In today’s time, we as a society have glorified the idea of being ‘busy ‘. People that are seen constantly stressed, buried in their work are viewed as more accomplished than someone not swamped by work and worry. Today’s hustle cultre views these so called ‘hard-workers ‘ as the image of the ‘perfect employee ‘ and holds this standard of being busy on a pedestal.

No, it’s hard to say that everything about hustle cultre or being busy is bad. But it’s definitely a point to note that these do glorify the idea of constantly being on the go and working and have even made it the norm for today’s generation to constantly be working and measuring their own self worth by how much they’ve accomplished.

Is being busy actually bad?

Think about it, how many times have you criticized yourself because you didn’t do ‘enough work ‘ or you didn’t ‘work harder ‘?How many times have you actually been happy on a day off and been glad that you took care of yourself?According to the standards we’ve created for ourselves, anyone who isn’t busy and doesn’t spend every second immersed in work simply doesn’t stand up to these standards and is just termed as ‘not hard working ‘ or simply ‘lazy ‘.This outlook of society makes us judge our own self worth by the amount of work we do and the labels society puts on us.

* Putting Labels On Ourselves 

Glorifying the idea of always being busy tends to make us much more about self and can, in a sense, make our thoughts and actions even more selfish. We tend to get more stuck in our own little world excessively brooding about our own work and our own problems which obviously have a negative strike to our mental health but also end up in us neglecting close friends and family.Cancelling plans last minute, not being present for special occasions and being missing from important moments tends to become ‘normal ‘ for busy people.

* Busyness Affects Our Relationships 

The current idea of busyness doesn’t necessarily put in ‘quality of work’ as an important factor, instead, ‘quantity of work’ becomes the deciding factor. When we place priorities in the wrong areas it does end up being counter-productive and instead of actually getting things done we might only be wasting precious time.It’s necessary to keep track of how and what you spend your time. Know if the time you spend on doing something is actually for something ‘productive ‘ or is it just being busy.

* Quality Over Quantity Or Quantity Over Quality? 

Being ‘busy ‘ isn’t something you’re forced to do, it’s a life choice – something you make and continue.Know that being efficient isn’t about the number of hours you spend doing something that may or may not have a positive outcome. Efficiency is about the number of positive results you get on doing things. Think about the things you do on a daily basis that you think are ‘productive ‘ – does it actually give outcomes that help you grow? Does it help with things you’re struggling with/find difficult?

How to know if you’re actually productive or just busy?

Being busy is just about passing time doing things that seem productive,while actually, using time for things that support growth is real productivity.Answering emails is one such task that might seem and feel productive but it has more cons to pros. It doesn’t matter how many times a day you check your email, you can always expect more to be there eventually. It always makes you feel productive but in reality it just gives you that extra stress that hampers with actual productivity. It’s often advised to check your emails only once or twice a day to allow some actual productivity instead of sp<warningtag>ending hours each day in ‘pseudo-productivity ‘.</warningtag>

Being busy is just about passing time doing things that seem productive,while actually, using time for things that support growth is real productivity.Answering emails is one such task that might seem and feel productive but it has more cons to pros. It always makes you feel productive but in reality it just gives you that extra stress that hampers with actual productivity.It’s often advised to check your emails only once or twice a day to allow some actual productivity instead of spending hours each day in ‘pseudo-productivity

* Being Productive Or Pseudo-productive 

When we’re constantly under stress and lose work-life balance (which is a consequence of hustle cultre) we tend to mess with our attention span, and the constant pressure from work and personal life harms the cognitive bandwidth.Even though having narrow cognitive bandwidth might help you hyperfocus on something, it also has its cons – popularly termed as Tunneling.In the most simple terms, tunneling is being extra focused on things that are right infront of us that may not be so productive, which is caused by extreme stress in our lives.

But why is it that we fixate ourselves in pseudo-productive work?

A definite point of importance is that when we become so fixated in our own lives doing ‘productive’ work, we tend to have less time for things that actually matter, like our own physical and mental health. We tend to have less time for decisions that affect us, instead we make impulsive decisions because taking cautious, calculative steps isn’t an option anymore.

