The Essentialist Guide to Insane Productivity (and Happiness!)

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do / with your one wild and precious life?” — Mary Oliver

Simplify, get happier and get more done.

Earlier in 2015, I was grappling with stress and being less than my usual productive self. Being a Type A person, I had taken on more than I could handle — being a full-time Philanthropy Advisor, advising the launch of tech startup, and working on a side hustle. I was just saying yes to too may things and people — and that is a problem I know many professionals (especially overachievers) have.

I noticed that as I was becoming more and more stressed — the quality of my work went down and my life happiness plummeted. The effects of stress on your body is just mind-boggling — I started having hormonal problems for the first time in my life, my skin was going crazy and I even gained some weight! Which then leads to more stress.

Thankfully, at that time — I came across an eye-opening book called Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less — which has completely revolutionised the way I think about life, work and productivity.

My life could have been perfectly described in one sentence from the book: “I was majoring in minor things in my life”.

So what is Essentialism and how can it help you become 10x more productive?

Essentialism is giving yourself permission to stop trying to do it all and to stop saying yes to everyone, so that you can make your highest contribution towards the things that really matter.

It is about increasing the amount of time you have for what is truly important — and saying no to everything else.

In the spirit of Essentialism, I’m going to be keeping this article short. Here is the simplest guide you can use to make yourself 10x more productive, effective and happier:

1. Protect your assets: Your body is your asset and you need to protect it by getting enough sleep, getting your heart pumping and saying no to activities which destroy your energy levels (drinking, eating junk food, staying up late, etc). You know your body best, so take some time to understand what energizes you and what brings you down.
2. Expand time: Find yourself saying “24 hours is just not enough”? Well — tough luck, but even Elon Musk has the same day as you. The simplest way to increase the amount of time you have is to wake up 1 hour earlier. Ensure that you end up going to bed early (not skimping on getting 8 hours of sleep by staying awake late). Over 90% of us need 8 hours sleep — so please don’t follow “unicorns” who need 4 hours per day. If Arianna Huffington can sleep 8 hours a day, so can you. You can use this 1 hour to clear your head, eat breakfast in peace, get some exercise in or just get a head-start on working on what is truly important to you. BONUS TIP: I’ve noticed that when I get a workout in between 6pm and 8pm, my body naturally wakes up 1 hour earlier the next day — with a big burst of energy. Try it out and see if it works for you as well.
3. What’s your one top priority?: People have it all messed up about “priorities”. It is supposed to be singular — not plural. What’s the one thing you can work on which will create a BIG WIN for you? In order to identify that one thing, you many need to go wide and try multiple avenues, before you identify that one thing which will bring you 80% of your results and go deep with that. Remember: 90% of Warren Buffett’s wealth comes from 10 of his investments.
4. End Procrastination: Do you find yourself not doing what you really “need to do”? Or something you say you “want to do but never get done”? Don’t worry — we all do it sometimes, but now is the time for Brutal Honesty. Why are you *really* procrastinating on something? Without understanding your underlying “scripts” — you won’t be able to take the right action. Are you procrastinating on the Essential because it requires more thinking, doing, planning and you just need to ‘figure it out’? Or are you procrastinating because it is non-essential and you’re just afraid to say no? [Keep reading to end procrastination].
5. Be brutal with saying No: I absolutely love this tip and it has been a HUGE game changer for me to help me accomplish tasks, feel happy, healthy and “free-r” than ever before. [It’s time to stop being busy for the sake of being busy!]

What I normally say NO to:

1. Wedding of Rando Randomson I went to high school with? No.
2. Another email thread with a gazillion people on cc? No.
3. Coffee meeting with someone who wants to “pick my brain”? No.
4. Energy sucking friends? No.
5. Literally anything that is not essential to my life? No.

But Satya — how do I say NO to some task that landed on my table or inbox? I use The 4D Formula to deal with tasks:

1. Deflect — Does this belong with a different department or team or person?
2. Delegate — Can this be done by someone else? Can you hire a Virtual Assistant or pass it on to an intern or subordinate?
3. Decide — Is it truly worth your time AND has to be done by you? If Yes, Find a time to do it and schedule it on the calendar. Just get it done! If no…
4. Decline — Just say no. Sometimes I don’t even give excuses for why I don’t want to do something — no one is entitled to your time, presence or attention. They are all big boys and girls you work with — they will deal with it. Trust me — your time will be respected MORE if you say NO and some people will just stop bringing stupid tasks to you altogether!! Your attention and time are the most valuable resource you have (even more so than money!). Protect it as such.

6. Email is dead. Long live email.: Email has completely killed productivity for us. Admit it — don’t all of us end up putting out “fires” most of the time and realize we didn’t move the needle on anything that is important to our goals?

It is time to end that and I have a tech tool for you. I highly recommend using SaneBox for “teaching” your inbox which email is essential and which one is not. If this is an area you’re struggling with and want more tips on ending the tyranny of email, they have a great resource on their website here.

Here are three of the simplest ways to end the Tyranny of Email:

1. Don’t look at email more than 1 hour per day. Schedule it on your calendar and turn it off otherwise.
2. Don’t use email as your To Do list. Pick your One Top Priority and get to work on it.
3. Using Zappos Founder Tony Hsieh’s YesterBox method has worked really well for me — only answer the previous day’s emails and nothing else. Almost anything can wait 24 hours, if it has been sent over email. Details here

I hope these tips help you regain your sanity, get more done and focus on what is truly important. If you’re looking to get deeper into Essentialism, I heavily recommend the book (I’m not an Amazon Affiliate — this is just a fantastic book I’m happy to recommend).

To your success,

Satya

Satya is the founder of ZAG Studios. ZAG is a brand strategy + copy studio for #badass coaches, consultants and creatives who want to stand out, do business on their own terms and make more money — quickly. Learn more about building a badass brand: www.hellozag.com