcome?
As Einstein said, you can’t expect to have a different outcome if you keep on doing the same things over and over again.
Take a look at the Swedish productivity hacks below & try to adopt them as much as you can in your daily life!
1. Quiet _______
You can put whatever suits you in the brackets. Mornings, afternoons, Thursdays, whatever. Whatever you label as your quiet time (part of the day, a specific day or a combination) will be a time when there are no meetings, no phone calls, not anything that can distract you from work. Nordic people love silence.
Swedish companies do that a lot and they see that this boosts productivity. Imagine a whole day with no one distracting you from doing your work. If you are a freelancer, a solopreneur or work from home, you can also set a day and time to be your quiet ones. It can’t be applied to all cases but in most. Try it!
2. Fika, oh fika!
Those from cultures other than the Nordic ones see coffee breaks as a waste of time (at best). Most often, these are seen as a lazy time, when one finds the opportunity to not work.
But the concept behind the fika break is that these two small breaks, often outside the place you work, can boost productivity. You get away, relax a bit, recharge. It is even better if it involves some walking to a nearby cafe.
Doing it the Swedish way does not exclude your boss from coming too. But most often it is imperative that you do not talk about work only. Sharing other stories from your lives can work too.
3. Shorter working hours, what?
If fika is considered a time to not work, what about working fewer hours daily? It has been tried and tested in Sweden. 6-hour workday! The benefits were immense: more productive and happier employees, fewer sick days, less stress and a more relaxed atmosphere at work. This comes with a high price tag (more staff needs to be hired) but the overall concept has been proven right.
Although it is not easy to ask your employer to let you work fewer hours and continue to be paid full time, well, maybe you can adjust your habits so you work not more than the official working hours. Working overtime all year round is bad for your health, productivity and performance.
4. Vobba
This is about staying at home to take care of your sick child while still being paid. This is an amazing perk, right? If you are a parent, you know how stressful it is to have a sick child and even worse, when you can’t find anyone to take care of your kid at home.
Swedish employees are loyal and hard working (well, lagom, just the right amount of time, right?). So, many of them work from home (although they don’t have to) when they vobba. But still, it is much better and less stressful. Kid, check. Work checked too!
5. Holidays. And long ones!
The percentage of people who don’t use all their vacation or they don’t go on holidays at all, in the Western world, is astounding. Researchers can’t stress enough the importance of taking time off work. Not only does it boost your productivity but it also improves your mood and health while further letting you grow as a person and professional. Holidays mean new things, places, people. New experiences are the key to success at work too.
Swedes have more than 4 or 5 weeks of annual leave (paid too). But it is normal to take 4 weeks in a row in the summer (especially July). So, during July, the whole country is run by students who work on summer jobs. And it still runs smoothly!
Bonus hacks! Only in Sweden!
Some companies try new and more (post)modern perks to lure their employees. Have them paid to go to the gym for 3 hours per week for example. Then they can get 1 extra week of paid holiday per year! Or even urge employees to go home and have sex with their spouse, during the lunch breaks! OK, this is just a proposal!
Image: Elliott Elliott/imagebank.sweden.se