I am writing to you today about staying productive. Do you have a problem with productivity? Or maybe you have a problem staying focussed? Loss of focus can end in loss of productivity. Why is that bad? If we stop moving and doing things whether we are at work or at home we lose our purpose in life and we just rust out!
Why am I talking about this? Because I think lots of people are struggling at the moment – I know I have been over the past month.
Its two years into the pandemic. FB reminded me today that it is also almost two years since the big drought ended in Australia which included massive bush fires, dust storms and hellish weather and smoke. So yes it has been tough and with the fear of catching COVID, the loneliness of lock down and working from home life has been tricky hasn’t it! These types of worries can get to us so we just stop trying to be productive.
So how can we turn all these negatives into positives so we can be productive every day?
Whether you are working or like me you are retired and just pottering around the home you need a focus and you need a reason to get going each morning.
Whilst I know that everyone is different, there are some tips for staying productive that are useful for all, regardless of who you are.
Firstly, it is helpful to stick to a routine. It doesn’t matter whether that routine involves exercise, food, work or play but starting a routine and sticking to it can give you a sense of purpose each day.
One of my very important routines is to go to the pool 4 mornings a week for lap swimming. It helps me both physically and mentally and when I was working it helped me think through lots of issues so I was ready to hit the ground running when I sat at my desk.
Be flexible when you need to. Allowing some flexibility in your daily routines means that you can develop some resilience and not be thrown by sudden problems. For example, I was ready to start back swimming after Christmas but the recent COVID wave left me wondering about the safety of leaving home. I was so torn by the decision I had to make but felt it best to stay at home until I had another dose of vaccine. I developed a strategy for staying active while not swimming and just got on with my other activities.
Set goals and reward yourself when you achieve them. A reward might be a cup of coffee or a walk around the block or a 20 minutes yoga class online. This may sound boring to you though so find your own reward. But don’t get hooked on a TV program or call someone who likes to talk a lot. Be reasonable but also be kind to yourself. Achieving your goals each day will help you sleep better at night!
Park the things that are not finished. Each day as you leave the office or finish your chores around the house or garden, write down what you haven’t had time for and leave the ‘to do’ list on the desk or table for tomorrow. Don’t fret over it – it can wait until the next day or the next time you are at work.
Be strategic about completing your work. Whether it is a big work project or cleaning out the hall cupboard some jobs are daunting and we all put them off. Some people will go to great lengths to avoid the difficult jobs. They will complete 100 other tasks first or start the tricky job just before knock off time and then leave the job hanging. They feel a little better because the job is started but that often leads to more procrastination. When I was working I learned ways to help overcome this problem. I never tried to take on difficult tasks late in the afternoon. What I would do at night or late afternoon was to prepare for my big job. For example, I would get out all the books and papers or policies that I would need and have them labelled ready to go. I would also start a document and write the heading and maybe the first line. With this done I would be ready to get started the next day without the need for fussing i.e. procrastination.
Having said all that you should learn what the best time of day is for you and use it wisely. You might be at your best in the late morning. If so get yourself ready and start your big job at that time. I personally was always at my most focussed in the early morning and then late in the day!
And finally…
Celebrate the finished jobs by taking a little time out to rest.
I personally like to clean up after a big job is finished so that my space is clean and ready for the next job. This might not be you though so just do what is right for you to be ready for the next task.
I hope these ideas are helpful for you. Let us know how you stay productive so you can keep it fresh!
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Until next time,
Gillian (and Andrew)
