If You Never Want to Feel Unproductive, Do These 3 Things Every Day
The journey to consistent productivity
Have you ever found yourself staring aimlessly with legitimately no thoughts running through your mind?
Have you ever thought that you actually made negative progress over a certain period of time?
Have you ever said, “why have I not gotten more done?”
Well the good thing is, all of these thoughts are normal! These thoughts have been expressed by Albert Einstein, Michelle Obama, and The Rock — and that guy seems like he is everywhere!
But seriously, the only thing happening here is a productivity low point. It’s ok to have these, we can’t be The Energizer Bunny every single second.
Just the other day I was looking at my calendar of to-do’s and realized I had crossed off 1 out of 15 tasks. And this was at the end of the day!
I’m not going to lie to you and say that there is a foolproof way to overcome productivity low points and achieve consistent output all the time, that would just be inhumane. But, if you follow these 3 methodologies, you’ll get pretty damn close.
1. Exercise
Uh oh, he’s about to tell me 3 of the same things I already know and have heard millions of times. Exercise, diet, and constant learning.
Nope!
Keep reading, the next 2 are a little more creative. Those are important, but I think I can provide you with something a bit more outside the box.
But, I have to present this one first, because it is truly the most important. I won’t drag on about the benefits of exercise, as there are countless researchers, studies, and people out there to give you definitive proof, but as a personal trainer and tester of what not exercising does for the mind and body, I guarantee this one works.
Exercise makes you present, allows you to kickstart your entire system, and shows you that you can achieve impossible feats.
Make exercise a part of your daily ritual, or use it to spike your productive juices.
2. Reflect on Something You Have Done That Is Great
Reassurance.
Gratitude.
Proof.
You can and have been productive. You have and can achieve greatness.
Sometimes you just need a little reminder.
Keep an archive of your greatest achievements. Essays, Videos, Projects, Exams, whatever it may be in which you truly excelled. When you are feeling down, go through these.
Show yourself just how amazing you have been and how amazing you are destined to be.
Allow yourself to be impressed with the person who you are. The more you believe in, trust, and build confidence in yourself, the more productive, driven, and successful you will become.
3. Sprint, Rest, Repeat
Have you ever played a sport in your life, and not received a water break?
If so, then that is torture!
If not, then you have a basic understanding of how important rest is for the body.
But, rest is also important for the mind!
We must start using bursts of intellectual energy to focus for 30-minutes at a time on a certain task, and then take a few minutes and give ourselves a “mental water break.”
Thomas Oppong wrote this article https://medium.com/thrive-global/make-work-a-series-of-sprints-you-need-to-unplug-every-90-minutes-8166977b0b73 about how important work cycles are to diminishing productivity low points, and I could not agree more.
We cannot focus on a particular task for hours and hours at a time, and especially not days at a time!
Think of your productivity like a pencil:
You start the day with a beautiful, brand new, fresh pencil. The more you use the pencil, the smaller it becomes.
If we spend an entire day without sharpening that pencil, then we will get to the bottom quicker, run out of lead, and be forced to come to a halt until we can get a new one.
Our days and minds work the same way.
Productivity is a skill that can be polished, practiced, and mastered. Make conscious efforts to increase your productivity levels, and the lows will feel less frequent!
This story is part of a collaboration between On the Rise and Struggling Forward.