* Pseudo-productive Work Affects Our Health 

• It might make us feel important to be constantly busy and get that validation from society. But remember that the same busyness has long term effects on your health.These long hours of stress and lack of sleep and completely ignoring self-health can lead to problems like headaches, insomnia, fatigue, seizures, etc. When you make changes in busyness, you will only have positive changes in your physical and mental health and will improve relationships with people you’ve been pushing away.

So how can we get rid of busyness and make time for things that actually matter?

• Take a deep dive into the work you’re always busy doing – then think if spending all that time and resources is actually a wise decision. Spend time doing things that you actually find valuable – does it feel productive?• Learn to ignore the voices, views and opinions of society that promotes hustle cultre and being busy. Keep in mind the actual goal you have, that which you strive for. (I know it’s so much more easier said than done, but give it a shot!) Challenge the idea of being busy and go for what you believe you want to do.

• Understand the importance of saying no to things that don’t serve purpose to your life, instead, spend that time on things that drive you and things you find yourself excited to do.• Sometimes you can find true satisfaction in doing less. You could do hundreds of tasks a day but they won’t necessarily bring you happiness, but even doing one task that drives you can be the source of your happiness.• Encourage yourself and people around you to get the image of being busy out of their mind and instead set being productive as the idealistic mindset.

The idea od being busy has become glorified to an unhealthy extent, maybe it's time to take a step back and think of not always being busy, but being efficient. 

productivity

Productivity

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

health

Health

mentalhealth

Mental Health

timemanagement

Time Management

Being Busy Is Good?

The approach of building a Second Brain is focused on behavior and habits first, rather than tools, and consists of 4 universal steps called CODE.<ul><li>C (COLLECT)</li><li>O (ORGANIZE)</li><li>D (DISTILL)</li><li>E (EXPRESS)</li></ul>In this case, we will focus on the O phase in which we need a method to organize the information we have collected.This can be achieved with the PARA Method.

Building the Second Brain with The PARA Method

PARA is a principle that’ll help you organize your work digitally. <ul><li>Projects: series of tasks linked to a goal, with a deadline.</li><li>Areas: spheres of activity with a standard to be maintained over time.</li><li>Resources: topics or themes of ongoing interest.</li><li>Archives: inactive items from the other three categories.</li></ul>

What is the PARA Method?

A project has a goal to be achieved — a discrete event that will happen, allowing this item to be completely checked. This goal is supposed to take place at a specific moment in time. It has a deadline or timeframe, whether externally or self-imposed.Projects always fall into Areas. A few examples:<ul><li>Running a marathon is a project, whereas Health is an area</li><li>Publishing a book is a project, whereas Writing is an area</li><li>A vacation to Thailand is a project, whereas Travel is an area</li></ul>

PROJECTS 

Areas of Responsibility are the roles you take on in life and the hats you wear, the ongoing standards where the buck stops with you, and things that take a certain amount of constant attention.<ul><li>Exercise, Finances, Apartment, Pets.</li></ul>

AREAS

Resources are interests, themes, and assets. <ul><li>Psychology, politics, leadership</li><li>Web design,architecture; note-taking</li><li>Stock photos, typography links</li></ul>

RESOURCES

Archives are inactive items from the other three categories.<ul><li>Projects that have been completed or become inactive</li><li>Areas that you are no longer committed to maintaining</li><li>Resources that you are no longer interested in</li></ul>

WORKFLOW

The PARA method has helped me organize the information I collect into actionable things like uploading a post or finishing a university assignment. 

Tiago Forte is most known for his concept of developing a Second Brain. The 
Second Brain helps thousands to organize their minds digitally using 
concepts like CODE and PARA plot out everything in an organized fashion.

writing

Reading & Writing

problemsolving

Problem Solving

business

Business

How to Build a Second Brain - Tiago Forte Style  — Keep Productive

Jordan Peterson suggests that Good is simply the prevention of Evil, and good rules that reduce unnecessary human suffering will help us to live better lives. The 12 Rules of Life in this book are built on the fundamental rule that we must each take responsibility for our own lives. Get your life in order and do the best for yourself, your society, and the world at large. Only then will you discover the true extent of your potential and resilience, while helping mankind to thrive collectively.

12 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson

All animals, including humans, are governed by dominance hierarchies and involuntary biochemical responses. Lobsters, for example, the battle for dominance. During a confrontation, 2 lobsters size each other up using their body/claw sizes and chemical secretions (which signal their health, strength, and mood). Dominant lobsters have higher serotonin levels, project greater confidence, a better posture, and can fight longer. An alpha lobster typically “wins” without even having to fight physically.

Rule 1: Fix your Posture

After each confrontation, a lobster’s brain changes—the loser avoids further conflict, whereas the victor gains even higher confidence and serotonin levels. Similar patterns can be found in other animal species—generally, stronger animals get more food, better “homes”, higher status, better mates, and greater cooperation from others. That’s nature’s way of distributing scarce resources.Likewise, humans have a dominance detector in our brains. How we perceive our social/economic status affects our well-being which reinforces our status in a positive feedback loop.

People with strong self-esteem feel/transmit a sense of security and confidence, which makes them more attractive and respected. This improves their productivity and well-being, which further reinforces their self-perception. Higher serotonin levels are associated with greater resilience, happiness, health, lifespan, pro-social behavior, and leadership.• On the other hand, people with a low self-perception feel insecure. They’re more likely to be stressed, jumpy, and reactive. They make poor decisions, fail to command respect/resources, which reinforce their loser complex.

In short, our self-perception affects the vibes we transmit to create a self-reinforcing loop. If you feel like a loser for whatever reason, the first step is to break the negative cycle by correcting your posture.• Don’t slouch. It conveys defeat and low status, which prompts others to treat you poorly and reinforces your low self-perception.

• Fix your posture. Stand straight, push your shoulders back, speak up and make eye contact. This signals confidence to yourself and others. You’ll feel better, others will show you more respect, and it starts a virtuous cycle. It’s about standing tall, facing up to reality, and taking responsibility to become all you can be.

We tend to take better care of our pets than we do ourselves. When a pet is sick, we diligently follow the prescribed care. Yet, when we’re sick, we fail to fill/take our prescriptions.

Rule 2: Care for yourself like how you’d care for someone else

We become the average of the people we spend the most time with. In the wrong company, we can end up in crime or even suicide. So, why do we hang around people who drag us down?

Rule 3: Surround yourself with people who want the best for you

In a highly-connected, populous world, you can always find someone who’s better than you—be it in looks, wealth, status, or relationships. No matter what you’ve achieved, you can still feel miserably inferior compared to others.

Rule 4: Improve your own game instead of playing others’

children aren’t born with social-cultural skills—they must be taught how the world works and how to navigate human society. Parents who don’t set clear boundaries for their young kids actually end up hurting them in the long run.

Rule 5: Teach your children to abide by society’s rules

Setbacks and suffering are inevitable in life. Some people respond with denial, helplessness, anger, or even acts of vengeance (e.g. genocide). Yet, others are positively transformed by adversity—they make peace with what happened and devote themselves to making a positive difference. Which type are you?

Rule 6: Get your own house in order before criticizing others

We can use suffering as an excuse to live carelessly in the moment, or we can do something meaningful to minimize the suffering.

Rule 7: Focus on a higher purpose, not instant gratification

All of us are guilty of lying to ourselves and others. Find out why we lie, how we get stuck in a “life-lie” because, and what it means to find and live your personal truth.

Rule 8: Find your personal truth and live it

People need a listening ear. As a good listener, you can learn while helping others to solve problems.

Rule 9: Learn to be a good listener

We avoid looking deeply into a problem in hope that it’ll go away by itself, but this only causes the doubts and uncertainties to build up into a catastrophic failure.

Rule 10: Define your problem precisely to make it manageable

Some post-modernists argue that gender is entirely a social construct or a tool for men to oppress women and that hierarchies are created by the rich to exploit the poor. Peterson disagrees :)

Rule 11: Accept that inequality exists

Suffering is inevitable and some people just seem to have a worse lot in life than others. Peterson’s own daughter suffered from a rare juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and was plagued with years of chronic pain. If you find yourself wondering about the seemingly-pointless suffering around us, this last rule from the 12 Rules of Life helps us to see things from a different perspective and to balance the good and bad in life so life seems worth living.

Rule 12: Take time to appreciate the good things in life

Fantastic, it’s everything you expect from Jordan B. Peterson. A “self-help” style book, it beautifully interweaves history, religion, science, and philosophy into a highly pragmatic book on how to be a fulfilled, successful, better human being.

Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology

philosophy

Philosophy

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

Book Summary – 12 Rules For Life: An Antidote To Chaos

According to the video, studies, and the book of The Power of When, there are like 4 chronotypes in which people are categorized in how they should spend their time during the day for productive work, which is heavily influenced by the circadian cycle. <ul><li>🦁 Lion Chronotype </li><li>🐻 Bear Chronotype</li><li>🐬 Dolphin Chronotype</li><li>🐺 Wolf Chronotype</li></ul>

Ideal schedule according to my chronotype

Four Key Personality Traits:Cautiousness, introversion, neuroticism, intelligenceFour Key Behaviors:Avoiding risky situations, striving for perfection, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, fixating on details.Sleep/Alertness Pattern:Dolphins usually wake up feeling unrefreshed and are tired until late in the evening, when they suddenly hit their stride.

Characteristics of a Dolphin

Morning Routine<ul><li>1 hour to wake up slowly & shower</li><li>1 hour to eat breakfast & plan for the day</li></ul>Mid Morning:<ul><li>1 hour of less demanding tasks;</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1 hour to tackle demanding, productive work;</li><li>15-minute break;</li><li>1 hour for a lunch break.</li></ul>Afternoon:<ul><li>1 hour to tackle demanding, productive work</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1 hour of administrative tasks/chores;</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1 hour to tackle demanding, productive work;</li><li>30 minutes to wrap up the day</li></ul>Late afternoon<ul><li>Workout or engage in a personal project/meet with friends or study</li></ul>Evening<ul><li>1 hour to have dinner</li><li>1-2 hours of slow-paced activities, like reading</li><li>Go to bed early</li></ul>

The Perfect Day of a Dolphin

Four Key Personality Traits: Conscientiousness, stability, practicality, optimismFour Key Behaviors: Overachieving, prioritizing health and fitness, seeking positive interactions, strategizingSleep/Alertness Pattern: Lions wake up bright-eyed at dawn or earlier, start to feel tired in the late afternoon, and fall asleep easily.

Characteristics of a Lion

Four Key Personality Traits: Cautiousness, extroversion, friendly and easy to talk to, open-mindedFour Key Behaviors: Avoiding conflict, aspiring to be healthy, prioritizing happiness, taking comfort in the familiarSleep/Alertness Pattern:Bears wake up in a daze after hitting the snooze button once or twice.Most alert: mid-morning into early afternoon.Most productive: late morning.

Characteristics of a Bear

Morning Routine<ul><li>1 hour to wake up, work out & shower</li><li>1 hour to eat breakfast & tackle one individual project</li></ul>Mid Morning:<ul><li>2 hours to tackle demanding, productive work</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>2 hours to tackle demanding, productive work;</li><li>15-minute break;</li><li>Use lunch break to call a friend, watch a series or grab some coffee.</li></ul>Afternoon:<ul><li>1-2 hours of less demanding tasks</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1 hour of administrative tasks/chores;</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>30 minutes to wrap up the day</li></ul>Late afternoon<ul><li>If energized, enjoy a high-energy activity/task/workout for no longer than 1 hour.</li></ul>Evening<ul><li>1 hour to have dinner</li><li>Go to bed </li></ul>

The Perfect Day of a Lion

Morning Routine<ul><li>1 hour to wake up, eat breakfast & plan for the day </li></ul>Mid Morning:<ul><li>2 hours to tackle less demanding tasks</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>2 hours to tackle demanding, productive work;</li><li>15-minute break;</li><li>Use lunch break to call a friend, watch a series or grab some coffee.</li></ul>Afternoon:<ul><li>1-2 hours of demanding productive work</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1 hour of administrative tasks/chores;</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>30 minutes to wrap up the day</li></ul>Late afternoon<ul><li>Optional: workout or engaging in a personal project/activity or study</li></ul>Evening<ul><li>1 hour to have dinner</li><li>If energized,1-2 hours of work or If tired: 1-2 hours of slow-paced activities.</li></ul>

The Perfect Day of a Bear

Four Key Personality Traits:Impulsivity, pessimism, creativity, moodinessFour Key Behaviors: Taking risks, prioritizing pleasure, seeking novelty, reacting with emotional intensitySleep/Alertness Pattern:Wolves have difficulty waking up before 9:00 a.m.Most alert: 7:00 p.m.Most productive: late morning and late evening.

