Do you ever feel like a day, week, or month goes by and you didn’t accomplish much of anything? I often do. Despite my numerous to-do lists, many tasks and responsibilities simply slip through the cracks…mainly because I find one reason or another to put them off. So in order to help overcome my natural tendency to procrastinate, I came up with 10 Ways To Be Productive.
1. Write it down. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: writing things down is the best way to turn a dream or idea into a reality. Whatever it is that you’re hoping to accomplish, putting those words onto paper make them much more likely to actually happen. Writing/making a list is also a great way to realize what those things you want to accomplish actually are. I don’t know about you, but sitting in front of a black piece of paper with a pen in my hand pretty much forces me to begin the brainstorming process. And to me, that’s the first step towards being as productive as possible.
2. Prioritize. We all have a million and one things we’d like to get done on any given day, but the odds of them all getting accomplished are slim. So after you write down what you’d like to accomplish, prioritize them from most important to least important. Ask yourself questions like: What is the most pressing? What will benefit me the most in the long run?
3. Compartmentalize. Like I said, it’s difficult to feel like we’re being productive when there are so many things that need to be done. The key is to take one thing at a time. Focus on the particular task at hand and think about nothing else. Set those other things aside for another time. If you dwell on all of your tasks and responsibilities as a whole, accomplishing them will seem impossible. But if you pick away at them one a time without thinking about the others, it will make the process much more manageable and much less grueling.
4. Set time aside. Whatever it is you’re trying to accomplish - whether it’s planning a dinner with a friend or perfecting your budget - you need to set aside an actual date and time that you’re going to do so. Avoiding setting aside a specific, concrete time is procrastination at its finest. And, as well all know, procrastination is the arch enemy of all things productive. Whether it’s 5 minutes a day or 2 hours a day, every minute you put into a specific goal is one step closer to accomplishing it.
5. Break it down (over a few days, a month, etc.) Sometimes the main reason we procrastinate is because the thought of trying to complete something all in one sitting is daunting. But, the thing is, the longer you put it off, the more likely you’ll *have* to finish it all in one sitting (if you’ve ever had to write a college paper, you know exactly what I’m talking about). And like I said - every minute you put into something is a step in the right direction. I find that if I break something down over a few days or a week, I’m not only more productive, but the process itself is more enjoyable. Not to mention that I’m usually more pleased with the end result as well.
6. Get a planner, and use it! Refer to #4 and #5.
7. Find a way to enjoy the process. My pop-pop used to always say “take your time and enjoy it.” That’s such a simple phrase, yet one that we never seem to practice. We’re always rushing from one task to the next trying to get to an end point that may never really come. Instead, find a way to enjoy whatever you may be doing. Light a candle. Drink some tea. Look at the task at hand from a different angle because there is most likely at least some part of it that you can find enjoyment in.
8. SLEEP. I’m thoroughly convinced that our society is suffering from a major sleep debt. Think you can get through the day just fine on 5 hours of sleep and 4 cups of coffee? Just wait and you see how you feel when you get 7-8 hours of sleep. Think of sleep as charging a battery. The longer you charge it up, the more life you’ve got to work with.
9. Set a cut-off time. This is along the same lines at #4. One of my least favorite things about being a college student was that even when class was over, I knew I had hours upon hours of homework and paper-writing to do. In order to manage that stress while still being productive, I set 5pm as my cut-off time. Yes, a college student who didn’t pull all-nighters does exist. You see, knowing that I had a time where I *had* to shut my books and relax for the rest of the evening actually made me a heck of a lot more productive. I would start my papers earlier because I knew that I’d rather have a week’s worth of free evenings than 48 hours of straight work. And like I mentioned earlier, starting tasks ahead of time usually makes for a better end result.
10. Imagine the end result. You know what I’m talking about. There’s nothing like that euphoric feeling of getting something done. Whether it’s a workout, organizing your room, or finishing a project at work, completing a task(s) is both a relief and an accomplishment. Instead of focusing on how much you don’t feel like doing something, imagine how you’ll feel when it’s done and over with. For me, that’s enough motivation to get the show on the road.
- Do you struggle with procrastination? How do you combat it?
- Which of these “10 Ways” do you think is the most important? Anything you’d like to add?
