Productivity 101 — Motius’ 3 Approaches to More Productivity
It is not just in these home office times, that employees all around the world struggle to be productive. We at Motius wanted to know what Motees do about it.
In this blogpost, we will introduce you to the key aspects of the three most prevalent methods that we found. If you want to know more about them, make sure to check out their dedicated blogposts. Together, they give you a toolbox which you can use to get more productive.
Can you relate to this?
Sometimes, we imagine productivity as being busy. But that is a false image — that is when we confuse activity with productivity.
Productivity is not about how much you did. Instead, productivity is about how much you achieved. Sent more than 100 mails and 200 slack messages today? Congrats, then you are like most employees. But that is not how you measure productivity.
Unfortunately, it is hard to measure productivity. Trying to measure your productivity would just make you less productive after all. So, what do we do?
At Motius, we simplify productivity by saying that it is about doing the right things while feeling less stressed — stay on top of to-dos, get things done and feel good about it. Now that sounds better, right? Let us show you how we do that.
How to get things done
In his bestselling book “Getting Things Done”, David Allen tells us how to get things done in two simple steps. First, you set up a to-do-list-system. Next, you try to keep it up. Does not sound very innovative? Well, here is the clue.
First, you only consider something as a to-do if it is actionable. If not, it goes into one of these three boxes:
- the trash box
- the someday/maybe box
- the reference box
After doing this, you deal with your actionable tasks. You do this in three steps:
- Break down bigger action items into small actionable tasks
- Do all tasks that take less than 2 minutes
- Organize remaining tasks, i.e. delegate or schedule them
Sounds nice but also like a lot of work? No need to worry about that. At Motius, many of us block a few minutes each day to organize their tasks. That way, we stay on top of our to-dos and actually get things done.
If this approach sounds interesting to you, find out more about it in our dedicated blogpost.
How to procrastinate productively
Sometimes, we set out to be productive but end up procrastinating and finishing tasks last minute under time pressure. That is the process that Tim Urban humorously describes in his famous TED Talk.
Understandably, procrastination may not sound like a productivity approach to you. But in fact, there is something which philosopher John Perry calls “The Art of Procrastination”. Let us explain how that works.
According to Perry, you can organize all your to-dos along two dimensions: importance and urgency. With this, you get the Eisenhower Matrix which tells you what to do.
So, what do you do if you want to procrastinate but still be productive? Simply put, you focus on tasks that are important but not urgent. That is the ultimate way to feel good about procrastinating.
To be clear, we do not recommend procrastinating until your inner panic monster hits and makes you focus on the important and urgent tasks. But if you want to do that, make sure to stick to the Eisenhower Matrix in the meantime. Then you will at least get the important things done.
Productive procrastination sounds tempting? Find out more about it in our dedicated blogpost.
How to focus on what really matters
The third approach is not specifically for work productivity, but for life productivity. According to John Knapp and John Zeratsky, authors of “Make Time”, you can enhance your overall productivity in three simple steps:
- Pick a highlight for every one of your days that is either important, meaningful or brings you joy
- Minimize distractions from both work and fake entertainment by designing your environment
- Do some of the things that your ancestors would have done each day to stay healthy and full of energy
The effect of those three steps is simple. Picking a highlight and doing it ideally first in the morning will bring you into a positive achievement loop. Through minimizing distractions like email notifications you can focus on the tasks that matter and stay in your achievement loop. Step three is like a natural supplement to set you up for a good mental and physical state: move your body, talk to people, eat healthy food.
As this approach is not specifically about work, it is popular among Motees for a better work-life-balance. If you want to know more about the different steps and why they are important, check out our dedicated blogpost.
What to do next
When it comes to productivity, of course there are more approaches than the three that we at Motius prefer. What matters is that you find the one that suits you best. So, go ahead and try them out.
What is your approach to productivity? Do you have any experiences with our favourites? Tell us in the comments below or just drop us a line.
