A study by UCL found that people who work 55 hours a week have a 33 per cent higher risk of stroke than those who do 35-40 hours.

And yet we’re still not getting to the bottom of that to-do list.

Australian workers work some of the longest hours in the developing world, according to The Australia Institute.

We spend an average 1855 hours at work each year — that’s a good 200 hours more than employees in other countries.

“It doesn’t matter how ‘busy’ you are if you don’t accomplish anything,” says Chris Bailey, author of The Productivity Project.

“Step back and consider how you use your time and work smarter, not harder.”

Fancy an extra hour in your day? Here are the tips and tricks to make it happen ...

1. Get some natural light

A study by the American Psychological Association found that workers exposed to only artificial light performed less well in cognitive tasks than those who spent time in daylight.

So sit near a window and take your breaks outdoors.

2. Take control of your junk mail

Sign up to a free service like Unroll.me, which scans your inbox for subscription emails, then allows you to either unsubscribe from them with one click or roll them into a single, daily email.

3. Work a 35-hour week

Yes, you might feel more productive when you put in long hours, but numerous studies have shown that even if at first you get more done, after four weeks of working long hours, productivity takes a nosedive and levels out at the 35-hour mark.

After this point, you start to make mistakes and/or bad decisions, and they then take longer to fix.

4. Schedule your free time

You might want weekends to be spontaneous, but a study by the University of Taiwan found that managing leisure time makes you more productive and happier overall.

5. Live by the ‘Two-Minute Rule’

David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, says that when you receive a new task, if it will take under two minutes to complete, then do it immediately. This rule is perfect for procrastinators.

“It forces you to make a quick decision about what needs to happen next,” he says.

6. Drink water as soon as you wake up

Your brain is 75 per cent water and if you aren’t properly hydrated, cognitive function declines.

A study in Berlin found that 30-40 minutes after drinking 500ml water, your metabolism increases by 30 per cent, giving you an energy boost to get things done.

7. Switch off alerts

Research by University of California, Irvine, says it takes 23 minutes and 15 seconds for the brain to fully return to a task after an interruption — like the ding of an email or a Facebook update.

Productivity expert Laura Stack suggests changing your settings so you aren’t alerted immediately to messages. Schedule specific times during the day to check them.

8. Have a cyber holiday

A massive 47 per cent of time spent online is wasted procrastinating, so turning off the internet can give you an opportunity to get more important things done.

“If it gets to the point where you feel overloaded, turn off your web browser and your emails,” says Laura.

Just set up an auto-response with a contact number for emergencies, then, later, gradually start adding back in information sources one at a time.

Try downloading a free app such as Freedom, which blocks distracting websites of your choice.

9. Be strategic with coffee

A recent study by the University of Bristol has shown your body adapts to how much caffeine you regularly consume.

So by only drinking coffee when you really need more energy and focus, that flat white will have optimum effect.

10. Take breaks before you feel tired

Boffins at the University of Illinois found that even a five-minute diversion from a task every 25 minutes will keep your brain focused for longer.

Set a timer on your phone to remind you to step back, instead of waiting until your attention starts wandering.

11. Master your inbox

The average office worker spends 28 per cent of their time on email, according to research by McKinsey Global Institute, so whittling away those 2,435 unread is clearly sapping valuable time.

Laura explains the three Ds. “Either discard: trash emails straight away. Delegate: is it something you really need to do? Do: answer emails that will take two minutes or less straight away. Mark ones that take longer time with a flag or as unread so you tackle them at a set time later.”

12. Wear a uniform

A study from the University of Toronto found that wearing a white lab coat enhanced people’s attention on tasks.

Really! But even if your job doesn’t come with that kind of strict dress code, removing the decision of what to wear each day saves you time and brain power. Think of Mark Zuckerberg’s “uniform” of grey top and jeans.

13. Don’t use email folders

A study by IBM found that searching through your inbox is much faster.

On average, it took participants 66 seconds to search for an email, and 73 seconds to find an email in a folder.

14. Make your office 22C

That super-hot meeting room really isn’t doing you any favours.

A recent American survey found that during the summer, workplace productivity drops 20 per cent, attendance drops 19 per cent, project turnaround times increase 13 per cent, and people are 45 per cent more distracted.

But keep a room too cold and you increase the errors you make or the likelihood of getting ill. The temperature range for optimum productivity is 21-22ºC.

15. Time-box tasks

An old adage called Parkinson’s Law says work expands to fill the time available for its completion.

Therefore, by limiting how long you give yourself to work on important tasks, you’re forced to expend more energy over less time, meaning you get things done faster.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission.