If you are reading this it’s because you find yourself ending your days regretting not having been productive and not having crossed off everything you had on your list. Many times the days go by like nothing, sometimes because we are sleepy, with lack of inspiration or concentration.
But today is the day where we put an end to those habits that take away our productivity, happiness and make us feel guilty at the end of the day. Why? Because you and I know that in all that time that you spent doing other things, you could have completed all your tasks.
Before starting, and as much as you want it to be, none of these tips are magic. Consistency is the main and crucial ingredient. We can incorporate all the habits and suggestions on this list, but if we don’t continually put them into practice, our bodies and minds will revert to what they know. That is, we are going to repeat the habits of distracting ourselves, wasting time, and doing everything that we should not be doing.
John Assaraf, leader of mindset, law of attraction and strategies to train our brain to live a full life, says that for a behavior to become a habit, we have to repeat it between 66 and 100 days. So when we feel like giving up, getting distracted, watching Netflix or scrolling through Pinterest, let’s remember this fact and train our brains to combat procrastination and be more productive!
Each time we incorporate a productive habit and repeat it, we are closer and closer to making it a habit.
That said, let’s start with tips to improve productivity!
- To-Do List / Plan your goals the day before
While a to-do list is something pretty common, many underestimate the power it can have. Writing our tasks and having to order them according to importance makes our brain internalize and incorporate these directives.
To-do lists save us time when it comes to moving forward after a certain job is finished. They are guidance steps that also put pressure on us to finish assignments within a certain day and time.
It is important to be careful not to overdo things on our list. This can cause us to block ourselves and not continue with the rest of the things that we could have managed to do.
2. Start the morning by visualizing your day, your energy and your goals
Don’t you happen to get up in the morning some days better than others? One day you want to throw the alarm out the window, and other days you wake up with extreme joy and motivation?
In order not to leave our energy and our attitude to face the day to free will, it’s ideal to dedicate at least five minutes in the morning to focus our energy.
In those 5 or 10 minutes ask yourself:
- What do you want to feel when this day is over? Happiness for concentrating and taking care of everything on your list?
- What attitude will you have in the face of unexpected external factors?
- Why do you want to make the most of the day? What is that dream that you want to fulfill? What daily goals do you have to achieve to achieve that dream?
I assure you that dedicating yourself to thinking about how your day is going to be will help you to be constant with your motivation and inspiration to be able to create productive habits.
A tip that I use daily is to put together a vision board of my goals and review it every morning. In this way I do not depend on my motivation for the day, but I can get inspired and concentrate to be able to accomplish everything I want!
3. Set schedules
Just as we organize our priorities and tasks in a list, it’s important to also allocate those tasks in a time range.
To begin with, it’s important to have a routine that commands us. A time to wake up and a time to finish work. In this way, we can not only handle new habits in a more organized way, but we will also have time to distract ourselves and enjoy outside of work in due time!
In this sense, everyone’s different! For example, I am more productive at night. I always have been, so my days are more relaxed in the morning, but in the evening I know that I can do important tasks because of my concentration.
Once you start to measure your schedules and analyze them, you will be able to leave the most important tasks for your hours of greatest concentration.
I recommend using Google Calendar on the computer or else, use a notebook, planner or notebook to write those schedules and tasks by hand.
4. Set specific days for certain tasks
As well as planning schedules, it also serves to allocate specific days for certain tasks.
This serves not only for work, but for the rest of the aspects of our days. Knowing that we have yoga class on Tuesdays and Thursdays helps us relax the rest of the days and reserve that space for ourselves.
The same happens with work and our tasks. If you are multitasking people, it helps a lot to use the weekend to plan how our week is going to be. So, for example, I know that on Monday I dedicate myself to the blog, on Tuesday to my book, on Wednesday to strategy and brainstorming, and so on!
No more wasted weeks and hello to productive days!
5. Get dressed!
Working from home, whether in pandemic or pre-pandemic, is challenging. We are not going to lie and say that wearing a jean is more comfortable than being in pajamas or in those joggings with which you could not even go out to take out the trash.
Changing to work is a strategy that alerts our brain that it is time to wake up, that we have finished sleeping, and that the day and activities have already started!
6. Vitamin D and Adopting Healthy Habits
Doesn’t it happen to you that when you wake up and don’t go out into the street or open the window it seems that the body doesn’t finish getting up? Perhaps noon may arrive and we’re still tired even though we are going for the third cup of coffee of the day.
The sun, and the contact of our body with the light, warns our brain that it is time to get up. As much as it seems a minor detail, incorporating the routine of breathing fresh air, opening the windows, and exposing even five minutes to the sun (always with sun protection! :)) can change our morning.
Starting the day with a healthy incentive can also motivate us to start the day in the best way and take advantage of it. Finding a healthy habit to incorporate, such as drinking fresh fruit juice in the morning or hydrating a lot during the day, can change our mood, our health, and positively predispose us to adopt more and more positive habits!
7. Control screen time.
Cell phones and our computers became work items, and that makes the line between work and distraction increasingly blurry.
If you have a hard time leaving your cell phone or you spend hours watching Instagram and videos on YouTube, I recommend downloading an application to limit the use of networks / cell phone.
Here are some productivity apps that you can download!
- Stay Focused: mobile app with a timer that turns off when you exit the application. In this way you can see on the screen how long you have been concentrating. Once you exit the app, the counter returns to zero.
- Freedom: app that allows you to turn off the internet for as long as you want!
- Focus Keeper: this app helps you organize your time by establishing work periods and pause periods, so you don’t have to worry about setting up your own schedule if it is difficult for you to follow it.
You can also put the cell phone in airplane mode for as long as you need to concentrate. I usually do it quite a bit!
8. Break big goals down into small tasks.
I learned this concept from Sarah Knight’s book Get Your Shit together. I never get tired of recommending this book that changed my life personally.
She preaches and demonstrates from her own personal experience that any goal is achievable, as long as we can break it down into small actions for each day. The important thing is not to get overwhelmed thinking about the end goal, but to commit to constantly doing those little actions that make a difference in the long term.
While this tip seems simple, it really is something that can change your life and the way you work on your goals.
You can read more about power books I recommend on this post.
9. Plan your breaks.
While one day we can be highly motivated and work all day non-stop, perhaps the next day the motivation may be gone and we return to the same habit of procrastinating.
The important thing is to seek balance and maintain it constantly. That is why I recommend that you start with a 15 minute break every 45 minutes worked, respecting the crazy time for each task.
Once you get into the rhythm of concentrating / losing focus, you can see which interval is best for you.
10. Learn to say no.
To end this list, this tip not only serves to improve productivity but also to live a calmer life full of the things and experiences that make us happy.
Who among you finds yourself in certain situations, jobs or encounters thinking about everything you could be doing if you hadn’t agreed? In all those things that you could be crossing off your list if you had stayed at home or not accepted that zoom? Even if those things are immersion bathing with a good book!
Many times saying no is often frowned upon, but it’s a job that’s up to ourselves to implement. Saying no implies focusing your efforts according to your priorities in order to make room for what you do desire and want.
On this subject I recommend another book by Sarah Knight (yes I’m a fan!) Called The Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F ***. It is a fun book to read and that has a very original look on the subject of managing time and efforts.
As I said throughout the post, these habits can be difficult at first, but daily effort and perseverance is the key! Keep in mind that every step we take, every moment in which we defeat procrastination, we are closer and closer to fulfilling our dreams!
What habit are you going to incorporate today? Remember! The important thing is consistency! It doesn’t matter if you couldn’t focus so much today, don’t give up!
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