How To Be More Productive
You have a to-do list as long as your arm, but you just can’t seem to find the motivation to do it, even though you know it’s going to cause you more stress in the long term. Sound familiar?
Fear not! I have some top tips to be more productive, so you’ll get everything done on time and avoid stress along the way.
Ditch the Phone
Procrastination is one of the main reasons I struggle with being productive. This procrastination is usually linked to me scrolling through Instagram while I stress about avoiding my to-do list.
My top tip on being productive would be to completely ditch your phone. This calls for you to be honest with yourself and find a system that works for you. Some people resort to doing a certain amount of work without their phone and then reward themselves with a break on their phone.
Listen to Audio
I find listening to audio a great tool to help me be productive. It helps me to stay entertained as I do my work. Personally, I find playing a TV show or a movie on in the background to be too distracting. I usually just end up watching the show and abandoning my work. Similarly, if I am doing a job that requires me to think, such as doing homework, I find audio in the background too distracting. However, if I am doing jobs such as cleaning my room, I’ve noticed audio such as podcasts really help me to get the job done.
Music /Podcasts / Audiobooks can help to keep you entertained while you carry out mundane activities and can lead to you being very productive.
Start for Five Minutes
Usually, the hardest part about being productive is just getting started. Sometimes I will end up procrastinating for ages on a tasks while simultaneously being haunted by the thought of completing the task at hand. The easiest but sometimes the hardest solution to this issue is to just get started.
My advice would be to just challenge yourself to work on the task for five minutes. For example, if it is an essay you need to get started, just challenge yourself to work on it for five minutes. During those five minutes, put absolutely no pressure on yourself and just do your best to make a start. This could look like brainstorming up ideas for paragraphs or simply just dissecting and breaking down the essay question. After the five minutes is up, take a five minute break and then try again. You will eventually pick up momentum and being to make progress on your goal. It is also no harm to start with the easiest item on your to-do list. This task won’t be as daunting as the rest of them and will help you to just get started.
Delegate a certain amount of time
Don’t give yourself an unlimited amount of time to get your to-do list done. Instead set aside a realistic amount of time to complete the task and planning other activities to do once you are finished. This could mean scheduling plans with friends and family later on in the day so that you only have time to get it done in the morning. This will help you to not avoid doing the task and will help you focus as you know you only have a short amount of time to get it done.
Tell People your To-Do list
You are way more likely to tackle your to-do list and be productive if you tell people about what you wish to accomplish. This will hold you accountable as somebody else knows that you have committed to doing a certain task. You will be more inclined to stick to your plans as it will reflect badly on you if they ask about it and you didn’t get it done.
So, there you have it; my tips on how to be productive. Will you be trying any of these out?
