Introduction
As humans it’s very easy for us to procrastinate whenever we work on something that we are not really interested in.
But even when you love doing the things you do, procrastination will creep in and overtake your mind, overtake your will and completely demotivate you from time to time.
And this is normal.
I mean through thousands of years we weren’t working the way we are these days.
We didn’t have an inbox full of emails, we didn’t have cubicles or a workspace where we would sit for hours of time, we didn’t have such a necessity to multitask so many projects at the same time.
No wander our minds tend to wonder.
But, the thing is we do actually work to make it possible for us to enjoy our lives to the fullest extent.
To make it more manageable for you to complete the individual tasks quickly, below you will find productivity tools and productivity hacks to help you complete the tasks at hand.
I separated the productivity hacks into sections, ones that you can complete right away that will help you focus on the task, and ones that if implemented will aid you with achieving your goals over a period of time.
Productivity vs Efficiency
Have you ever been stuck in an endless loop of completing a large list of tasks but not feeling like you’re actually getting any closer to achieving your goals?
You may be caught between productivity and efficiency.
Productivity is all about completing your daily to-do list, from the small stuff like answering emails to the bigger projects that need more attention.
It’s simply the measure of how much work you get done in a day.
Efficiency, on the other hand, is focused on producing better results with the least amount of input.
It’s not just about what you do, but how effectively you use your time and resources to achieve success.
Efficiency is key when it comes to moving forward with your projects and reaching higher levels of performance.
Being productive is important, but being efficient will take your productivity to the next level.
Make sure you invest the right amount of time and energy into everything you do so that your efforts don’t go to waste – You should make a focus time to maximizing efficiency for maximum success!
Things you can do right away that actually work
- Get Started. You can sit and fiddle around or simply get started and do the work that you have allocated for you. The sooner you finish it though, the more time you will have to complete other tasks or spend your time doing things you enjoy doing.
- Find your why. This could be the most powerful productivity tip. If you can figure out why you are working towards something, and it’s very important for you, then this could be all the motivation you require to stay productive and complete your tasks.
- Think positively about the task at hand. You might not like the work you are doing but by thinking negatively about it will demotivate you. You might as well figure out the positives of your work and focus on those to help to motivate yourself.
- Work on the hardest and most unpleasant work first. Think of it as every day you have a certain amount of energy. Whatever you decide to do first will take up some energy, leaving you with less energy later in the day. By doing the crappy tough tasks first, you will have more desire to complete them and prevent yourself from being demotivated to do them later in the day.
- Get rid of distractions. Your phone is a distraction, and so are all the tabs in your internet browser. Close them down to prevent the off chance you might accidentally click them and spend hours per day wasting your time on them.
- Clutter-Free Environment. By removing all unnecessary objects around you, you are giving yourself fewer things to focus on and play with and directing your focus to what you have to complete.
- Disable certain websites. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc. will eat up your time if you give them the chance to. It’s understandable, they are all set up in a way to keep your mind craving more. Download an extension for Chrome to prevent yourself from browsing websites that will distract you and destroy your productivity. Here is one you can use.Stayfousd
- Work Spot, fun spot, relax spot. The kitchen is specific for cooking, the toilet is specific for… Well you know, I don’t have to explain. Either way, by allocating spaces for specific things you are doing, you will provide markers for your mind to adjust for whatever job you have in those specific spots.
- Drink water. We are majority made up of water. Keeping yourself hydrated will allow for your body to run at it’s most optimum.
- Have a coffee. Not everyone likes coffee but for the people who can’t live a day without coffee make sure to have your favorite beverage without distractions. Simply sit, relax without your work or phone and enjoy the moment. Then get to work.
- Set up a timer. Set up a timer (preferably not on your phone) which will provide you with a visual representation of how much longer you need to focus on a specific task. This Google one works well.
- Use The Pomodoro Technique. Simply work for 25 minutes straight and afterward reward yourself with 5 minutes of free time. You can use this timer or download Chrome extension
- Listen to calm, relaxing music. Listening to a simple chill track with no lyrics makes it easy to concentrate on the things you are working on.
- Listen to a podcast or an audiobook. Find a podcast or audiobook that you are interested in and listen to it so that even when you are working you are also enriching and learning new things that you are interested in. I recommend this when doing physical tasks that don’t require your full concentration.
- Listen and learn faster. These days you can listen to podcasts, audiobooks and lectures at faster speeds, which means that you can take in more information faster. Simply select the option on your videos, podcasts and audiobooks to speed them up and select a speed that works best for you.
- Delayed Gratification. If you have something that you need to complete, make sure to reward yourself only after you complete the task at hand. By delaying the reward, you will have a mindset of completing something first and afterward getting what you desire. Providing you with the motivation to finish what you need to finish.