Characteristics of a Wolf

Morning Routine<ul><li>1 hour to wake up, shower & engage in one interest </li><li>30 minutes for breakfast & planning for the day</li></ul>Mid Morning:<ul><li>2 hours of less demanding tasks</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1-hour administrative tasks/chores</li><li>15-minute break;</li><li>1 hour for lunch break</li></ul>Afternoon:<ul><li>1-2 hours to tackle demanding productive work</li><li>15-minute break</li><li>1-2 hours to tackle demanding productive work</li><li>15-minute break</li></ul>Late afternoon<ul><li>1-2 hours of high energy activity, tasks, or workout </li><li>Use late of the afternoon to meet/call friends</li></ul>Evening<ul><li>1 hour to have dinner</li><li>1-2 hours of high-intensity activities</li><li>1 hour of unwinding</li></ul>

The Perfect Day of a Wolf

Grab CuriosityStream + Nebula for 26% discount (14.79$/year): https://curiositystream.com/studycorner A chronotype is someone's internal clock and it dictates how your energy fluctuates during the day. All chronotypes fall into a spectrum so it's impossible to individually categorize each single person's chronotype, but in broad terms, most people fall into four different categories: bear, dolphin, wolf and lion chronotypes. Knowing your chronotype may have a big impact on how you structure your day, when you schedule tasks and, most of all, what you can expect from yourself in terms of energy, creativity and productivity throughout the day. And passing on this knowledge to loved ones and people close to you is also important, because you’re also showing them what they can expect from you, and when. — Chronotype Schedules — Lion: https://cutt.ly/7bMbc6g Dolphin: https://cutt.ly/YbMbWgb Bear: https://cutt.ly/obMbE6V Wolf: https://cutt.ly/NbMbTad I offer organisation consulting services. If you're interested, contact me via hello@simpleproductivity.net You can support me on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/marianascorner Video edited by: Mary Among Stories (maryamongstories@gmail.com) Stock videos and imagery supplied by Getty Images FTC: This video is sponsored by CuriosityStream.

habits

Habits

Grab CuriosityStream + Nebula for 26% discount (14.79$/year): https://curiositystream.com/studycorner

A chronotype is someone's internal clock and it dictates how your energy fluctuates during the day. All chronotypes fall into a spectrum so it's impossible to individually categorize each single person's chronotype, but in broad terms, most people fall into four different categories: bear, dolphin, wolf and lion chronotypes. 

Knowing your chronotype may have a big impact on how you structure your day, when you schedule tasks and, most of all, what you can expect from yourself in terms of energy, creativity and productivity throughout the day. And passing on this knowledge to loved ones and people close to you is also important, because you’re also showing them what they can expect from you, and when. 

— Chronotype Schedules —

Lion: https://cutt.ly/7bMbc6g

Dolphin: https://cutt.ly/YbMbWgb

Bear: https://cutt.ly/obMbE6V

Wolf: https://cutt.ly/NbMbTad

I offer organisation consulting services. If you're interested, contact me via hello@simpleproductivity.net

You can support me on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/marianascorner

Video edited by: Mary Among Stories (maryamongstories@gmail.com)

Stock videos and imagery supplied by Getty Images

FTC: This video is sponsored by CuriosityStream.

Productivity for real people, not robots. 

(Old channel name: Mariana Study Corner)

Sponsorships/business inquiries: marianastudycorner@standard.tv

For anything else, you can e-mail me at hello@marianastudycorner.com


Mariana Vieira

I created your ideal schedule (according to your chronotype!)

The business and productivity app market is worth billions of dollars. Every day, there is a new productivity tool popping up, a book about productivity being published, and millions of people reading and sharing content related to personal productivity. It started as a measure of efficiency for the production of goods and services. Somehow, along the way, many of us have become addicted to productivity.

The Premise

At its core, productivity addiction is based on the same reward systems as other addictions. By providing constant reinforcement — for example, financial rewards in the form of salary increases, or social rewards in the form of work recognition — productivity can become a goal in and of itself, resulting in compulsive behaviours.
The problem is that just like all addictions, over time a person needs more and more to be satisfied and then it starts to work against you. Withdrawal symptoms include increased anxiety, depression and fear.

