8 best productivity Tips for developers and programmers
1. Find the best code editor
Developer productivity starts with a good source code editor. Although there are many good options on the market, it’s hard to say which is the best — it all depends on your goals and needs. It’s worth trying out different code editors to see which one best fits your workflow. Here are some important things to consider…
Which programming language are you using? You need a code editor that provides syntax highlighting (at least as a plug-in) for the language you need. Some code editors also come with syntax highlighters for popular technologies like React, not just programming languages.
If the code editor you choose has an adequate ecosystem of themes and plug-ins, it can provide the functionality you need (for example, use high-contrast themes if you have poor vision).
If you submit your work to a code-sharing platform, such as GitHub or Bitbucket, you may find the built-in Git functionality useful. For example, Visual Studio Code allows you to submit your work directly to GitHub without leaving the editor.
If you want to use your own code snippets and/or keyboard shortcuts, it’s also a good idea to choose a code editor that allows you to add or import them.
2. Start each day with the most difficult task
It’s easy to get lost in daily tasks, and procrastination is a common habit among developers — especially if you work as a freelancer and have to manage your own deadlines. As a result, it often happens that you work all day, and by the end of the day, you realize you’ve accomplished almost nothing. You can avoid this if you create a hierarchy of daily tasks and start with the most difficult tasks of the day instead of multitasking.
While multitasking has been seen as a good thing for years, it turns out it’s not for most people. Studies show that only 2% of us are good at multitasking, while the rest of us lose up to 40% of our productivity. So, if you’re in the 2%, keep multitasking, otherwise prioritize your tasks and focus on one thing at a time.
3. Take regular breaks
Then, we have the famous Pomodoro technique, which uses tomato-shaped kitchen timers to measure time. It works for 25-minute periods, with 5-minute short breaks and 10-minute long breaks. Pomodoro technology has become so popular in the developer community that there are even Pomodoro apps you can use at work.
All in all, there is no golden rule and everyone has different time limits, so you need to give it a try and figure out what works best for you. It’s also not worth following a very strict rule — if you’re already in the flow, don’t interrupt your work just because it’s time for a break.
However, there is one important thing to remember. When you get up from your desk, a break has to be a real break. Checking email, Slack notifications, social media, blogs or just staring at any type of screen doesn’t matter to your brain — every study on the subject shows that to be a fact.
4. Plan your tasks in advance
Scheduling your tasks ahead of time can also significantly improve your productivity. You can use the Wunderlist and Todoist waiting items applications to create task lists and check completed tasks, or use applications such as Trello to set up workflows. Today, there are many great options for integrating different productivity tools, such as Zapier and IFTTT (If This Then That).
With task scheduling, you also need to experiment and think about what tools you really need. Of course, you can use multiple applications to manage tasks, but there are risks in having too many tools at once. In some cases, too much complexity can even lead to a loss of productivity.
Track your work hours
While not everyone likes tracking their work time, using a time-tracking app can be helpful if you’re having trouble managing your time. Time tracking can improve your productivity, mainly because you can see how you’re spending your time during the day so you can eliminate possible distractions. If you’re a freelancer, time trackers can also be a godsend because they help you charge clients by the hour.
Automate repetitive tasks
Today, as a developer, automating repetitive tasks is a must. It’s no coincidence that DevOps (the intersection of development and operations) is all the rage these days, because it’s all about automation. You don’t need much automation during development, but getting your development code ready for production does involve a lot of repetitive tasks.
For example, as a front-end developer, you can use the task runner to automatically perform general tasks on your code, such as zooming out, optimizing images, automatically adding prefixes, and so on.
7. Use the command line
In addition to automating tasks, it’s a good idea to get into the habit of using the command line in your daily workflow. First, if you use the CLI (command line interface) instead of the GUI (graphical user interface), you can significantly speed up the workflow. For example, here’s a tutorial on how to set up the WordPress CLI to speed up WordPress development and maintenance. Second, using CLI commands safely is an important programming skill that you can use in many other areas of your work.
Eliminate distractions
Distractions are the biggest enemy of productivity, so you need to find a way to eliminate them as much as possible. Unfortunately, they have a sneaky nature, so catching them is not easy at all. That’s mainly because a lot of times, they don’t seem like a distraction in the first place.
For example, checking email once an hour, watching a new video tutorial on YouTube or chatting with a colleague on Slack can all be considered work-related tasks, but if you spend too much time on these tasks, you may find you don’t get as much done by the end of the day.
Therefore, you need to be very careful about distractions and take precautions whenever possible. For example, you could decide to check your email only twice a day, turn off Slack notifications at work, or block the distracting websites you visit frequently at work.
conclusion
If you follow our productivity tips, or at least some of them, you can make more efficient use of your work time while also improving your development workflow. While forming a new habit may be difficult at first, it quickly becomes second nature. Remember, experimentation is the key to productivity. If you try a technique or tool that doesn’t work for you, drop it and move on to the next one until you find the one that works best for your workflow and personality.