- Exercise. Get the blood flowing and more oxygen to your brain. This will help you concentrate better, and also you will feel better in general.
- 2 minutes. If something takes you less than 2 minutes to complete now, such as washing a cup after drinking from it, then do it there and then. If you keep putting simple tasks aside by the end of the day, you will end up with 10+ urgent tasks which will just demotivate you to complete them.
- Write down things to remember. Have a notebook on hand or a recorder so that whenever you come up with an important thing to do you can quickly record it and not focus on remembering it for later.
Notification ---- Things you can do right away with your phone
- Put your phone in Silent, Airplane mode or just simply stash it away. so that you don’t reach for it. Having your phone around will constantly occupy your brain, and you will find yourself reaching for it regularly.
- Turn off notifications. If your work requires you to have your phone present, make sure to turn off notifications from apps you don’t need to use as they will distract you and limit your productivity.
- Make your phone less desirable. Turn your phone’s screen to grayscale so that it is much less desirable for you to look at. The vivid colors really entice your brain into being glued to the screen.
- Uninstall apps. Surely you have 1 or more apps on your phone that take up most of your focus. By uninstalling those apps you are able to reduce your time on your phone significantly and in doing so increase your productivity.
- Download a monitoring app. If you don’t know which phones take up the most of your time, make sure to download an app to discover which ones are digging into your daily productivity. As an bonus you will know how long you spend on your phone and some apps actually can lock you out of specific apps when you use them for too long.
- Allocate yourself phone time. By allocating yourself time when you can use your phone throughout the day, you make sure that you focus on what you need to do without your phone as a distraction. By letting people know that you are only available for chats between specific times will make sure you don’t get distracted with pointless messages.
- Your phone shouldn’t be the center of your universe. We watch movies, listen to music, play games, use it for exercise, use it for work, listen to podcasts on 1 device. Yes, it makes life easy, but you shouldn’t be so reliant on one device for your day-to-day life.
Set up a single goal and routine
- Write out goals. Knowing what you are working towards will help you focus on what you need to do to get to the end product.
- Write out shorter-term goals. By working towards goals in the near future, you are more likely to complete them as opposed to ones that are 10 years down the track.
- Break down the goals into daily, weekly, monthly simple tasks. that will allow you to keep track of your progress and also bring you closer to your final goal.
- Select 1 goal to focus on. If you have 5000 goals you are planning to achieve you will likely get demotivated and in the end just not look to your goals list. Select one, seriously just one single goal and work towards completing that one goal first. You will feel great for completing it and set yourself up in the mood for completing more goals in the future.
- Check your progress regularly. If you are working towards something, make sure to regularly check to see if you are on the right track to reaching your daily goal. Chances are that you might have to adjust your plan so that you don’t fall short of your goals, which in turn will demotivate you.
- Set up a routine. Having a routine will give you set times each day when you need to complete the work you set yourself out to do. By following the routine it will become ingrained into you and your mind will adjust to when you should be working.
- Don’t use your phone for the first hour of the day. Your life is more important than what is happening on your phone. Take the time to do things that will enrich your life first.
- Set up a morning routine. The most successful people on this planet have a morning routine that they follow. By providing yourself time to either meditate, write out a daily detailed plan, journal, exercise or even read a book over coffee, you allow your brain to get ready for the day ahead of you. It doesn’t have to be much; even a 15-min exercise or meditation session can be enough for you.
- Write down a realistic to-do list. It doesn’t have to be a huge list, just having 1–2 things on it to start is great. Having too many things on your list will demotivate you.
- Break up large tasks into smaller manageable ones. By focusing on a large task, you might feel overwhelmed and demotivated. By breaking down the large tasks into smaller manageable ones you make it possible for you to focus on small things that will allow you to complete the single task over periods of time.
- Do one thing at a time. If you divide your attention between many tasks, you will find yourself completing everything slowly. By doing one thing at a time and completing it you will get closer to finishing the task at hand and also give yourself motivation every time you finish another one of your tasks.
- Set up a vision board. Creating a vision board and having it visible will be a constant reminder for you to continue working hard to get to your goals. Even with the current situation around the world, it is important to continually have goals to work towards. After all, the world will return to a somewhat normal state in the future.
- Figure out when you are most productive. Having a morning routine is one thing but being productive is another. Some people are morning birds and others are night owls. Figure out when you are the most focused and leave the tasks that require the most concentration for that time.
The truth about setting daily, weekly, monthly goals and plans to maximize productivity.
Setting goals and planning is a very important step in increasing your productivity.
Goals are like the final destination on a map and the planning is the route you will take to actually get to the destination.
Without these, you may reach your destination, but it could take much longer, and give more time for you to procrastinate and put off the important things to do.
