The Secret to a Productive Day
I'm probably the last person to speak to on productivity but, every now and again, I get it absolutely perfect and, strangely enough, that's happening more and more frequently!
Take, for example, today. I had the most perfect day where I got absolutely everything I wanted to get done, done. How'd I do it?
Well, first of all, I think it's important to note that the secret to getting things done is knowing when NOT to get things done. If you're starting to feel sick, or you're hating the work you're doing, STOP!
Sometimes you need to stop for a few minutes, a few hours or even a few days. Sometimes you need to change what you're doing altogether. (ie: change jobs, start a new business, etc)
For me, I just needed a few days so, instead of fighting my urge not to work, I put out the daily fires that needed attention and, otherwise, took it easy for the past 3 days.
That gave me time to reflect on my life and think about what I've achieved and what I'd like to achieve.
Then, magically, today I woke up with all sorts of energy so I sat at my desk and, here comes the 2nd secret...
I planned my day. OK, that's the boring version. The interesting way of saying the same thing is that you should, "Start your day only when you have it finished." Literally decide what you want to do and when you want to do it. Write it down and stick to it.
But, here comes the UBEREST of all secrets...
Make space for breaks. I started (proper) work today at about 11, had a break at 12, another at 2 and yet another at half-past 4!
The breaks make it easier to get stuff done the rest of the time so eat, shower, exercise, have a chat with a loved one -- do anything that takes your mind totally off your work for a while. Do it for maximum half an hour, maybe an hour, but not longer and you shouldn't just be "loafing" around. Actually DO stuff. Just not work!
That's it, really. Every time I DO get stuff done, I get it done using the above formula. It just works that way and it works every time. I do it without even realising it. It just happens.<!-- technorati tags begin -->
Take, for example, today. I had the most perfect day where I got absolutely everything I wanted to get done, done. How'd I do it?
Well, first of all, I think it's important to note that the secret to getting things done is knowing when NOT to get things done. If you're starting to feel sick, or you're hating the work you're doing, STOP!
Sometimes you need to stop for a few minutes, a few hours or even a few days. Sometimes you need to change what you're doing altogether. (ie: change jobs, start a new business, etc)
For me, I just needed a few days so, instead of fighting my urge not to work, I put out the daily fires that needed attention and, otherwise, took it easy for the past 3 days.
That gave me time to reflect on my life and think about what I've achieved and what I'd like to achieve.
Then, magically, today I woke up with all sorts of energy so I sat at my desk and, here comes the 2nd secret...
I planned my day. OK, that's the boring version. The interesting way of saying the same thing is that you should, "Start your day only when you have it finished." Literally decide what you want to do and when you want to do it. Write it down and stick to it.
But, here comes the UBEREST of all secrets...
Make space for breaks. I started (proper) work today at about 11, had a break at 12, another at 2 and yet another at half-past 4!
The breaks make it easier to get stuff done the rest of the time so eat, shower, exercise, have a chat with a loved one -- do anything that takes your mind totally off your work for a while. Do it for maximum half an hour, maybe an hour, but not longer and you shouldn't just be "loafing" around. Actually DO stuff. Just not work!
That's it, really. Every time I DO get stuff done, I get it done using the above formula. It just works that way and it works every time. I do it without even realising it. It just happens.<!-- technorati tags begin -->
Tags: productivity, getting stuff done
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