Hungry, tired, elated: my week of life hacks

We all want a productive new year. Do mindfulness and other tricks work?

Mindful: Rhymer Rigby tries meditation at his home in south London

By Rhymer Rigby

In Desperately Seeking Self-Improvement, a new book by André Spicer and Carl Cederström, the authors spend a year in the “optimisation movement”. Sadly, most of us do not have 12 months to devote to personal betterment. But what about a short-term version? Can you take the popular “life hacks” from Silicon Valley, or as recommended by gurus like Tim Ferriss, apply them over a week, and enjoy productivity gains at work?

I am a freelance writer. I work for multiple clients and I am paid only for what I produce. So becoming more productive really could be a game changer for me. If I deliver 20 per cent more, I earn 20 per cent more.

I went for a grab-bag of five hacks over a working week, and every day I tried something new.

Fasting and getting up early are CEO favourites. Mindfulness meditation has seen astonishing growth over the past few years. An “Hour of Power” is espoused by Tony Robbins, the US life coach with more than 3m Twitter followers. I also tried micro-hacks, such as “task optimisation” and taking breaks outside, which I could fit around bigger hacks.