Productivity is important in order to get things done. I know that this is common knowledge and that anybody can say that, but it’s true. It’s critical to be productive and to stay productive, as it benefits every aspect of your life professionally and personally.
Of course, it isn’t always easy to stay productive. This is especially true during the coronavirus pandemic. During the pandemic, many people’s productivity has taken a hard hit, and it’s understandable. While it’s important to allow yourself breaks so that you don’t burn out, not being productive whatsoever can hurt your personal and professional lives respectfully.
If you’re looking for tips or simply need inspiration to be productive again, then look no further. In this blog, I reveal five ways to increase productivity that can benefit any aspect of your life. I have implemented all of these tips personally and find that they work. Hopefully, they’ll help you out too!
1. Prioritize all of your tasks
This may seem fairly obvious, but it bears repeating. When you have a long To Do list on your hands, just looking at it can overwhelm you. Staring at it can cause you develop anxiety over everything that you have to do. But if you prioritize what has to get done first over what can wait, then your To Do List will appear less daunting. You’ll then want to get it done, thus boosting your productivity in the process.
2. Set a timer prior to beginning a task
Let’s say there’s one task that you have to sit down and do, no matter what. It could be writing a blog, cleaning, meal prep, or anything that needs your undivided attention. If you’re the kind of person that gets distracted easily, then setting a timer is the solution to staying focused on a specific task. Set a timer (most likely the one on your phone) for however long (i.e. 30 minutes, 1-2 hours, etc.), and then get to work. Once the timer goes off, you can choose to either stop working on the task or stop. But this little hack will help increase your productivity while also helping your focus.
3. Listen to music that helps you focus
I’m a huge fan of listening to music while doing tasks, and I cannot recommend it enough. I find it helps me get into the zone (Sounds silly, I know!), thus helping me focus and stay productive. I’ll listen to anything really, but I personally try to listen to instrumental music so that I don’t get distracted by song lyrics. If you’re not into listening to music while doing tasks, podcasts are a great alternative instead. The choice is all yours.
4. Do your least favourite tasks first
There will always be tasks that you dread doing. For me, the dreaded tasks in questions are going through my emails and cleaning. But no matter how much I don’t want to do them, I still have to do them anyways. So whenever I’m faced with a task or two that I don’t want to do, I’ll go out of my way to get them done first. Not only does that mean that I can then complete tasks that I enjoy far more, but it makes me feel productive already. That mental boost always makes me want to continue being productive throughout the rest of the day.
5. Just get started!
This is definitely the easiest yet hardest tip of all. I know how easy it is to start being productive. On the other hand, I also know just how easy it is to procrastinate indefinitely on your To Do List. But you can’t procrastinate forever; we all know that. That’s why you’re genuinely better off just getting started on that To Do List of yours. You’ll be sure to thank yourself later!
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Those are five ways to increase productivity that work best for me. I truly believe that they can benefit other people too- including my readers. Do you agree or disagree with my tips? What tips do you have to help increase productivity? Let me know by commenting below, or by reaching out to me on social media!
xo,
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Sarah Larkin 