Are you struggling to develop habits that allow your to have a productive day? I’m going to share my ten habits to have a productive day/night.
Once I graduated from college, I became the self-proclaimed queen of procrastination. All the drive that got me through both undergraduate and graduate school was now gone. I found myself making lists that never got done and pushing tasks off until the next day or the day after that. Many of my ideas, dreams, and aspirations were permanently stuck in the planning phase.
I had to finally be honest with myself about the state of my life. This was the first step to stopping my extreme procrastination. I had to ask myself, Do you want to stay in your current situation or start accomplishing all your dreams and wants? Are you tired of not completing tasks? Are you tired of being tired? The answer to every question was yes.
I then started figuring out what worked, what didn’t work, and what stopped me from doing everything I needed to do. I’m going to share with you how I developed a fail-proof productivity routine.
Also Check Out:
Ways To Improve Your Morning Routine
Ten Habits To Have A Productive Day/Night
1. What time of day do you work the best?
Are you a morning person or an night person? Do you work best after a nights rest or at night when its calmer? Once you figure this out you will work better and accomplish more. I’ve learned that I work best in the morning. I like to get up really early and start running errands and working on different projects. If I have to work early in the morning, I will pick tasks that can be accomplished in the afternoon or get up earlier than I usually do. This is because I know that I’m not a night person. Once 7 pm hits, I’m ready to whine down and get ready for bed. I’m not thinking about doing what’s on my to-do list that day.
2. Plan your week out on Sunday
On Sunday, I like to sit down and plan out everything that I need to accomplish this week. This includes everything from meals for the week to errands that I need to run. I write down everything that I need to accomplish that week on one big list. Once I have everything written down, I plug it into the appropriate days. This allows me to break down my big list into many small lists to make sure that I’m not overwhelmed. I write down all appointments and meetings as well.
3. Time Block/ Give yourself deadlines
If I’ve been having trouble focusing on particular tasks, I will block out enough time in my day to get it done. This will stop me from believing that I have all day to complete it. For an example, I will plan to go to the gym from 7am-8am and then grocery shop from 8:15- 8:45am. This will ensure that I’m home by 9am to finish all of my other tasks. And then I’ll plan to study Spanish from 10am-12pm. This allows me to stay on track and check things off of my list. I also give myself deadlines to complete certain things. I feel like I perform the best and accomplish more under pressure.
4. Organize/ clean the night before
I don’t know if it is just me, but I can’t be productive in a cluttered/messy space. If my day needs to start early, I will clean the night before, lay out everything that I need, and even make a easy breakfast/ lunch to make the start to my day easier.This allows me to focus on the tasks at hand now that everything is laid out for me.
5. Remove All Distractions
This could be placing your cellphone out of reach or getting out of the house. I know that those two things are big distractions for me. If I touch my phone I will start strolling Instagram or watching a YouTube video. If I stay in the house, I will start watching TV or finding something to organize. So I remove the possibility of those things happening by working elsewhere.
6. Find Your Ideal Work Space
Whether I’m righting a blog post, studying, or just want to start a new book, I always set up my work space accordingly. I like working in coffee shops. The background noise and small talk is not too distracting when working on small tasks. However, I prefer quiet areas for studying and reading. Its almost impossible for me to work from home due to too many distractions. Just find what works for you.
7. Inform Those Around You
I always let my husband know of my busy schedule so that he can either help or understand that I may be unavailable for a few hours. When everyone around you is asking for your assistance with their task, you can sometimes get so lost helping them that your tasks are never complete. By informing them of the importance of things you have to get done, hopefully they will respect that and only bother you when absolutely necessary.
8. Get Enough Sleep
I don’t know how many times I’ve sat down prepared to get stuff done to suddenly be hit with extreme tiredness. This is another reason I like to work in the morning because this is when I have the most energy. Either I get a good nights sleep or I take a nap before I try to accomplish anything.
9. Know when to postpone
Knowing when to move a task to a later date is extremely important. If you find yourself focusing on this one thing without getting it done and its prohibiting you from getting more important task done, it may be more beneficial to push it off until you have adequate amount of time to accomplish it.
10. Take breaks
I don’t work on one project longer than two hours consecutively. Even if I just get up to get a snack or get fresh air, any little thing counts. If gives me a fresh look once I do start again.
SAVE FOR LATER
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