Read this if you’re ready to be productive, because there is no pressure to have to hustle twenty-four seven… 🙂
I know that when I’m feeling good and motivated, I’d read articles and watch videos on productivity. However, when I’m just feeling like I’m in a rut, I always want assurance that it’s okay if I’m not being productive in the moment. This had particularly happened in the last week of the year, when I just wanted to be on holiday mode, and restart the next year.
Now that the new year had began, it was time to get it going. That’s why I decided to write this blog post on how we can make use of our time and maximise our productivity.
I know that there are so many productive tips out there. I see them everywhere. There are now so many different possibilities for us to achieve our goals, and there are so many opportunities to go about them.
I’ll be honest though, there are so many productive “hacks” or “tips” that I’ve tried to apply but didn’t quite work for me, and it’s the same for everyone else as well.
However, regardless, there may be important tasks that we have to do that we don’t really want to do.
I mean, how many times have we put off a dreadful but important task? How many times have we put it off for so long, it doesn’t make it any easier to want to start it?
When I read the book Eat that Frog by Brian Tracy, he mentioned an insight that is very similar to this. He refers to the frog as the biggest task for the day but is sometimes the ugliest. It’s the task that must get done, but the thought of undertaking it is displeasing.
What we’re supposed to do with that frog is to “eat” it, because putting it off for longer doesn’t make it easier.
I know that regardless of the productivity tips that I end up implementing in my life, I know that I always dread the task that is going to take a lot of work. If I don’t set a time to work on it, there’s a high possibility that I am going to procrastinate on them.
So what I am going to list are a few insights on enhancing productivity inspired by Eat That Frog. Some insights about how to make “eating that frog” easier. There were some insights that were an eyeopener for me even though at first instance, it all seems like common sense.
1.Knowing exactly what our goals and objectives are
I have realized that the reason why I used to procrastinate on big projects was because I was never clear enough about the objectives, and the steps to take it.
Clarity is essential to know where we are going. We need clarity on two things:
- Our goals and objectives – we need them so that we can know exactly what to do next and how to do them.
- Our systems – the processes and steps needed to accomplish the goals. It is where we make a list of everything that we need to do so we can have a visual picture of what exactly is needed to get the goal done. We create systems based on that.
If want to take it a step further, then there is this third step:
3. Set deadlines or sub-deadlines – sometimes if we don’t have an exact time set to accomplish something, the higher the procrastination would be and the slower the progress. Setting some deadlines would give us a sense of urgency to make sure that we’re doing our systems consistently, and make any changes necessary if it’s not pushing us more forward to our goals.
Then of course, we need to actually take action. It’s common sense already that all that planning is a waste if we’re not actually doing anything. Execution is indeed everything.
Following through with our systems would allow us to see if it’s taking us closer to our goals. If it’s not, then that is when we can consider revising it and make changes accordingly.
And while actually doing the systems is one thing, doing it consistently is another. Eat That Frog had mentioned to “resolve to do something every single day that moves us toward our major goal”. We can apply this by incorporating our systems into our daily routines.
2. Consider the Consequences
One really good insight that the book had mentioned was something called “considering the consequences”.
It’s when we put focus first on the most important tasks and priorities that have the most serious consequences, whether it is positive or negative in any area of our life.
Like for instance, if not completing a big project meant that we would lose our job, then that would be the task we would focus on in that day.
It can be any areas of our life, not just limited to work.
We may have found ourselves with big tasks in front of us that we dread doing. It is those tasks that are considered the “frog” that we need to eat first. Because looking at that frog for long doesn’t make starting the task easier, we just begin to dread it even more.
3. Creative Procrastination
Realistically (and I have to remind myself of this all the time), we can’t do everything that we want to do in a day.
SO the solution for this is that we procrastinate… the creative procrastination.
Creative procrastination is when we deliberately put off those tasks that are of low value so we can make the time to do the tasks that are of high value.