But here is the thing, people tend to hate creating goals and plans because they are afraid of failing them, and having to make excuses for not achieving them.
There is some pain associated with failure that all of us have experienced.
I’m here to tell you that everyone always fails, and you shouldn’t be too hard on yourself even if you don’t achieve the ambitious goals that you were set out to do.
As long as you can wake up the next day, first thing in the morning with a new attitude and a new will to try again, you are already doing better than most.
Again, we all fail, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a failure; it could be a pause or a hickup.
Sometimes you just need a 5-Minute break to reset your mind and set up a work time that you can commit to and just try again.
As you keep doing so, the pause becomes just another day, and you keep pushing through to get to your final destination.
And you will.
Sleep goes hand in hand with increased productivity.
- Have an allocated time to go to bed. By having a set bedtime each night, your brain will know when to begin powering down for the day and because of this, you will have a better sleep. Having a better sleep will mean you wake up in the morning more energetic and ready for the day.
- The bed is for sleeping (and sex). By having your bed allocated for sleep you make sure that when you lay down your mind knows it is time to switch off. Once you start introducing movies in bed, telephones in bed etc. you end up with a space that is not only for rest but all kinds of entertainment and distractions that will, in turn, keep your mind working when you are trying to rest.
- Read a book in bed. If it is necessary for you to relax in bed, then opt for a book, listen to calming music or meditate to get your mind ready for sleep. Nothing thought-provoking or exciting as we all know about those nights where we stay up for hours thinking when we really should be sleeping. You don’t want to do that
- Disconnect. In a world where everyone expects everything at once, we tend to forget about ourselves. Put your phone away, disconnect the Wi-Fi or put your phone in Airplane mode so that you can sleep without any distractions. Even if you don’t wake up from notifications, it still will have an effect on your sleep.
- Get rid of blue light. Blue light emitted from screens (e.g. phone, TV, laptop) will keep your mind stimulated and awake. By turning on a blue light filter or not using your devices your brain will automatically start relaxing to get ready for sleep with the daily solar cycle.
- Get the right pillow. Something as small and insignificant can have such a huge impact on your sleep. Get the right pillow for you to help you sleep your best.
- Have a notepad and pen besides the bed. It’s incredible how sometimes being left to your own thought and sleeping can bring out tons of creativity. When you awaken with some new productive thoughts quickly write them down and set them aside so you can return back to sleep knowing you won’t forget them.
Morning Productivity hacks
- Have an allocated time for waking up. By having an allocated time for waking up, you set yourself up to get out of bed and be productive. If you don’t, you will wake up at random times during the day and in doing so struggle to get out of bed and be demotivated.
- Resist the Snooze button. By hitting the snooze button on your alarm, you reset your sleeping cycle and in doing so awaken feeling more groggy and demotivated.
- Jump out of bed. By having an explosive start to your day, you are more likely to continue your day having plenty of energy.
- Wake up with a purpose. Plan the night before and have one valid reason to be excited to wake up next morning. That way you will happily get out of bed and start your day with positive energy.
- Fasting. By not eating anything in the morning your body will allocate your energy to what you are working on as opposed to digesting the food you are eating. Additionally, fasting has many health benefits.
- Juicing is great, mate. If you are not the kind of person that can fast then make sure to give your body exactly what it needs in the morning. Having a juice with fruit and leafy greens will give you vitamins, minerals, sugars and hydrate your body to have it performing well.
- Make your bed. It might seem like such a silly thing but by making your bed in the morning you have achieved one simple goal for the day. All you have to do is continue with completing simple accomplishable goals throughout the day to achieve your major ambitious goals.
- Write in your Journal. Do you remember what you did a year ago, a month ago or even this week? Take the time to write in your journal so that you can remind yourself of great memories and see how much you have grown or progressed in your life. You will be amazed at times by it.
- Give yourself time to think. People these days don’t give themselves any time to think. Give yourself some time without any distractions, such as under a shower, in the restroom or even sitting in a corner enjoying the sun to think about your day. You will be amazed by the things your mind will come up with.
- Plan your day. After you have had time to journal and think for yourself, sit down and plan out your day. Having a step-by-step plan will make it easier to make sure you are staying productive and also prevent you from forgetting important things you need to do.
- Take a cold shower. Seriously, if that doesn’t get the blood pumping in your body then I don’t know what will. Additionally, to waking you up, it actually got some incredible health benefits.
- Listen to a podcast or productive music. Start your day of with listening to a podcast to get your creative juices flowing, or calm yourself down with some productive music which will get you in the mood for work.
Food productivity hacks
- Light meals in the morning. If you are the kind of person that needs food in the morning, consider eating something light, such as fruit or a salad. This is so your body uses less energy to digest the food, and you have more energy to complete any work you allocate yourself.
