Habits for Better Productivity

What habits can give us better productivity?

I’ve learned overtime that habits and productivity go really well together. Since habits are automated, building the right habits set you up for automated success with your productivity.

Productivity used to be about how busy you are and how much you have on your plate. Productivity used to be only about the work tasks, and nothing about rest. But productivity is different now, and you need the right habits for it.

This blog post is all about the habits you need for better productivity. You will learn of different habits that will help you do the following:

• Make more time for the things that are of value to you.
• Make more time for the things that you enjoy.
• Make sure that you spend your time doing things that you truly want.

There are many past blog posts on productivity that you can read. You can also read the blog post on 10 Actual Ways to Live a More Productive Life, and Easy Productivity Tips for Every Area of Your Life, so you can further enhance your productivity!

1 – Calendar Blocking & Planning

One important habit for better productivity is to do calendar blocking and planning. Here are some reasons why it’s worth doing calendar blocking:

1. You save valuable time each day – whenever you are planning your day, on the same day, you waste valuable time that you could have used to just get started on what you need to do.
2. It gives you a good idea and overview on how your week will look like.
3. You make less decisions throughout the week – when you think about it, making decisions take time. Since you want to save time, it’s better to decide right then and there.

How exactly do you calendar block? Well you can use a paperback planner or an electronic calendar. An electronic calendar is more recommended since it’s useful and easier to adjust if things were to pop up along the way.

Then, you just add in these following things:

• Already committed and non-negotiable priorities – e.g. work shifts.
• Important priorities but not urgent.
• Time to work on your other goals.
• Things you want to do.

You can read a further expansion on how to plan and prepare your week in this blog post.

2 – 2 Minute Rule

Yes I put the 2 minute rule as number 2 on purpose.

Have you ever got those mini tasks such as clearing up your desk, or putting things away? How long do they actually take?

The two minute rule is pretty much this – if a task takes less than two minutes for you to do it, then just do it.

This saves a lot of time later from doing a bigger clean. If you do it as you go, you save more time later on in the day.

If it takes only two minutes to refill a water bottle, do it. If it only takes two minutes to put that cup away, just do it.

3 – Preparation Keys

The habit of preparation key is preparing everything before you begin.

This is the habit of preparing all that you need the day before. You organize all the resources, information, tools, and materials you need for your upcoming tasks the next day.

Then, when the day begins, you can just get going! You don’t have to worry about spending an extra 10 to 20 minutes trying to find everything you need.

I remember when I started making this a habit. I went from spending up to 20 minutes trying to find everything I need, to just getting started right away.

This is a habit worth building because when you start your day, you want to make everything as easy as possible. You want to make less decisions in the morning and just get started.

4 – Reflect on What Works and What Doesn’t

It is important to get in the habit of reflecting. Especially on what works and what doesn’t.

There’s no question that there are so many productivity tips out there. However, realistically, not every productivity tip or strategy will work for us. That’s why, it’s important to just take a look at how you’re spending your days, what strategies you are using, and just reflect on your overall productivity performance in general.

The last thing you want to do is waste time doing the wrong things. Reflect on what’s currently working for you, and keep doing it.

At the same time, reflect on what doesn’t work for you, and try something else instead.

5 – 5 Second Rule

Yes I put the 5 second rule as number 5 on purpose

The book the 5 Second Rule by Mel Robbins was a life changer!

Here’s a fun fact about procrastination.

Most times, it’s not the task itself that is hard, it’s starting the task.

I mean, how many times did you put off doing certain chores, even though it will only take 5 minutes if your time? Yes, that was me.

This is where the 5 second rule comes in.

The most simple way to explain this rule is that the moment you find yourself not wanting to do something, you use the Rule 5-4-3-2-1 and then push yourself to get started.

It seems so simple but it’s so effective. All you have to do is countdown to five. I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about counting down that scares us a bit. It’s like something is going to happen if it blasts one.

So make it a habit!

6 – Relax

Yes this seems simple too. But it’s a more powerful habit that you may think.

One myth of productivity is that you need to be busy. I’ve came to stop using that word as much as possible for many reasons.

First, busy has become a way to define ourselves and prove our worthiness. Sometimes, it feels like you have to compete with someone else to see who is the “busiest”.

Let me just say that we are going to scrap all those previous beliefs and say it with something else. You’re not productive by how busy you are, you are productive by how relaxed you are.

So make it a habit! Make it a habit to set intentional rest and breaks. Make it a habit to relax. When you’re relaxed, that’s when you make better productive decisions right?

7 – Ask What For?

An eye opening quote from Warren Buffet depicts this perfectly:

If the reason for doing something is that everyone else is doing it, it’s not a good enough reason

The reason why asking what for? is a productivity habit, is because it makes sure that you are spending your time doing the right things.

Of course, you are most productive when you are working on things that are aligned with your values, goals, and mission, otherwise what’s the point?

Asking yourself what for? regularly will help you see if what you’re currently working on or what you’re doing is truly something you want. If it’s something that you want, then of course, keep doing it!

If you’re feeling like it’s not something that you really want to do, then you have to think about why you’re doing it. Are you doing it because everyone else is doing it? Are you doing it because you feel like you should do it? Are you doing it because you know people will praise you for it?

Simply asking what for? will open your eyes a bit. It will help you realise if the things you’re currently doing are actually things you want to do and aligns with you. Because you want to spend more of your time doing those things!

Take a SMALL STEP

Here are some small action steps you can take to get started on these habits (and then pick ONE that you’ll fully focus on for the month):

1. Calendar Blocking & Planning – Start calendar blocking ONE day. See how it works with all your priorities and commitments.
2. 2 minute rule – Today, if there are any tasks today that take less than 2 minutes, just do it!
3. Preparation keys – Prepare everything you need for tomorrow. Everything. So when the day starts, you’re ready to go.
4. Reflect on what works and what doesn’t – Write down what is currently working for you, and what’s not (maybe do 3 each)
5. 5 Second Rule – Today, the moment you “feel like not doing it”, countdown to 5 and boom! You’ll do it.
6. Relax – write down 3 things you’ll do to relax this week.
7. Ask “What For?” – write down all your priorities and commitments you’re currently working on. Write down a reason why you’re doing those things.

For more small steps on other habits, you can read my free book Small Steps to Progression. You can download for free here!

Being Productive is Not About Being MORE Busy

Being productive is not about having many things to do. All the habits outlined above is all about bettering your productivity and your work performance rather than helping you become more busy.

That’s why we calendar block our time so we can make sure we still have time to do things we enjoy. We save time using habits such as the 2 minute rule, preparation keys, and the 5 Second Rule so that we save time during the day (and do things we enjoy). We also do reflection habits such as asking what for and what works and what doesn’t work so you can make sure that you’re spending time doing things that are of value to you.

So you see, being productive is not about being more busy. It’s about spending your time wisely in the way you want to!

-Lauren ☺

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Related Articles:

All Productivity Blog Posts HERE!

10 Actual Ways to Live A More Productive Life

Easy Productivity Tips for All Areas of Your Life

Build a Successful Foundation for Productivity in Easy Steps

Mistakes People Make When Trying to Be Productive

5 Ways to Enhance Your Productivity

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