How do you stay productive each day in the midst of so many distractions that could take away your productive hours? Being productive means you complete your tasks and milestones on time and get more done in the day, week or in the course of the month. It means to deliver projects without delay, release your projects when the time is due etc. Your daily activities either gets you closer to your goals or delays your date of completion.
Make the first few hours of the day count!
The first few hours of the day before midday is a crucial part of the day to accomplish most of what can be done in the day. You could try to schedule all the important tasks in the morning–marketing, writing, programming, designing or anything that’s essential should be done before midday. In the morning you have the best chance to complete your task faster and better. Just get something done and tick it off the to-do list for the day.
How you begin your morning can derail or direct your focus
“How you begin your morning often sets the tone and your attitude for the day. It can also derail or direct your focus. If you remain committed to good morning work habits, you won’t fall prey to feeling unproductive and distracted at the end of the day or week.” says Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert and author of Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant; How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job.
A famous quote from Steve Jobs:
For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Do your worst task first thing in the morning
Every given day, most people have one major to-do that’s highest priority. But when you’ve got the whole day stretching out ahead of you, it’s easy to put it off until after you get your coffee, check our email, or go to that meeting.
Eat your frog first thing in the morning!
According to Mark Twain, you should: “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” Author Brian Tracy calls this “eating your frog,” quoting Mark Twain. He recommends that you complete the most unwanted task (task you’re most likely to procrastinate) you can think of for that day (= the frog). This tasks should be defined in the evening of the previous day.
Completing an uncomfortable task gets you fulfilled in the early part of the day and it gives you great energy because you get the feeling you’ve accomplished something worthwhile. And guess what, you will still have lots of hours ahead of you to get other things done.
Make a list and start crossing things off
J.T. O’Donnell, Founder & CEO of CAREEREALISM.com and a LinkedIn influencer recommends the following from his 10 Things To Do Every Workday post, which has proven to be one of the most popular posts of all time on LinkedIn Today.
- Read something related to your industry.
- Check in with each team member on their progress.
- Review your top three goals for your company that are focused on its growth.
- Identify and execute one task to support each of your top three goals.
- Post five valuable pieces of content on all my major social media accounts.
Not everything is a priority
“It’s important to stay focused on what really matters. Spend some time on upfront planning to determine the most critical tasks that you need to take on. It’s usually much better to concentrate on one or two priorities and do them really well, instead of being spread so thin that you have mediocre output.” —Ben Rubenstein, Yodle
Take control of your emails
Tumblr founder David Karp “try hard” not to check his email until 9:30 or 10 a.m., according to an Inc. profile of him. “Reading e-mails at home never feels good or productive,” Karp said. “If something urgently needs my attention, someone will call or text me.”
Get Organized for today!
In the words of David Shindler, founder of The Employability Hub, you should “Leave any crap from yesterday behind, tap into what’s happening at the outset of the day, get organized and ready or hit the ground running, if that’s what is needed,”
Getting things done is a habit, start each day by accomplishing something important right from the beginning.
How do you spend your day to increase productivity? Share your experience with us in the comment box below.
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