Most people want more done during the course of the day, feeling productive if they have checked more boxes out of their to-do list. Time management has been a fad for a long time, equating productivity with the number of hours spent working.
The way we approach time management is proving to be a vicious circle of wasting time managing time, turning it into a problem rather than a solution towards productivity.

Time Management Is Not A Solution

Time Management

Shifting our focus towards people and projects, rather than the time it takes for us to work on something is referred to as Attention Management.
Productivity is not a virtue, but just a means to an end, and it means nothing if the end is not worthy. Paying attention to your intrinsic motivation, on why you are excited about the project will make you push yourself naturally and achieve the goal.

Attention Management

Many studies show that bad weather days when it is too cold or rainy, keeps the working people glued to their work, being more productive as they are less distracted by the thought of going outside.

Lack Of Distractions Promotes Productivity

Contrasting effects, which compare your mundane task to the more enticing and juicy alternatives, make the task even more escuricating and dull. This Attention Residue happens because our mind keeps wandering to a more interesting task, making the timing of the various tasks at hand something to consider.
Example: Eating a sweet dessert makes your sour vegetable taste even more yuckier.

Contrasting Effects: Attention Residue

Based on the kind of work and energy levels, one can plan the days or weeks into different kinds of work zones, where there are clear demarcations on the kind of work you plan to do.
<ul>
<li>Maker Days: Days or times of the day where we enter the flow mode of creativity with no distractions.</li>
<li>Manager Days: when we answer emails, make calls and hold our meetings.</li>
</ul>

Maker And Manager Days

"Time management" is not a solution - it's actually part of the problem. A few years ago during a break in a leadership class I was teaching, a manager named Michael walked up looking unsettled. His boss had told him he needed to be more productive, so he had spent a few hours analyzing how he spent his time.

Time Management Tips That Will Make You a Productivity Master

23 Time Management Techniques of Insanely Busy People

Context switching is killing your productivity (here's what to do about it)