Here are my top 6 best productivity hacks I think everyone should know. Enjoy!
Do you find that your productivity has been lacking lately? Here are some expert hacks that can help boost your productivity! These productivity hacks are small changes that can result in a major difference.
These productivity hacks can be applied to all areas of your life, they really are one size fits all! I use some of these in my professional and work life, and others to keep my home life organized and productive. Either way, adding these productivity hacks to your daily routine can lead to an overall, highly productive lifestyle!
Let’s get started!
Hack 1: Figure Out How You’re Wasting Time
First things first, you need to figure out how you are wasting your time. You can’t correct any unproductive behaviors if you don’t know what they are. If you aren’t using a planner, you may have to put in some extra work to figuring out where you are wasting the most time. How I spend my time is one of my favorite trackers in my planner.
If you don’t happen to have a planner, you should read all about why having a planner is so important. Next, you should spend about a week logging how much time you spend doing everything.
Did it take you an hour to wake up, shower, and make coffee? Write that your morning routine typically takes an hour. How long does it take for you to finish your homework? What about making dinner and getting ready for bed?
You will need to set aside some time to be able to track all the things you do in a day. To get an even better look at how you spend your time, I recommend doing this for about a week. Then you can start to analyze your habits, and see if any are causing you to be unproductive!
Little tip for those who spend a lot of time on your phone! You can use an app like Rescue Time which will record how long you spend on websites and apps on your phone. This, and other management softwares, can give you an indepth look at how exactly you spend your time on your phone. You might be surprised to see that wasting time on your phone might be the reason you aren’t as productive as you’d like to be!
Hack 2: Set One Goal
Are you still multitasking? If so you need to stop what you’re doing and read about how multitasking can be what is killing your productivity. Your brain simply can’t concentrate fully on more than one thing at a time. That’s why the next hack in boosting your productivity, is to make sure you are focusing on one task or goal at a time.
It’s a common misconception that multitasking and working on multiple things at once, is the definition of multitasking. Instead, what you are really doing when you multitask is forcing your brain to focus on multiple things. That will result in lower quality, and often rushed results.
Setting one goal doesn’t have to mean at your home. Yes you should focus on unloading the dishwasher before you mop (or vice versa) but this productivity hack can be applied to all areas of your life! In fact I have an entire article about eliminating multitasking at your work. You can simply just apply the steps to all areas of your life! 🙂
What’s cool about wanting to live an organized life, is you can learn tactics and hacks that can make your life more productive all around. That’s kind of like the definition of getting the most bang for your buck!
Hack 3: First Will Be the Worst
Additionally, when you look at your to do list, make sure you are looking for the thing you want to do least. Odds are, this task involves a lot of time and/ or effort. So it makes sense that you would want to do that one first. I challenge you to do the opposite. Make that your top priority.
I learned this trick when I was studying for my undergrad. Even though I was really great about keeping a planner, I wasn’t getting the most out of my planner until I learned this hack in particular. Setting aside time to study each and every day was a necessity for me. I would create a list throughout the day so I knew exactly what I wanted to get accomplished. The problem came when there would always be one assignment I didn’t want to do, and ended up saving it for later.
I’m not going to lie to you, I put off doing the most difficult assignment for last for quite a while. But then it got to being super late, and the last thing I wanted to do was stay up to finish my French essay. Once I started doing the hardest thing first, the rest of my homework seemed to fly by.
This can be directly applied to your life! Once you are looking at your to do list, make sure you are looking for the most difficult and time consuming task, first. After that, the rest of your tasks will seem extremely simple when you compare them. Also it’s worth mentioning, your brain is at its strongest first thing and early in the morning. Taking the time to do that first task you are dreading, will make the rest of your jobs seem simple as pie.
Hack 4: Work in Short Bursts
This one kind of goes hand in hand with what I was saying about our brains. Just like they can only focus on one thing at a time, they also can only work for certain periods of time. Similar to our bodies, your brain needs a rest every now and then.
Millennials and on, especially, have a more difficult time with attention spans. Some scientific studies say we can only hold our concentration for about 20 minutes, while others report a little longer. Either way, you have to give yourself and your brain a break.
Some methods like the Pomodoro Technique, recommend that you work for 25 minutes and then rest for 5. Some people can work for one hour bursts with a 10 minute break in between. Whatever kind of schedule works best for you, make sure to do it.
This is just one of many different ways you can start actually crossing things off your to do list. When you focus on something and then take a break, you are giving your brain time to relax and rejuvenate before it needs to refocus and hold attention again. Bonus, it can also make days that have a lot of tasks, go by shorter!
Hack 5: Create Your Own Schedule
Ask yourself some of these questions:
- When do you think you work the best?
- What times of the day are you typically more productive?
- Is there a part of the day that makes you feel more creative?
- Are there any deadlines or tasks that are time sensitive that require your attention right now?
When you ask yourself questions like this, you are able to see the times a day that will be your most productive. Once you have that answer in mind, create a schedule that works for you. Work with your brain, not against it! If you simply aren’t a morning person, scheduling 3 classes before 11 am seems like a bad idea.
Optimizing your schedule to fit your needs for the day, further sets yourself up to be the most productive you can be! After you have figured out the prime times during the day where you work at your best, then start creating a schedule that works best for you!
You can also create trackers for each and every day that can help you stay on top of all your jobs and duties. We have a lot going on in our lives. Knowing how to use trackers in your planner in conjunction with a perfectly curated schedule, are two key productivity hacks!
Hack 6: Listen to Music
This is one of those hacks I did before I even knew it was an actual hack. However, it requires more than linking up your Spotify playlist and jamming out. Instead of picking high energy songs with a lot of lyrics, try to find some ambient music with a good beat.
Science shows that almost 90% of people end up performing better at work when they listen to music in the background. Remember that louder and more lyrical tracks can actually harm your ability to retain new information. So try to stick with music that is only sounds. No one is saying not to crank the tunes when you are sweeping the hardwood floors though! Jam on!
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These are my top 6 productivity hacks that I think everyone should know! I have plenty more productivity hacks available, if you want to learn about them just let me know! Until then, good luck in your journey to be the most organized and productive YOU!
