Set aside different tasks for different days of the week. And even if you can’t set aside full days to deal with certain issues, block off certain hours of the day to handle them. This can give you the time you need to make headway in those particular areas, without putting your brain on overload.

Theme your week

Your brain operates optimally when you consume a very specific amount of glucose (25 grams) in a form that is released slowly over time. Foods that fall into this category and have positive effects on you include fish, nuts, seeds, avocado, blueberries, raw carrots, and dark chocolate.

Eating “productive” foods

<ul>
<li>Limit your caffeine to early in the day</li>
<li>Choose late-day foods that bring on sleep, like bananas, oatmeal, and potatoes</li>
<li>Using earplugs or a white noise machine to cut out outside noise at night</li>
<li>Darken your room</li>
<li>Stay away from technology for a good hour before bedtime</li></ul>

Get a good night’s sleep:

Having no routine or structure is so much more draining mentally, physically, and emotionally than any routine could ever be. You're depriving your body and mind of the energy and direction these activities would bring.

Routines and structure

1. Choose a task (just one at a time)2. Set a timer for 25 minutes3. Work on the task until the timer rings then put a check mark in a tracker4. Take a five minutes break5. Repeat steps 1-4 three more times, followed by a 15 minutes break.

The POMODORO technique

If you immediately check your email or social media accounts when you wake up in the morning, you’re starting your day off in reactive mode instead of proactive. It means spending the best part of the day on other people's priorities.

No e-mails in the morning

Breaking your day into chunks helps you be the best you as too much time spent doing one thing can cause you to lose focus and interest. And if you’re working on something you don’t really want to do, it makes it easier because you only have to do it for a short while.

Break your day into chunks

Taking regular breaks keeps you from getting bored and losing focus, increasing your brain’s function at the same time. It also forces you to reevaluate what you’re working on, ensuring that you’re going in the right direction.

Taking breaks during the day

<ol><li>Jumping jacks;</li><li>Wall sit;</li><li>Push-up;</li><li>Abdominal crunch;</li><li>Step-up onto a chair;</li><li>Squat;</li><li>Triceps dip on a chair;</li><li>Plank;</li><li>High knees running in place;</li><li>Lunge;</li><li>Push-up and rotation;</li><li>Side plank.</li></ol>

Scientific 7-Minute Workout:

"Good habits are hard to form but easy to live with. Bad habits are easy to form but hard to live with."

Spending time writing every day helps you become a better communicator, improves your ability to recall important information, and it also enhances your creativity. Writing in a diary format will add the benefit of greater self-understanding

Writing as a self-improvement tool

Aristotle is credited with saying these 15 famous words. And for most of my life...I didn't believe him. I fought against cultivating good habits and routines because I didn't want to feel like I had to live my life by other people's rules. I wanted to be my own person and do my own thing.

BRIAN TRACY

Similar ideas

Chapter 2 How Your Habits Shape Your Identity (and Vice Versa)

Forming Good Habits

How To Break Bad Habits