We all dread boring tasks. But it is our job to do all the assigned work, failure to which, we may not finish the day’s tasks on time and the boss will not be pleased. Even worse, we may miss out on the promotion we’ve been eyeing for a long time. Somehow, the least uninteresting tasks find a way of creeping into your to-do list, and you just cannot scrap them off without consequences. Deep in your mind, you want to give up and request to be reassigned, but you are eyeing that promotion and you don’t want to get into your superior’s bad books.
So, what do you do? Instead of walking to your boss’ office and requesting to be reassigned from boring projects, let Jobsora bring you in on some secrets for successfully completing those uninteresting tasks you don’t like to do.
Combine The Uninteresting Task With Things You Enjoy
Think of how you enjoy listening to your favorite music while scrubbing your bath tab. Before you know it, the bath tab is sparkling clean and you’re dancing to your favorite tunes. You can apply the same strategy when working on boring tasks at work.
For instance, if you are a gamer, you can set up a reward system that lets you play a game for a short time but you have to ‘earn’ that time by completing that task accordingly. If you manage to complete that task you find boring within a set time frame, you reward yourself with a few minutes of game play. This reward system will encourage you to complete the most boring tasks on your day’s to-do list.
Keep in mind that the goal is not just to complete the uninteresting task, but to complete it well. You should never compromise on quality just because you want to earn extra minutes of game play, okay?
Alternate Between Responsibilities
Focusing on a boring task will get your moods down, and if you force yourself to process them, you may end up doing a shoddy job. And since reassigning the project is out of the question, why not alternate between boring tasks and the ones you enjoy doing?
In your to-do list, there are those things you enjoy doing and those you abhor. A good strategy to get you working on all those tasks and not messing up your mood is to alternate between the things you like and the boring ones. For instance, you finish up one interesting job and then work on a boring task. This way, you will be able to work through all projects on your work list, including the boring ones.
Switching between mundane and inspiring tasks will ensure you have something to look forward to while working on those boring projects. When you apply this strategy, just make sure that the final projects on your to-do list are the ones you enjoy working on just so you can be in an upbeat mood when you finish all the work listed there.
Challenge Yourself To Get The Work Done
Did you know that learning is one of the most effective antidotes to boredom? If you challenge yourself to learn something new out of everything you do, nothing will be boring. In fact, you will purge boredom from your work schedule if you take all projects as a learning opportunity.
Here’s what you need to do. Rather than consider a project as a boring task, think of it as a learning opportunity and take it as a challenge to learn something new by completing that project. This will not only ensure you complete the project accordingly, but you will better yourself by learning more as you process those uninteresting tasks.
So, looking at a project as a learning opportunity can get you doing more than you had planned to accomplish, and you will no longer have to complain about processing uninteresting tasks.
Break The Project Into Chunks
Sometimes a project may seem uninteresting because it is huge, and you can easily overcome the ‘boring’ aspect by breaking up the project into smaller chunks. Once you divide it into small manageable chunks, you will find out that it is not as boring as it first seemed.
When you break up a project into smaller manageable workloads, you will be able to work on one chunk at a time. This way, you will complete the project accordingly, albeit slowly.
Additionally, you can alternate between working on one chunk and something else. For instance, you can do one part of the project and then do something else. You can also time yourself to complete a chunk of the project within a set period. You will be amazed at how much work you can do within a short period in a project you previously considered to be uninteresting.
Encourage Yourself To Finish The Job
Self encouragement is one of the most important qualities you need to master if you are to be successful in everything that you do. Once you know how to push yourself to move forward, you will not have problems working on any kind of project, including the boring ones.
If you have a vision board, where you document your goals and ambitions, use it to encourage yourself to work and finish the job. For instance, you want that promotion very much and you have it listed on your vision board, you can encourage yourself by saying “finishing this (boring) project is the price I have to pay to earn that promotion.”
You will find the job is not boring anymore, because you have encouraged yourself to see it as a payment you have to make to achieve your ambition.
Conclusion
Therefore, while not every job that is assigned to you is interesting and one you fancy, anytime you come across the boring projects, work on them instead of finding ways to give up. Actually, the more work you process, the more value you add to yourself. Your boss will acknowledge that, and chances of you getting fired will be nil. In fact, your superiors will consider you an asset because you always complete all assigned projects, unlike your colleagues who line up at your boss’ office to request for task reassignment. Anytime you find an uninteresting project in your to-do list, it is recommended that you use the strategies highlighted in this article to complete the project.
