Are You Really Being Productive?
Yes, despite the common lack of understanding there is and should be a clear distinction between being busy and being productive. While productivity seems to be a measure of all the various tasks you are able to juggle at once, it isn’t.
Productivity by definition is: the quality, state, or fact of being able to generate, create, enhance, or bring forth goods and services.
From what I have seen from my own life, family, friends, and other college students around me. We do not get it! Now, of course, this is a generalization so it is not everyone, but we need to be honest with ourselves. A lot, yes a lot, of us misinterpret the real meaning of productivity. We either do so unknowingly or just choose to ignore that the definition encompasses “being able to generate, create, enhance, or bring forth.” This leads us into tricking ourselves into believing that ideating, brainstorming, and thinking about what we are doing or will do suffice and pass as being productive.
This results in us creating many facets of various projects, work, and jobs in our lives. So much so that we are unable to deliver the best quality work or get it done in a timely manner. We start stretching ourselves thin and looking for excuses and reasonable causes to point to as the things that prevented us from accomplishing what we needed to do the way we wanted. This is where the line between being busy and being productive should start to become clear. It is that uneasy feeling you get with your work, you get defensive when people question what you do with your time, people start doubting the quality of your performance, and now you are unsure of what you are capable of actually doing anymore.
News flash… You can only do so much! It is time to get things together and get on track.
Stop getting involved with activities, jobs, work, projects, or whatever where you are going a mile wide and an inch deep. While this illusion of doing so much makes you seem productive because of the constant workflow it isn’t. The value of productivity really comes from being able to under promise and over deliver. Not that you are under promising and meeting that promise because it is all you can handle. There is no weakness in going an inch wide and mile deep on a couple of core focuses in your life.
Sometimes less really is more, especially when you look at productivity.
Now comes the time where we stop acting like we know what to change but do it. Here are the 5 core things everyone who wants to be productive should really be doing.
1) Stop planning, start doing.
I know you hear this all the time. Seriously, why do you think you hear it all the time? It is because people do not get it is really that simple. Stop making it seem like it needs to be more complicated. Don’t think about it, just do it. Really stop over thinking it.
2) Don’t always be a “YES” man.
We are all humans and can only handle so much. There comes a point in time where you need to respect your own time and say no. Not everything that you are asked to do will add value to you. Your time and energy are your biggest asset. Make sure you are making the most of them. It is hard to say no but that is exactly why you need to do it.
3) Stop being a perfectionist.
You aren’t perfect therefore you can’t create perfect work. Stop trying to make everything the most perfect piece that has ever left your hands. Sometimes it is more important to get it done than waste time on perfecting it. We all know the fine tuning never really ends. Save your own time and accept that perfection is a never ending chase.
4) Get it out of your head.
The phone rings, “ Hey you coming?” Once again our mind fails us in time of need. We have all been there. Stop relying on your mind to remember everything you have to do. It will fail you when you need it most. Write it down! It helps to write out tasks, list, or events. Make life easier for you and you brain, save the headaches.
5) Review, measure, and acknowledge.
At the end of the week, it is ok to treat yourself. Reflect on what you have accomplished over the week. Measure your productivity, did you get everything done that you set out for? Did anything get postponed? Why? Learn from the mistakes you made over the week. However, acknowledge if you did indeed crush it and reward yourself. Then start preparing for the upcoming week. It is time to get back to work.
Well enough talk, we all know what we need to do if we truly want to be productive. It starts with being aware but that is not enough. It is not enough to even acknowledge we are not being productive. We will really become productive we stop whining, complaining, and acting like we are just so busy. Our productivity will show when we start walking the walk. It honestly is such a simple concept.
When you find yourself overwhelmed by how busy you are, stop for a moment. Ask yourself this question: Am I actually being productive? Yes, keep going. No, change it! We have the power to spend our time being busy for the sake of doing it, or really accomplishing work and getting done what needs to get done to our satisfaction.
The choice is yours…
Stop being busy and start being productive.
