Procrastination.
The dictionary defines this as something we delay or postpone that should be done. Sound familiar?
Weâve all been down that road at one time or another, where thereâs something that needs to be done but we just keep putting it off. Weâre perfectly aware of it. Weâre expecting to do it at some point. There it is on our âto-doâ list, staring us in the face. But for whatever reason, we push it to the back burner and tell ourselves weâll get to it eventually.
Highly productive people have certain habits that other people donât. What are they doing that sets them apart? How are they getting so much done, and achieving their goals? We all want to be successful, but what are we doing wrong?
Here are a few habits you really need to avoid, if you want to get on track with being highly productive.
To explain how to make better decisions, let us first look at Dark, a German time-travel science-fiction drama on Netflix.
The show dips in an out of multiple timelines, showing characters interact with different versions of themselves and their loved ones. The characters are constantly making decisions with massive consequences in the present day and in all other timelines.
There’s one quote that stands out the most. One of the main characters, Jonas, is speaking to Marta:
“Why do we say that?”
“To have time. […]”
“How can you have time when it clearly has you?”
Time does control us – we’re simply along for the ride. But that doesn’t mean our journey is without aim. When making better decisions, utilising your time is perhaps your most effective tool.
In his book, The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz says,
âAlways do Your Best.â
Most people try to do their best most of the time. But our best can be different depending on the day. If youâre tired, feeling out of sorts or just having a bad day in general, your best is going to look a lot different than on a day when youâre feeling great and everything seems to be going your way. And then thereâs going to be days where youâre somewhere in between. Whatever the time or circumstance of your day, your best is going to change. But what if you wanted to up your game and do things a bit better on a regular basis, regardless of the day youâre having? Whether itâs work, home, health, finances, relationships, or something else, you might be wondering, how could I do things better?
Productivity seems to be the holy grail of the working world. Imagine the perfect day â working from dusk to dawn, a productivity machine. Our bodies arenât like that. Productivity levels ebb and flow, and it can sometimes feel like you can’t get anything done no matter how hard you try.
Thankfully, while it may seem elusive, a productive lifestyle isn’t all that difficult to achieve. It can make you feel like a working hero on a good day, but like every hero, thereâs a villain. Here, thatâs procrastination. Youâve likely been there before â falling down a YouTube-induced rabbit hole, completing the housework youâve been putting off for days, replying to emails, or perhaps becoming fixated on your current book. Whatever it is, it kills productivity.
To be a productive person, you need simple, practical steps. You donât need to completely overhaul your life, but simply telling yourself to be productive wonât be enough. In line with that, here are some things highly productive people do that will help you put procrastination behind you.
What was the name of the last book you read? Canât remember? Well maybe itâs time to build a new reading habit! You may think you donât have time to read. Or maybe you havenât enjoyed reading much in the past.
Author J.K. Rowling suggests,
âIf you donât like to read, you havenât found the right book.â
Finding a book that interests you can make all the difference in the world. And books arenât the only reading material. There are all kinds of magazines, booklets, newspapers, and ebooks. You can read a paper book or get an ipad to hold your book collection. Whatever works best for you is just fine! The main thing is to start reading!
Whatâs the difference between a consumer and a producer? Some people have never given it much thought, or even know what it means and why it matters. How would one or the other make any difference in how we live our lives, or how it affects the world we live in?
Itâs more important than you may think. Depending on whether youâre in a consumer or producer mindset; your life could look very different.
Which mindset are you? Well, to understand how we think, and how it could affect the way we do things, we first need to know what characteristics and qualities define each one.
In the 1930âs, Allen Morgenstern coined the phrase, âWork smarter, not harder.â This was in response to the long and grueling jobs performed by workers at Industrial plants. By coming up with ways to make them more efficient with less effort, they found that productivity increased, and workers were happier.
But how did they do it?
How can one work âsmartâ rather than âhardâ?
Most of us have heard this term, and wonder how that can apply to workers today. There are many ways to increase your productivity by using good time management practices and a few extra tools to batch your tasks, track your time and prioritize whatâs most important to you.
Letâs look at 5 time management tips that can help you to work smart, not hard.
You know the feeling â youâre at a loose end. Everything seems to be falling apart. The days roll right into one another without a break. You canât seem to focus and youâre always stressed out about something, but still canât seem to find the time or motivation to cross any of it off your list.
But youâre reading this article. Why? Because you donât want it to be that way.
Youâre sick of the endless anxiety cycle. Of stress ruling your life. You want to enjoy your time, not feel tossed around by the waves of your emotions. You want to feel focused, productive, fulfilled.
But maybe the solution isn’t quite so complicated as quitting your job, moving to Spain, and becoming an oil painter (though if thatâs what you want, go for it!). It might just be that you need to become a bit more mindful.
If youâre a creative, entrepreneur, or leader of any kind, chances are you might have suffered from shiny object syndrome at some point in your life.
You know the feeling â
Some new opportunity arises, an idea sparks in your mind, or a trend or fad hits the scene and you instantly want to take advantage of it, abandoning your other projects and running off into the sunset to chase the latest âshinyâ object.
So maybe you have a hundred domain names registered for businesses you want to start someday, or maybe you have a slew of abandoned novel drafts on your computer, or maybe youâve bought several online courses promising yourself that âone day Iâll get to it.â
