How to Automate Your Day Job for More Work Life Balance and Fewer Boring Tasks - Solutionyst | Tech Advancements for the Modern Accountant

Do you feel like you are stuck in a rut at work? Are you bored with the tasks that you have to do on a daily basis? If so, it might be time to automate your day job. Automation can help reduce the amount of human error in your job, and it can also help you have more work life balance. In this blog post, I will discuss how automation can help improve your day-to-day routine at work. I will also provide some tips on how to get started!

What Work Tasks can be Automated?

Automation really excels when it comes to repetitive tasks. If you find yourself doing the same thing over and over again at work, chances are that there is a way to automate it. Automation can also be helpful for tasks that are prone to human error. For example, if you often have to enter data into a spreadsheet, you might want to consider using an automation tool to help you with this task.

Recognize your Daily Tasks

The first step in automating your job is to recognize what tasks you complete on a daily basis. Make a list of all of the tasks that you complete in a day, and then identify which ones could potentially be automated. Once you have identified which tasks can be automated, you can begin to look for ways to automate them.

Analyze which Tasks would benefit from Automation

Most tasks can be automated, but not all tasks should be automated. You should only automate tasks that will actually benefit from automation. For example, if you have a task that is very time-consuming but does not require much critical thinking, automating this task might be a good idea. On the other hand, if you have a task that requires creative thinking, automate this task might not be the best idea.

When you are analyzing which tasks would benefit from automation, you should also consider the costs of automation. Automating a task will usually require some upfront investment, such as purchasing software or subscribing to a service. You should only automate a task if the benefits of automation outweigh the costs.

In general, tasks that are repetitive, time-consuming, or prone to human error are good candidates for automation.

Now that we have discussed some of the benefits of automating your job, let’s talk about how you can get started!

What Tools Should you Use for Automation?

There are many tools out there these days when it comes to automation. The one which is best for you depends on two main components. Firstly, whether you have any experience with programming languages such as Python. Secondly, what the exact usage of the automation is. Some tools benefit different requirements.

If you do not have any experience with programming, using a no-code solution might be the best option for you. No-code solutions are usually very user-friendly and require little to no coding knowledge. However, they are often limited in terms of functionality when compared to code-based solutions.

There are many different no-code solutions available, such as IFTTT and Zapier. If you are looking for a no-code solution, I recommend doing some research to find one that best suits your needs.

On the other hand, if you are experienced with programming languages like Python, using a code-based solution might be a better option for you. Code-based solutions usually offer more flexibility and power than no-code solutions. However, they often require some programming knowledge to set up and use.

There are many different code-based solutions/libraries available, such as Selenium and Beautiful Soup. If you are looking for a code-based solution, I recommend doing some research to find one that best suits your needs.

Tips to Succeed at Automating your Day Job

Now that we’ve looked at the ways you might consider automating your job, let’s discuss some tips and advice for automating your tasks.

Define your goals: The first step to automating your job is to define your goals. What exactly do you want to automate? Once you have a clear goal in mind, you can begin to look for ways to automate your task.
Start small: When you are first starting out, it is important to start small. Automating your entire job might be overwhelming, and it is often best to automate one task at a time. This will help you get used to the automation process and give you a better understanding of how automation can benefit your work.
Get feedback: After you have automated a task, it is important to get feedback from others. This will help you improve your automation process and make sure that it is actually benefiting your work.

Automating your job can be a great way to improve your work life balance and reduce the amount of boring tasks in your job. By following the tips above, you can set yourself up for success when automate your day job.

The best No-Code Automation Tools

If you’re not a programmer, then no code automation is what you will be looking for. There are many different no code automation tools out there. Here are some of my favourites:

IFTTT: IFTTT is a popular no code automation tool that allows you to automate various tasks on your computer or phone.
Zapier: Zapier is another popular no code automation tool that offers a wide range of integrations with various services.
Integromat: Integromat is a no code automation tool that offers a wide range of features and integrations.
Bunq: Bunq is a no code automation tool that allows you to automate your finances.
automate.io: automate.io is a no code automation tool that allows you to automate your business processes.

These are just some of the many different no code automation tools available out there. If you’re looking to automate your job, I recommend doing some research to find a tool that best suits your needs. Depending on what your specific needs are, different tools may suit you slightly better.

How to Quantify the Benefit of your Automation

It can be easy to create the automation and stop there. However, I like to create an automation log and measure the performance of my automated tasks. This helps me to understand the benefits of my automation and make sure that it is actually providing a benefit to my work.

To do this, I recommend creating an Excel spreadsheet or Google Sheet and logging the following information:

The task you automate
The date you automate it
How long the task took before automation
How long the task took after automation
Any other benefits or drawbacks of the automation

By logging this information, you can easily see how your automation is benefiting your work. This information can also be helpful when making changes to your automation or troubleshooting problems.

To be clear, you should use automation to fill in all of the data so that you have a fully automated “automation log”. If you inform your colleagues and managers of what you’re doing, you could also turn this into a monthly/quarterly report which shows all of the time saved during the period.

Conclusion on How to Automate your Day Job

In conclusion, automating your day job can be a great way to improve your work life balance and reduce the amount of boring tasks in your job. By following the tips above, you can set yourself up for success when automate your day job.

There are many different no code automation tools available out there. If you’re looking to automate your job, I recommend doing some research to find a tool that best suits your needs. Depending on what your specific needs are, different tools may suit you slightly better.