I know that there were times when I decided to clean my room instead of working on a big assessment for uni in the morning. This was because cleaning my room tricked my mind into thinking that I was being productive.
But when you think about it, cleaning my room and ignoring my assignment wasn’t going to make doing my assignment any easier. While there is nothing bad about cleaning my room, at the end of the day, it wasn’t going to contribute to that big assignment that I still had to do.
I have gotten better at getting the most dreadful tasks out of the way in the morning, and then proceeding to those other tasks of low value. I found that I wasn’t feeling that bitter about having to do any assignments because I already got them done in the beginning of the day.
So pretty much, if we are going to procrastinate, we’ve got to do it the right way!
4. Being our own Cheerleader
This may sound like the typical “be your own best friend” advice… and it is (whoops). BUT this is more of a “be your own best friend” when it comes to productive stuff.
Being our own cheerleader is where we motivate ourselves into action. It’s where we motivate ourselves by looking for the good in every situation, focusing on the solution rather than the problem, and being optimistic in general.
But being our own cheerleader also means motivating ourselves into action when we simply don’t feel like it. When we feel discouraged that we’re not moving closer to our goals. When we find ourselves in bad days and need assurance that having one bad day doesn’t degrade the progress we made so far.
And also, making sure that we are not talking negatively to ourselves on the mistakes and the failures we make along the way. Making sure that we don’t fall down a path where we fall forever.
So, it is a typical “be your own best friend advice” after all, because the only person that could really motivate us to get into action is ourselves.
5. Preparation Keys
The final insight that I’ll mention is on preparation.
The first is planning the day beforehand.
What I used to do is that at the start of the day, that was when I planned out (either in paper or in my head) what I was going to do that day.
While that was good, I didn’t realise that I was actually wasting valuable time.
On days when I woke up knowing that I have extra time in the day, planning my day was a breeze. However, on days when I knew that I had a lot of other things to do and places to go, planning my day made me feel anxious because then I had no idea what I was going to do.
Regardless on whether planning my day was a breeze or made me feel anxious, I was still wasting valuable time. I was wasting the time that I could’ve used to already start my day doing what is of high importance.
When I started planning my day beforehand, it saved me so much time in the morning. I went to sleep knowing what I was going to do for the next day and that gave me relief. I would wake up and get straight into my day.
Then, the other insight is preparing everything before we begin. This is where we assemble all resources, information, tools, and materials required for our upcoming tasks.
And when I started doing this, it saved a lot of time. I used to spend up to 20 minutes trying to find everything I need for what I have to do, when I could’ve already started.
When you read these concepts, it may be some that we’ve heard before. I know that when I read it for the first time, I thought that it was all common sense… until I realized that I was wasting time myself.
And it all makes sense – when we start the day in the morning, we’d want to make everything easy for us. We’d want to make less decisions in the morning. Because if we’re in a hurry or we’re lacking on sleep, we wouldn’t want to make a decision that was rushed and decide that it was a mistake later.
We Choose What Works For Us
So we may have heard all of these productivity advice before. At first look, the above insights look like they can be a “one size fit all”, but regardless, we ultimately apply what works for us based on our circumstances and situation.
Nevertheless, whenever we do have important tasks on our plate, it makes sense to want to maximise productivity to get them done effectively.
We would want make our lives easier especially on days when we don’t feel like doing anything.
After all, there are so many opportunities and possibilities to choose from, we’ve just got to apply the ones that will bring us the most closer to our goals.
Book(s) this post was inspired by:
(not sponsored in any way!)
Disclaimer: If you think that any of what I had written was good, the credit actually belongs to the one whose book was the inspiration for this post. If there’s anything on here that you think is quite stupid, that’s 100% blame on me 🙂
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi, this is Lauren! I’m a law grad from Melbourne, Australia. On laurenbarri.com, I create content on all things personal development, productivity, self-care, and habits! I am super passionate about these topics because of how they helped me in all areas of my life, and I want to share it with others!
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