Google’s Productivity Advisor Says This Is The One Skill That Helps Employees Increase Their Chances For Promotion

With regards to achieving the maximum efficiency in work, the executive said that it is important to set specific, concrete priorities rather than have vague, indefinite goals

Google’s productivity expert recently highlighted the number one skill that can help provide individuals a competitive edge and a better chance at promotion. Speaking with CNBC Make It, Laura Mae Martin, the executive productivity advisor, Google, said that while working towards productivity, the most common issue is not a missed hack.

Martin shared that people often take on too much work and this becomes an issue in productivity. As part of her job at Google, she focuses on helping employees and executives who manage the company in being more productive without burning out.

With regards to achieving the maximum efficiency in work, the executive said that it is important to set specific, concrete priorities rather than have vague, indefinite goals, reported Moneycontrol.

She added that goals can be abstract and ‘far off’, however, priorities are meant to be more precise and immediate. This makes the latter easier to handle. For instance, she said that a goal could be to get promoted to a management position in the next year, while a priority could be to develop leadership skills by volunteering to handle a team project in the quarter.

The executive noted that professionals should normalise saying ‘no’. “I am a recovering yes-sayer and found it really hard to say ‘no’ because I wanted to maintain social capital. But it’s worse to overcommit and underdeliver,” she said.

She suggested employees to say no by giving a specific reason as to why they can’t do something when someone is asking or to begin by informing the requester that they need sometime to think about it. She informed the publication, “You want your colleagues to feel supported and respected”, however, you should also protect your priorities.