- Keep your meals simple. If you mix and match food (e.g. meat, cheese, veggies, carbs etc.), your body will take longer and use more energy to digest food. Create simple meals such as meat with veggies, or a salad with pasta to keep your energy high and stay healthy.
- Watch what you eat. You know how people get hyperactive after sugar other foods can give you brain fog and also make you drowsy. Observe the foods you eat and see what effects they have on your mood and productivity.
- Eat less sugar. This one is pretty straight forward. Sugar can make people hyperactive and in doing so make it hard to focus on the work at hand. By reducing your sugar intake during work hours, you can keep your focus better.
- Don’t drink too much coffee. Coffee is great for a boost of energy but in some people, it can also cause anxiety. Figure out the right amount of coffee for you and don’t go over it to keep your mind productive and focused.
- Eliminate foods that take away your focus. If you observe your food and know which foods affect your productivity, then make sure to either remove them from your diet or allocate times when you can have them. Maybe as a reward for completing your daily tasks.
- Take Supplements. Chances are that your food is not providing you with all the nutrition your body requires to run optimally. Find supplements that will complete your nutrition and have you running at 100%.
- Do Regular Fasts. You might be healthy, but even so, it is a good idea to fast regularly so that your body can get rid of any excess toxins that might come from your diet. You will find it easier the longer you do it but at the same time notice a huge improvement in your productivity and focus.
Best Productivity hacks - just in case you didn't have enough
- Believe in yourself. One of the fastest ways to demotivate yourself is not to believe in your plan and ability. Do little things daily to showcase your progress and help you believe in yourself.
- Have an accountability partner. Yes, it might be easy to get lazy when you have only yourself to answer to but as soon as someone else is there to watch your progress you will get the urge to want to show how well you are performing.
- Put your money where your mouth is. If you want to achieve something, it doesn’t matter if you tell everyone you will do it. If you are at risk of losing something valuable, you will be more inclined to work harder to complete it. By arranging with your accountability partner how much you are willing to give away if you fail to complete a task, you will motivate yourself to work harder.
- Don’t Masturbate. People will go to astonishing lengths to fulfil their sexual desires. If you spank the monkey or sink the bunny, you are taking away energy which you could be using to be productive. If you must do the dirty, then set it up as a reward for completing your work for the day.
- Hire people who are better than you. You might be amazing at doing everything, but you won’t be the best at doing one thing. Get people who are skilled and will aid you in completing certain tasks so that you can focus on the more important aspects of your work.
- Distraction-Free Time. If you work from home and have people around you (family), then inform them that you require specific hours to be distraction-free so that you can focus on the work that you have allocated yourself. You could call this time productivity time to make it easier for others to distinguish.
- Simplify your life. By having fewer things to think about, such as what set of clothes should I wear or what will I have for breakfast, you will free up valuable brainpower for more important things to focus on. During your workdays, reduce the things you need to focus on so that you can be as productive as possible.
- Automate certain tasks in your life. By having an automatic coffee machine or sending an automated email with FAQ which you already answered you save yourself hours of valuable time which you can use to complete things that are more important.
- Consistency is key. Producing 1 great piece whenever you feel like it is not better than producing quality pieces regularly. Stay consistent and the more you create, the more efficient you will be and the better your work will become.
- Find a way to get rid of stress. Working in a stressful environment will reduce your productivity and quality. Find ways to create a stress-free environment in your life. Be it by motivation, exercise, eating healthy or even just snuggling your pets.
- Be supportive of yourself. We are not perfect, and sometimes we fail, but this is no reason to put ourselves down. Practice talking to yourself positively, so you boost your motivation and feel good even if you sometimes might fail.
- Reflect on your day. At the end of your day reflect on everything you have done to help you determine if you need to do anything to be more productive in the future.
- Punish bad habits. If you find yourself constantly falling into some old bad habits, then punish them with positive habits. (do 5 push-ups for every time you use your phone while studying).
- Clean up your space. Most of the time you can tell if a person will be successful by looking at their surroundings. After all, the state of your surroundings is a reflection of what is going on in your head. If it’s neat and organized, you are more likely to be that way in a clutter-free environment as well.
- Work in green spaces. Get a few plants around you while working as it is proven to reduce stress and boost productivity.
- Employ Parkinson’s Law. Assign less time than you think you need for a task to get it done faster.
What are your favorite productivity hacks to boost your productivity?
I have exhausted my knowledge of productivity tips in this article, but I know there are plenty more out there.
What productivity tips do you use to help you complete your tasks regularly?
Let me know in the comments below and if you found this article helpful, please consider sharing it with others so that they can achieve more in their day.
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