Can Video Games Make You More Productive at Work?

Raise your hand if your focus on the job has been shot since the COVID-19 pandemic. You're not alone, but we may have a productivity trick that can get you back on task! 

Whether you're still struggling to keep the kids entertained while you're working from home or you're having a hard time re-adjusting to focusing on the task at hand now that your co-workers are back in the office and want to catch up, know that you're not alone! Prior to the pandemic, I had a ridiculously organized Bullet Journal system going that tracked my daily to-do list, month by month schedule and good habits I was trying to develop.

...I haven't looked at it since March when the world started to fall apart. Like many of you, I've started to have a very blurred sense of time and that makes focusing on tasks difficult. But recently, I've discovered a new productivity hack that's getting me back on track.

It's called "Slingo Arcade!" Back in the day, Slingo was a multi-player game on AOL that combined traditional BINGO and slot machines. You had 20 spins to try to fill your card and earn the most points. I LOVED playing that game as a kid.

When the stay home order began, I was bored out of my skull and Googled "does Slingo still exist?" It certainly does as a cell phone app/Facebook game and it's a mind numbingly fun way to pass the time. You can play Slingo Classic, which is very similar to the AOL game but the game also gives you a series of "Daily Challenges" you can complete for more coins. They include playing spinoff Slingo games, earning a certain number of coins or Jokers in those games or take a certain number of spins on traditional slot games. Once you complete your three daily challenges, you get your bonus coins.

To keep myself on task, I use Slingo Arcade as a bargaining chip for myself. I'll complete a task, then play a game of Slingo, then complete another task before treating myself to another game of Slingo. I repeat that until both my tasks and "Daily Challenges" are complete.

It seems silly, but it's been effective. I'm flying through things I need to get done this way!