The Obsession With Productivity

At least in the Western world, our education has often taught us to tie our self-worth to how much we contribute to society. The more we contribute, the better. “I work, therefore I am.” Being productive feels like a way to improve our self-worth.This positive reinforcement can make it hard to realise we may be falling prey to productivity addiction.

Addicted To Productivity

There are five tell-tale signs you may be addicted to productivity:<ul><li>You don’t want to “waste” any time.</li><li>You tend to turn hobbies into side projects.</li><li>You feel guilty when you don’t hit your targets. </li><li>You always make work a priority. </li><li>You constantly feel busy.</li></ul>

Five Tell-Tale Signs

<ul><li>Make space for self-reflection. </li><li>Define meaningful priorities.</li><li>Remember that <a href="https://nesslabs.com/hobbies-versus-hustles">not all hobbies need to become hustles</a>.</li><li>Reconsider your relationship with time.</li><li> Create your own system. </li><li>pay attention to your triggers.</li></ul>As a recovering productivity addict, you may need to always be careful about not falling back into old patterns whenever you start a new job, a new hobby, or set a new exciting goal. Practising self-reflection and paying attention to your mental health will ensure the way you work is more enjoyable and more sustainable.

How to Manage Productivity Addiction

It started as a measure of efficiency for the production of goods and services. Somehow, along the way, many of us have become addicted to productivity.

Productivity addiction: when we become obsessed with productivity

There are several reasons why people work better in the afternoon. <ul><li>Based on circadian rhythms, some people just naturally focus better in the late afternoons or evening.</li><li>Working from home has also played a role in uncovering natural energy patterns.</li><li>Parkinson's law is at work here too. It is the idea that work expands to fill the time allotted. In the morning, we feel we have all the time in the world to focus on our to-do list. But when 2pm rolls around, we kick into high gear and accomplish all our tasks with the limited time left.</li></ul>

Why some people are more productive in the afternoons

Get the most out of those three hours of work. Reserve that 2 to 5 pm time slot for tackling your big projects. When you do your most important work during your peak energy, you can work quicker and more accurately. Use your mornings for tasks that you can easily accomplish, such as attending meetings, answering emails, and tidying up your computer files.

Work with your natural energy instead of against it

Once you're feeling creative, you want to maximise that time. Silence your phone and other devices that compete for your attention. Close additional browser tabs that may be distracting you.

Ensure you are ready when you enter your peak hours

The shift from morning to afternoon productivity may be due to working from home and the resultant blurring of our work and personal lives. Our daily morning commute was pretty important. You used to have a routine that got you from home to your place of work. If you no longer commute, you don't have that ritual to signal to your brain that it's work time now. To overcome those blurred lines, you can make your morning time feel more "official" by going on a "false commute", even if it is a walk around the block to switch your mindset to think about what you want to achieve at work.

Create a “false commute”

If you've identified co-workers who share your work and energy patterns, consider asking them to be your "accountability partner." Brainstorming and bouncing ideas around with your accountability partner will help to motivate you. Then, when they're in a similar rut, you can be there for them, too.

Partner with other people who find morning productivity challenging

Help! I Only Feel Productive In The Afternoon

“You can’t control time, but you can control your attention. We can all improve productivity if we can systemize the way we work. Instead of looking for the latest tips and tricks, we need to work on attention and workflow management to improve productivity. This involves a collection of behaviors, not done by an app or software.”

<ul><li>Reactive and Distracted: This state is superficial. Your attention is divided and you may be trying to multitask. </li><li>Daydreaming: This state is when you are choosing not to focus on anything in particular. </li><li>Focused and Mindful: This state is where you’re fully present and deliberately avoiding distraction. </li><li>Flow: If you’re lucky, your brain can tip from focused and mindful into flow. This is a state and not a behavior. It’s when you’re laser-focused and fully absorbed in a task. You are disengaged from your sense of self and work is effortless. </li></ul>

4 brain states and how they impact your productivity

The ultimate goal of attention management is to recognize which brain state you’re in and then shift to the one that will help you produce your best results in that moment. Each of the four brain states has a related amount of attention and effort or control.For example, if you are in a reactive and distracted state while you’re trying to work on a project, you won’t be able to get traction. This state is not conducive to focused work. But if you can recognize that’s where you are, you can take steps to move into a focused or mindful state, says Thomas.

