How Getting COVID Doubled My Productivity
3 productivity steps that are now scripture for everything I do
Towards the end of March 2020, my wife and I contracted COVID.
At the same time, the UK went into lock-down and we started the new juggle of home working and homeschooling our 3 year old and 6 year old— whilst trying to maintain sanity.
We were lucky, we had the virus in a mild way and didn’t need to be hospitalized. That said, it was still pretty nasty. The symptoms in the initial two weeks of contracting it were something we had never experienced before and never wish to again.
What we didn’t anticipate were the post viral symptoms. Six months later after contracting COVID we are still recovering. The last six months have been a mammoth test of endurance, mental composure and perseverance.
The effects of the virus left me with fatigue, heart palpitations and a heightened sense of anxiety. But, I wasn’t Ill enough to be totally laid up in bed. I was, what I’d call, ‘operational’.
So, I kept on working throughout the post-vial effects. I could ‘operate’, but the capacity at which I could operate was 40% to 50% of what I’d normally be able to achieve.
For the first 4 months my work productivity dropped of a cliff. For most of the time, I was in a fog of fatigue and couldn’t think straight. I would sit in meetings on Zoom, and barely be able to recount what we had just discussed at the end of it.
As my capacity dropped, the work staked up. I had to do something about it. So, I started to double down on how I could just get ‘stuff done’ and come up with a plan to get me through it.
I started implementing strategies, all of which I’m sharing with you here with hope that my experience will help you.
What I’ve learnt through this experience has literally gone on to double my work productivity and has become an embedded part of how I now approach everything I do.
Health-wise I’m feeling a lot better now. Initially these strategies were ways I developed to just get me through the day. Now that I’m back up to 90% health — my work productivity has shot through the roof, because I’ve carried on using the same strategies.
It’s been like medicine ball training. I can’t emphasize how much implementing these 3 simple things, and actually following through with them, has helped me out. So here goes..
1. Prioritize
I’m a list person, but my list was growing wildly long and week after week I was rewriting my list with stuff that had been on there for weeks. I was carrying around work and I constantly felt swamped. This added to the anxiety and so the loop fed itself. So here’s what I did:
- First I prioritized and then I prioritized again, cutting out anything that realistically wasn’t going to happen.
- Anything I thought I could delegate, I did.
- Then, I prioritized again into: a) what can I get done now, and; b) what can I get done this week.
- If the task was too large, but needed to get done now, I broke it down into manageable milestones and made each milestone an actionable task.
- I know that I can focus really well for 50 mins, anything beyond that my productivity drops off. You may have a longer or shorter focus span. I based my tasks on 50 mins, if the tasks looked like they would take longer than that, I broke them down into more than one task.
2. Being really strict on what you can commit to
It’s easier to say Yes than it is to say No. Not everything can be said No to, but if it is going to impact on your ability to get your priority tasks done — be empowered to say No.
If No isn’t an option — negotiate — it might be possible that it can be delegated or re-prioritized around your other tasks. Have the conversion, whether that be with yourself or a team mate, but be clear and don’t be afraid to say No when it needs to be said.
People will respect you for it, you’ll respect yourself for it, and you’ll get a hell of a lot more done.
I started saying No more, and did this:
- Actually booked time in my calendar to get my tasks done so meetings can’t be booked over them.
- Committed to a realistic amount of tasks. Ambition is good, but over committing leaves you feeling overwhelmed. Commit and get them done.
- Step back from every conversion being had. It’s a distraction. Focus on what you need to get done.
3. Have a strong focus outside work
Something so when you finish work you draw a line under it and change your focus immediately.
For me it’s my children and my wife. When 5 pm comes I become Dad again. When I’m fully recovered, exercise will also become another focus of mine in the evenings when the children are asleep.
Whatever it is for you, be clear on when you are finishing work and be clear on when you are starting your next focus. And, let that focus be something that brings you happiness. Something that you really want to do and something beneficial, but most importantly something that is not work.
Final thoughts
Taking these steps, and actually committing to them, helped me through a tight spot whilst I've been recovering from COVID. Now I’m nearly back up to full health, these steps have become scripture in how I organize myself and have at least doubled my productivity.
The most important thing I realized is that I needed to be honest with myself and objectively assess how much I was achieving. I was a busy but not productive.
The key take home message is; prioritize, and then prioritize again. Be honest with yourself about what is important and be prepared to have that difficult conversation and say No if something is not achievable in the time-frame you have. This will save you carrying work around with you. Be cut and dry and when you finish work draw a line under it and move on to your next focus.
I hope this helps you as much as it’s helped me.
