Helping others
Productivity shouldn’t only be the pursuit of self-improvement, but also a mission to improve the lives and the work of people we encounter.
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It’s less about “how” and more about “what”. When you’re focused on unimportant objectives, you feel painfully stuck. It’s like trudging along on a treadmill; sure, you’re running, but you’re not actually getting anywhere. On the contrary, when you’ve had a deeply productive day, you’ll know it.
This leaves you to make room on your calendar for discussions that exhilarate you.
When what you spend your time on is congruent with your interests and values, progress feels conveniently close.
Rather than wondering what we need to do next, hour-to-hour or minute-to-minute, planning ahead allows us to save time on indecision and helps us execute on everything we want to get done with greater precision.
Approaching what we need to do with intention makes productivity feel like second nature.
Focusing all the hours in the day squarely on your career is a fast-track to burnout. Neglecting self-care can be a powerful driver in a lack of productivity and a diminished ability to focus
Purposeful work involves activities that are simultaneously engaging and impactful and leads to a complete immersion in work that feels incredibly rewarding.
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- The habit of putting off starting, because it’s uncomfortable.
- Maybe you get started, but then constantly switch to other tasks.
- You put off starting (or finishing) because conditions aren’t perfect, or the work isn’t perfect.
- Rely too much on other people and not taking responsibility.
- You get pulled away by constant distractions and interruptions.
- Fear, uncertainty, feeling overwhelmed & self-doubt and tiredness.
To focus you need to eliminate the distractions, commit to one thing and become great at it.
To know what to focus on, try different things for some time until something comes easily and you can master the core fundamentals of the task. This way you can get a sense of what fits you and set yourself up for success by focusing on what works best.
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Although it might feel natural to create your to-do list first thing in the morning, it's too late.
Writing the list at the end of the day allows you to leave work behind and transition into personal time.