Using the 4 states

“Attention management skills are critical to taking back control. They allow you to refocus your day on your priorities, so you can make progress on meaningful work instead of reacting to every incoming [demand] on your attention.”

Instead of using traditional time management techniques, we need to manage our attention and workflow.


How to tap into your brain’s 4 attention states to get more done

Working hard all day doesn’t matter if it’s on the wrong tasks. The most critical factor in your productivity is what you decide to work on.The question of what to work on is under-discussed. There’s plenty of advice on getting work done: setting up good habits, creating productivity systems, project management, and planning. Yet, there’s relative silence for the crucial decision of which projects to pursue.

What to Work On

A fundamental distinction is between having too many ideas or too few.<ul><li>Having too many ideas creates the problem of prioritization. Evaluate your current activities and cull those that don’t make the cut.</li><li>Too few ideas can leave you feeling stuck. You want things to be better, but nothing pops out as worth pursuing. As a result, you put half-hearted efforts into tasks you’re not sure will work.</li></ul>The “right” quantity of ideas isn’t a given. Instead, it’s a mental threshold for what’s worth pursuing. Dialing it up forces you to focus, and dialing it down lets you explore more options.

Ruling Out, Ruling In

In practice, most ideas—even groundbreaking ones—tend to be derivative or incremental. Even ideas that look original usually start out as a permutation on something already extant. Given background and context, even the most radical suggestions look like incremental steps.This suggests that the best way to have better ideas is to expose yourself to more ideas. To the ones used by people who are accomplishing things in same the direction you’d like to go.

Coming Up With Ideas

<ul><li>A threshold for action is a crude way for filtering your projects. Advice to “do less” or “do more” misses the crux of the issue. Which efforts should you drop? Which ones should you undertake?</li><li>Having adjusted your threshold, and hopefully immersed yourself in a range of possible idea templates, now you need to cross over from a notion to a commitment.</li><li>A commitment can come from either direction. You can lower your threshold for action, generate a new idea and decide to pursue it. Or you can tighten your standards and commit to focusing on a pursuit you are already engaged in. </li></ul>

Making the Choice

Much of life boils down to figuring out a path for yourself and then getting yourself to actually walk it. We often fail to stick to our plans because we’re not confident in our chosen path. And we fail to find paths forward because we don’t try enough things to find our footing.Decision and action are always combined. The challenge is taking the next step.

Finding a Path and Walking It

Working hard doesn't matter if it's on the wrong things. Thoughts on making the hard decisions about what to focus on.

career

Career

How to Decide What to Work On - Scott H Young

When we nap, sleep pressure is released, increasing cognitive function, performance and memory while reducing stress and sleepiness.A successful power nap should leave you feeling refreshed and prepared to cruise through your to-do list in no time.

Power Naps

Enjoying a coffee 15-20 minutes before lying down helps to prevent the brain from absorbing adenosine, a chemical that causes drowsiness and sleep. By the time you wake up, the caffeine will have kicked in, providing an extra jolt of energy.

Start with a Cup of Coffee

<ul><li>Noise-free, dark and cool (60-67 degree Fahrenheit/15-22 degree Celsius) environments are most conducive to productive sleep. </li><li>Try to wind down before attempting to sleep. Perhaps try a short meditation, go for a walk outside, or listen to calm music.</li><li>If you have been trying to fall asleep for longer than you’d like, but still can’t seem to relax and go to sleep, it can be a good idea to get up.</li><li>To aid sleep, the sleeping space should be used for sleeping, and when we can’t sleep and start to worry, we start to relate that place to worry instead of the ability to relax and to sleep.</li></ul>

Set the Stage

Naps that exceed 20 minutes can increase sleep inertia, or in layman’s terms — give you that heavy feeling after you wake up. Sleep inertia happens when you awake from a deep sleep. <ul><li> To ensure you are hitting the power nap ‘sweet spot,’ set your alarm for 15-20 minutes. The exception to this rule is if you’re sleep-deprived and have the luxury of being able to nap long enough to complete a full sleep cycle, which is at least 90 minutes.</li><li>The best time to nap is between 1PM – 3PM when most of us experience a natural dip in energy. </li></ul>

Timing is Everything 

Did you know there are a few things that could be hindering your power nap? The next time your post-lunch yawn sets in, consider these three go-to tips.

