Productivity hacks are everywhere!
And as more and more people start to audit their lives and systems, in search of a better
way of doing things.
There’s no denying the growing interest in this topic across all ages.
From young students to college grads; newlyweds, to new parents and empty-nesters alike.
Productivity is arguably the one thing we strive to perfect but still manage to wrestle
with on a daily basis.
I don’t know about you, but productivity and I have been duking it out for the better
half of the last decade.
As simple as it is to just get things done, whether it’s writing, recording, working
out, studying, or running errands.
It’s really much harder than it sounds.
After searching for the obvious benefits of productivity and exhausting my efforts to
mimic the systems of popular faces I see online.
I believe that I’ve found a structure that actually helps me get done what I said I was
going to do—on a daily basis.
So in today’s video, I plan to share 4 principles that are currently helping me to increase
my productivity.
Number one is Set Intentions.
For me, this starts the night before.
I typically sit down at some point during my nightly routine and set goals and schedule
my tasks for the following day.
As someone who is a certified overthinker at times, I’ve found this to be the easiest
way for me to start my mornings off on a positive and productive note.
Productive being the keyword.
See before implementing this intention-setting process, I would simply wake up every morning,
feeling motivated, but I’d have no idea what to do, where to start, and not to mention
what to prioritize.
See I’ve grown to learn that busyness without structure is chaos.
And regardless of how busy I may have thought I was, on any given day, in actuality I wasn’t
making much progress.
That was until I discovered The Rule of Three.
Now The Rule of Three is a productivity principle that encourages us to focus on achieving just
three meaningful outcomes every day.
It's said to be one of the simplest but most effective productivity rituals you will ever
come across.
And I have to said that I agree.
See unlike many other productivity hacks out there, that consist of an exhausting list
of things you likely already know.
The rule of three is simple and easy to implement at any stage in life.
Doing this has not only increased my productivity on a daily basis, but it’s also helping
me cut back on a lot of extra busywork that isn’t necessarily moving the needle.
Number two is Be Efficient.
A big part of increasing your overall productivity is being efficient and actually getting done
the things you set out to do.
Whether it’s the night before, the morning of, or however you schedule your to-do’s
If you’re not actively moving the needle, then what you’re doing isn’t working.
Remember busyness without structure is chaos.
Now a few easy things you can do to ensure you’re being efficient is to set deadlines
when needed and batch tasks when it’s appropriate.
When setting deadlines, I always make sure to avoid deadlines that encourage me to wait
until the last minute.
I have to remember that every day is a new day to accomplish a new set of tasks.
And if I’m continuously waiting until the last minute to take action on a task, I’m
only making things harder for myself down the line.
Now you may have noticed that I said to set deadlines when needed.
This is important because having too many deadlines at once can actually harm you.
So when do set them, make sure they’re meaningful, actionable, and urgent.
In fact, the same is true for batching tasks.
There’s a time and a place where it makes sense but there’s also a time and a place
where it doesn’t.
As an example, I’m going to invite you into my content creation progress a little bit.
Many of the b-roll clips that you see throughout my videos are clips that I film in a batch
format.
Meaning I spend an entire day just filming myself doing various things and the landscape
around me.
But what you don’t see, is me changing in the back of my car.
The pre-planning of building a shot list, emotions I want to capture, a visual story
I’m looking to tell.
And that doesn’t include any additional clips I record that are video-specific.
Like this video of me running, while my wife is driving, that I recorded specifically for
that video.
See I can’t batch record everything because sometimes I don’t know what I may need until
the a-roll part of the video, like this, is completed.
I hope that makes sense.
In short, just remember to set deadlines when needed and batch tasks when it’s appropriate.
Number three is Be flexible.
One of the great misconceptions about productivity is that whatever system you use or structure
you develop, that’s the way it is and you are not allowed to divert from that.
But that couldn’t be any further from the truth.
In my search for ways to improve my productivity, I’ve learned that flexibility is just as
important as being intentional and efficient.
Without allowing yourself room to be flexible and adaptive to constant change in your environment
or situation, then you’ll quickly find yourself running into a brick wall.
And what I mean by that, is some days you’re naturally going to feel more productive, or
creative, or energetic than you do on other days.
That’s just a part of being human.
See the thing I love about maintaining flexibility throughout my productivity process, let’s
say, is that I am able to give myself permission to adjust my daily task if my creativity or
energy doesn’t match the output required for the scheduled task on a given day.
Doing this has not only helped me to maintain my sanity, but in the long run, it has aided
me in being more productive because I’m essentially matching my mood to a set of tasks
that will allow me to still be productive instead of wasting time.
See I’m sharing this with you in hopes that it encourages you to exercise your flexibility
muscles, in case you aren’t using them.
That way you’re still actively moving the needle, making progress, and being productive
regardless of how you feel day to day.
Number four is Be Motivated.
Now, this statement is easier said than done.
I get it.
It’s one of many hacks I’ve read about during my quest to improve my productivity.
But how do you get and stay motivated right?
Well, the solution is much simpler than you think.
Literally, all you have to do is keep track of your completed task and use the fact that
you can physically see yourself checking things off of your to-do list as motivation to continue
getting things done.
Now, this simple action has proven to be enough for me to stay motivated, but I’m not everyone
and it might not be that easy for you.
And if that’s true, I want to turn you to something called the Pomodoro technique.
Which is a technique that uses a timer to break down work or tasks, or to-do’s into
intervals, traditionally 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks.
Now when I first discovered this idea I was a little skeptical, to be honest.
I wasn’t sure if time blocking my task would actually motivate me, but I was wrong.
Every time I use this technique, it not only helps me maintain focus when accomplishing
a certain task, but it has also helped me break down those more demanding to-do’s
into smaller and shorter intervals that actually encourage me to finish.
If you don’t believe me, try it.
I’m sure you’ll feel more and more motivated every time you start the clock and get to
work accomplishing those tasks you set out to do each day.
Remember, doing a little bit of something in a focused manner, is better than doing
a lot of nothing.
In other words, progress is not measured by busyness, but instead by action that actually
moves the needle.
Keep growing, keep learning, but most importantly always stay true to you.
I’ll see you in the next one.
Peace!