Motivation comes and goes and sometimes you can’t seem to find it for weeks. Once you find it, you’ll probably want to ride that wave as long as you possibly can. This means that you’ll probably get a lot of things done, will work longer hours, and continue to work towards your goals as fast as possible. However, by doing this you will probably work well beyond what’s good for you. The reality is that productivity is not about doing more, but about making better use of your time. If you truly want to be productive for a long-time, you need to have a good system in place that will not make you end up in burnout. These are some things you can implement today.
1. Take the Time to Organise and Make Plans
If you want to be productive, you need to be good at planning. You can’t expect yourself to be doing things all the time, without a good plan. So take some dedicated “planning” time to review what you need to do, what you can get rid of, and build a solid foundation for the week. I personally like to do this on Sundays, but you can also do this before starting each workday.
2. Figure Out a System That Works For You
There are a ton of different ways to organise your days to stay productive. Figure out what you need to organise your workflow, and what works best for you, and then finetune your system so it works for you.
For taking notes you can use a simple notepad, sticky notes, daily planners, and/or bullet journals. For bigger projects, you can use Trello, Monday, Asana, Notion, or even Google Tasks. As long as it works for you.
3. Write To-Do Lists
We can’t trust our short-term memory. Therefore, it’s good to take things out of your head by writing a to-do list. By getting in the habit of writing down everything in your notes.
You can start with the simple note app on your phone, a notebook, or your computer. As long as you decide on one place where you can dump information.
4. Take Breaks
No one gets an award for being busy. On the contrary, the only thing that will give you a headache. Therefore, it’s good to set aside time to take a break, rest, and do the things you love. Meditate, go for a walk, make a healthy meal, go for a surf session, or do whatever else you need to do to disconnect from work. Taking breaks will help you to recharge and maintain productivity in the long run.
5. Do The Most Important Tasks First
It’s easier to be productive when you know what you’re going to focus on. So, prioritise and focus on what is most important for you. This often goes against what’s easy, because the important things are often also the most challenging things to do. But the trap of doing the easy things first is that you will want to do the more important tasks later and procrastinate even more.
Everyone has different methods when it comes to being productive and you don’t have to be at peak productivity every day. It’s all about finding balance and figuring out what works for you.
