My Top 10 Tips for a Productive Day

Here are my top 10 tips for a productive day:

1. Energy:

First and foremost, you need energy. A tired mind/body is not going to have a productive day. Learn to sleep earlier and sleep better. Do a little cardio after you wake up. Drink plenty water throughout the day.

2. Length:

Always use pomodoro. It can be for 25 minutes or 1 hour. But, never longer than that for one session. You should always know exactly when you are going to stop. Keep a stopwatch beside you. Whenever you feel bored or feel like giving up, just look at the stopwatch and tell yourself, “Hey, let’s keep at it for just 15 more minutes.” Your mind will be less likely to rebel against that vs if you didn’t know when you are going to stop.

3. Time:

Not every task is suitable for every waking hour of the day. Learn about chronobiology. Solve math problems in the morning. Do something creative in the afternoon. Alternatively, you may exercise in the afternoon. Take a nap between 1 and 3 pm.

4. Ease:

There’s always a difference between what you should and what you could do. Maybe you want to write a novel, but don’t have the discipline to do so. Well, then write a one-page story first. Make sure you sit down to write for only 25 minutes every day. Once you’ve mastered that, you’ll be ready to tackle bigger projects and longer work hours. So, always start easy. Don’t bite more than you can chew.

5. Simplicity:

Tasks in your to-do list must be simple. Don’t complicate them. Don’t plan to write the most amazing thriller where the hero is the villain. Rather, plan to sit down for 25 minutes with pen and paper.

6. Focus:

Focus is a fail-proof trick that forces you to be productive. Have as little things to do in your day as possible. Eliminate/ hide all distractions. You need to prepare for each task like you’d before entering an exam hall. Keep your phone somewhere else and forget everything else you’ll have to do after these 25 minutes.

7. Organize:

What are you going to do first? How many minutes will you take rest? Do you have enough water with you? Is your stopwatch with you? Will you run out of pages to write?

Always take a second to check if everything is in order.

8. Improvise:

Not every problem requires the same solution. Yet, we often get stuck at a particular way of thinking. Let’s say you have too much work to fit your to do list. To make sure you get these extra works done, you must innovate.

Can you tackle some tasks in the car?. Tasks like listening to a podcast, learning a new language, transcribing your blog post etc. can be done on the road.

Could you find someone else to do it?

Could you merge two tasks together? i.e. listening to an audio book while playing games etc.

9. Eliminate:

You can’t get everything done in a single day. You must sacrifice what is of less importance to you. You must sacrifice the trivial for the sake of what’s meaningful to you.

Uninstall social media apps, remove gaming from your schedule, restrict the time you are on YouTube.

10. Environment:

Environment can either distract you or aid you to focus. As we now know,it’s better to keep the marshmallows out of site than to use willpower for avoiding them. Keep your dumbbells where you can see them. Put the book you want to read on the bedside table. Put all the sweet cookies out of sight. Design your environment for success.

 

Bonus Tips (Because Why Not!)

11. Push:

When nothing else works, just take one step. Don’t want to work out? Then do one pushup and one sit-up everyday until you can muster the will to do more. Don’t feel like studying? Read just one paragraph every day.

12. Learn:

There’s a lot to learn about productivity. We don’t come to this world with a manual on how to properly use our body and mind. That’s what Tim Ferris, Barbara Oakley, Jordan B Peterson, Stephen Pressfield and other thinkers/ researchers are for. Learn from them. Always be a student of great minds.

I hope you find these ideas helpful. Best of luck!