Mastering the Art of the Power Nap: 3 Go-To Tips

When I was a student, I didn't have a notebook on every subject that I had, especially on my High School days.I have my system of remembering things and how to pull them out whenever I need them. I take notes on a piece of paper, preferably lengthwise, to jot down all the critical points of my teacher outline them so that I can quickly skim through and remember them when examination comes.Staying focused in this noisy world is so darn hard; you need to have a system that can deflect all these noises and for you to be able to focus on studying.

A flashback on how I studied back then...

<ol><li>Set a routine</li></ol> 2. Establish study goals and rewards 3. Plan out a study schedule 4. Create a study checklist  Gearing up for a successful study session 5. Create a positive study environment 6. Set aside online distractions 7. Fuel up with nutritious study snacks 8. Help yourself stay motivated 9. Organize a study group Creating and using helpful study resources 10. Cater to your learning style 11. Take study notes in your own words 12. Visualize ideas and topics 13. Make flashcards 14. Use practice worksheets 16. Become an efficient reader 17. Test yourself

17 Study Tips to Help You Focus

I know that seeing this word that starts with R and ends with E is a pain in our eyes.But creating an environment that will make you stick to your priorities as a student will go a long way!<a href="https://www.canva.com/planners/">Creating a planner</a> for your daily or weekly activities can block your time and help you properly assess your priorities.Sticking to your planner, clocking in and out of those tasks will create a habit that will soon become your routine.

Set Routine

“A clear vision, backed by definite plans, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power.”

Study Goals will be your North Star and help you navigate the jungle of learning.Rewards will supplement the achievement of your set goals, thus keeping the fire burning for more plans to smash!

Establish Study Goals and Rewards

Use a working <a href="https://www.canva.com/calendars/">calendar </a>to manage your time. This will not only let you count down the days until your exam but it will also empower you to evenly spread out review sessions. Use your calendar to jot down assignment due dates and other important milestones so you stay on track. If you already know what you need to get done each day, it’ll be much easier to stop procrastinating and start studying.

Plan out a study schedule

If planners don't work for you (like me), a <a href="https://www.canva.com/checklists/templates/">checklist</a> is your best buddy!You can easily navigate and cross out tasks or things that you already accomplished.EASY PEASY.Then after you cross it all out, move on to the next day.AMAZING!

Create a study checklist

Who wants a messy study table?Who wants a noisy neighbor?LOL! You want to create your own environment free of loud noise and clutters.You will definitely stick to a routine if your surrounding is quiet and clean.Wanna level up the studying field?Set up a <a href="https://www.canva.com/create/mood-boards/">Mood Board</a>! It is a game-changer.

Create a positive study environment

“You don’t have to be the victim of your environment. You can also be the architect of it.”

Distractions are the main culprits why we can't achieve anything or are delayed in hitting those goals.To be a successful student, you’ll need to leave behind sources of distraction. One of the most useful tips for avoiding distractions while studying is to turn your smartphone off and put it in another room.

Set aside online distractions

A grumbling tummy can be really distracting when you need to focus on your schoolwork. Bringing healthy brain food to your study session is helpful if you want to stay motivated and energized.Stay away from high-sugar snacks that will make your energy levels spike and crash. Instead, choose snacks that help your brain function at its best. Nuts, seeds, blueberries, dark chocolate, carrots, avocados, bananas and other healthy foods can all leave you feeling awake and energized.

Fuel up with nutritious study snacks

This is so damn hard, right?Especially on those days, you are burned out and just want to lay on your bed and scroll your phone to look for funny cat videos.Nobody can help you, but yourself.In these super hard moments, knowing why you are studying, will help you get motivated. List all of those!Or create a <a href="https://www.canva.com/posters/">poster </a>out of those thoughts and put it in a place where you can easily see it whenever the fuel for motivation runs out.

 Help yourself stay motivated

For social learners, study groups can be a motivational environment for staying focused on complex course material. Studying with classmates can also help make test preparation a little more manageable.Get your peers excited to study together by sending out invitations. The more people who can join, the more brains there will be to share ideas, notes and knowledge with.

Organize a study group

Need tips on how to focus? Here are 17 tips to keep you smashing those study goals!

How to stay focused while studying

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