How to Be 10x More Productive
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As solopreneurs, our to-do list can seem never-ending at times. Today, I'm sharing productivity tips that have dramatically increased how much work I get done every day.
My Top 3 Productivity Tips:
1. Finally accept that multi-tasking doesn't work
You might still be holding on to this idea (I did for a long time) but the reality is, you are less effective when you multi-task. As it turns out, you're not actually multi-tasking - instead, you are "task-switching." You waste time switching between tasks and the quality of your work goes down. Yikes!
2. Turn off notifications
If I hadn't turned these off, I'd still be getting a notification every time my aunt asked me to play Candy Crush ;) Allowing notifications is like openly inviting distractions into your day. Turn off as many as you can.
3. Invest in a Productivity Planner
I've always been a huge advocate of the to-do list. Well, recently, I discovered a tool that has combined all the most important concepts in productivity and I'm so excited to share it with you! Literally, every single one of my friends has had to listen to me explain why they need this in their lives. What is it? It's the fantastic Productivity Planner. This simple tool has honestly transformed how I work and improved my productivity ten fold. It revolves around the Pomodoro Technique, where you focus on one task at a time in dedicated 25 minute blocks.
Why I like it:
1. It forces me to set weekly goals
You have probably noticed how much more productive you are once you set your goals and write them down. But when's the last time you set weekly goals vs. just coming up with your tasks the day of? At the start of every week, there's a page to fill in your 5 most important tasks of the week. This simple exercise means that you consistently assess where you're at in your business and what needs to get done (in the bigger picture!).
2. It forces me to prioritize my most important task for the day.
In the introduction, the co-founders explain how to decide on your most important task of the day. "Most important = usually the most uncomfortable/most procrastinated upon." How true is this? Often, we push the more important tasks back and get stuck on busy work. Instead, using the planner, you have to ask yourself, "If this were the only thing I accomplished today, would I be satisfied with my day? "
3. It forces me to analyze each day if I was productive
At the end of each day, you rank how productive you were on a scale from 1-10 and can leave yourself a note on how your day went. This has helped me figure out what individual factors impact my productivity.
The best part: Having one journal dedicated to tracking progress.
Before The Productivity Planner, I had one notebook that would be a mix of my to-do list, notes, ideas and more. It was messy and difficult to scan back and see clearly what I had accomplished.
As entrepreneurs, it can be easy to feel as though you haven't really got much done. Now that I have started using the planner, I can look back at my week and see exactly which tasks were completed. It's a great feeling to look back and see all that you really did accomplish.
There you have it! My best tips for maximizing your productivity and getting sh*t done. What about you? Would love to hear in the comments what your best productivity tip is!
*I am an affiliate for Productivity Planner because I love that much.
