People don’t notice the quantity of work you accomplish, just the things you promised them and deliver. So how do you demonstrate productivity to those around you?

First, if you promise to do something for someone, you have to do it by the date promised. If you are late, that can taint you as being disorganized or untrustworthy. Some would also argue if you complete items too early too often, you can come across as not having enough to do.

Second, if you can’t deliver, you need to renegotiate the deadline within a reasonable amount of time. This can be notifying the other person about the new deliverable date, or actual negotiation in trying to find a more realistic deadline.

Third, you need to be willing to drop tasks. You will always have more tasks or requests than you have time to complete. If some of those were given to you by your manager, or anyone really, you need to be able to say “no.” This can be done tactfully by sharing priorities such as “I am currently working on the TPS report. Would you prefer me drop that for now to complete this errand?”

Productivity is not the amount of work you get done, but how impactful the work you get done is. Managing the requests from others as well as the ones you create is essential to reaching your most productive self.