How To Be Productive: 7 Ways To Do It All
I’m going to give you 7 easy-to-adopt ways on how to be productive and to get the most out of each day.
Yes, there is a way to take care of your work, family obligations, hobbies, be productive, and obtain rest all in one day.
I’m going to show you how!
With so much going on each day, it can sometimes be hard to find time to do all you need to do.
Even with everyone promoting the much-needed practice of self-care, it can seem like just another thing to try to squeeze in and make time for in our already-booked days.
I’m here to help!!!
You can do all you need to, plus have time for self-care and the things you not only need to do, but for the things you like to do as well.
Here are some tips and approaches to help you be productive, have time to yourself, and get the most out of your day:
1. Use a Planner
It helps to have all your tasks organized into one place. Use a planner method that is best for you.
It can be electronic, or a physical planner, even just a notepad where you make your checklist for the day, or just using your notes app to list your tasks for the day. Whether you just want to plan a general list for the day, or you want to plan out hour-by-hour, that’s up to you.
However you want to do it, planning is a must!
Planning it out helps you have something to glance at as you go about your day to ensure you stay on track and that you don’t forget anything.
2. Prioritize
Some things can wait.
We all know this, yet we still tire ourselves trying to do everything today.
In prioritizing, I like to sort my tasks using the ABCD Approach, organizing based on:
Absolutely must get done:
These are things that just cannot wait until tomorrow or wait until later. These might be things that are high importance and also time-sensitive.
Items that are Better completed sooner than later:
These are things that are best completed today but don’t necessarily have to be completed today or at this very moment.
Items that Can wait until later:
These are things that won’t be affected if we wait until later today (if there’s time) or even until tomorrow, or later in the week. If you find time at the end of your day, you could take care of some of the things in this category.
Items that can be Delegated:
These are the tasks I can simply, ask someone else to complete for me. Maybe I’ll ask my co-worker to cover in that meeting or ask my spouse if they can call the dentist to set the appointments.
This is a great method to help us differentiate what’s most important and take care of those things first.
3. Pomodoro Method (kinda):
This one is kinda fun!
I use this one a lot to increase my productivity, and it’s easy to adopt, especially for the things I need to do but don’t necessarily want to.
While the official Pomodoro method is breaking your day into alternating 25-minute segments of work and 5-minute breaks, I like to loosen it a little, while still adopting the same principle of “chinking” my tasks.
Basically, set yourself a timer (10 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, your choice) and dedicate that time to a task.
You will be surprised at how much you can do in that time, even if it’s just 10 minutes.
For example, at home, let’s say I have to clean the dishes, do a load of laundry, vacuum, and make dentist appointments for the kids. I set a 10-minute timer for cleaning and say, “Whatever I get done in this 10 minutes of cleaning is all I’m doing for the day”. The idea is that you focus your energy to that one thing for that time then stop when your time is up.
Use the time wisely by jamming during your timer, make the most out of this small window you have set. Many times, I actually complete entire tasks using Pomodoro when I thought it would take much longer.
You will get so much done in the day.
4.Pause. Take Breaks
Here’s my philosophy: “It can wait 30 minutes”.
We hear all too often people say how they don’t have time for a break, and they are too busy to eat lunch.
As a nurse, I learned how to make time for my break every shift by stopping in the middle of my busyness and asking myself “can it wait 30 minutes”?
Unless I was in a life-or-death situation (such as a code blue), there was nothing that could not wait 30 minutes.
Friends, let me be the first to tell you… It can wait!
Take a real break, like going outside, or just stepping away from your desk, or going for a quick walk.
I’ve found that I never regretted taking a break, I only ever regretted not taking a break.
Also, see my blog post here on how to truly get the relaxation we need each day.
5. Partition: Cut Off Time
Set a time, that you stop working.
Like, for real stop!
No emails, messages, looking at your work calendar, small tasks, nothing.
True productivity is knowing how to fit in boundaries and self-care.
If you have a job that once you clock out, all is done for the day, then that’s great! If you have a job that always seems to feel “on call” or tasks that still follow you after your shift is over, this step is especially for you.
Set a stop time. No employer expects you to work 24/7 (if so, then you may want to reconsider your employer. Good employers encourage self-care and time to reset).
Many times, we set that expectation over ourselves by continuing to allow our minds to work, long after our bodies have left the office.
Let’s say, for example, my shift ends at 5:pm, but I’m still working at home every day with small tasks. Set a goal to stop those tasks at 6:pm. After 6:pm, it’s time for you to do something outside of work, whatever it is.
We can’t allow one aspect of our lives (whether it be work, or kids, or a hobby) to take all our time in the day.
Balance is key.
6. Next Day Planning
This is one of my favorites. At the end of every day, take a moment to reflect on how you used your time that day and what you need to do the next day. This is not expected to take long, maybe just 10 minutes.
Every evening, set a quick time to reflect and plan for the next day.
See how productive, or not, you were for that day.
Maybe you’ll notice today that you didn’t allow yourself lunch break and it effected the rest of your workday. Or maybe you’ll reflect and learn you spent way too much time on that hobby and didn’t leave time for that other thing you wanted to do.
Whatever the outcome, it’s good to learn as you go.
We are all learning how to be better stewards of the 24 hours given to each of us each day.
After reflecting, quickly jot down your to-do list for tomorrow. Is there likely to be other things added to the list once tomorrow begins? Sure, but it ensures you start your day with a little organization and expectation of what needs to be done.
Sometimes, once our day starts, it’s hard to go back and look at what we need to do or do a calendar review. Next-day planning takes care of that for us.
7. Passion: Do What You Love
“All work and no play made Jack a dull boy”.
Same goes for you. What kind of life are we living if all we do is work, chores, and obligations? We have to make time for the things we love, our hobbies, and the things that spark our passion and creativity.
If you are lucky enough to have this already as the job you are paid to do, then kudos to you!! But for most, this is not the case.
We need to feed our individual interests as well.
If we fail to do this, we lose our creativity, and some of those talents we were blessed with.
It’s true: If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it!
Make time (daily, if you can) for your art, your music, writing, coding, dancing, creating, decorating whatever it is that’s your passionate hobby, make time for that!
Even if you just set aside 30 minutes a day to make progress on something that is your very own, that helps!
30 minutes a day is 2 ½ hours during the workweek! That’s a lot of time and doesn’t even include the weekend!
Bottom line of this Petal:
By adopting these small tips, you’ll feel like you are on top of all you need to do, rather than vice-versa.
Time management is really a skill we all can work to improve upon.
Bring productive is not just working yourself til you can no longer go, but limit-setting and self-care also.
Work is important, but even more important is the time we all need to feed our own interests and make time for rest and reset (speaking of rest and rest, check out my other blog posts on Relaxation and Sabbath Rest).
You are not just work all the time, you are not just obligations and responsibilities. What quality of life is that?
You are creative, talented, inquisitive, and we each have interests that span far beyond the day-to-day lives we live.
You will find that you are more effective at both work and home because you make time for the other pieces of the puzzle that make up you.
Comment Below!
Are there any other ways you organize your 24 hours? What other tips or tricks do you use to make sure you get the most out of your day? Let’s discuss!
