We’re in this game to do it and to do it well.
Everyday we wake up with a renewed desire to see our people–family, customers, audience– win.
But how do we do all the things while keeping our sanity?
In other words, how can we increase our productivity in a way that serves us, our family, and our business?
The good news is, we can always learn from highly productive people, what they do, and how we can implement those practices into our daily lives.
In fact, I dedicated my entire 2020 to finding productive practices that will help me get more things done towards my goals without stressing or sacrificing time away from those I love.
Although it’s still a work in progress, I’ve come a long way from the days of continuously dropping the ball, pulling overnighters (yuck!), and being overwhelmed by the mounting deadlines.In fact, here’s what I quickly have to say on this topic👇🏽👇🏽
So, I’m eager to share what has worked for me and what I’ve learned from others like Brian Tracy, Mia at She Dreams All Day, Brooke Castillo, and from tons of articles from credible sources.
By using just a few of the following tips, you’ll begin moving closer to your dream goals because you’re intentionally spending time on the most important things…and not just busywork.
So here goes! Check out these productive daily habits that can move the needle in your favor…for real!
#1 Use the Pomodoro Technique
This is one of my top productivity hacks: the Pomodoro Technique.
The concept here is you work in short 25-minute sprints (or a pomodoro) focusing on a single task. Then, there’s a short five-minute break. After you’ve completed 4 pomodoros, you’ll take a longer 15-30 minute break.
You eliminate all distractions during this time period, keeping your energy and efforts on getting what’s in front of you DONE.
It’s an awesome hack if you’re easily distracted or find you need help just getting started on a hard or boring task.
Now, I use the Focus to Do App because you can plan your pomodoros in advance and it has a bomb tracking and analytics feature. You can also silence all notifications.
Or, you can simply use the timer on your phone and set it for 25 minutes. My aim is to complete at least 4 pomodoros in one 2 hour sprint, focusing on a project where every 25 minutes is a single task.
Make a goal of how many pomodoros you’ll do in a day. Plan it ahead of time and crush it!
#2 Plan Your Day in Advance
“Beginning of a great day begins a night before.” ~Sukant Ratnakar
There’s nothing worse–well, I guess there are worse things but hear me out–than starting your day and not having a clue on the goals you’re working towards.
And we can agree that time keeps on slipping slipping slipping.
Before you know it, it’s mid-year and we haven’t even put a dent on our biggest goals yet.
Planning your day the night before gives you confidence. It keeps you out of the rut and helps you dedicate the time to complete what’s priority.
Find a planner–whether physical or digital–that works for you and one you will use.
Now, my favorite planners are the STARTPlanner and Michael Hyatt’s Full Focus Planner. I use them both daily; the STARTPlanner to fully map out every minute of my day and the Full Focus Planner (which is more like a 90-day planner) to focus on my annual and quarterly goals.
Google Calendar is also a great digital tool that you can customize.
Start with one and make it an everyday habit.
#3 Track Your Time Spend on Projects
So, let’s say you do plan your day in advance…religiously. But you find yourself not following it because some tasks take you a little longer to complete than you’ve anticipated.
This. Is. Me.
I recently had a conversation with my friend and colleague, Jamie Bennett at The Lifestyle Group, advising I begin documenting and truly tracking how long it takes for certain tasks. Then at the end of the week, review and assess how I did and adjust the following week based on my findings.
🤯
A light bulb moment came.
Side note: This is why it’s so important to have those business girlfriends who can point you in the right direction when you’re lost…at a standstill…or just need some encouragement/inspiration/guidance.
I needed to track my time spent on projects so I knew the actual amount of time it took. As a result, I don’t set myself up for failure because I’m making the adjustments.
Using a time-tracking tool like Toggl can help us become more efficient with our time.
In fact, Serena Williams shared in Fast Company how she uses Toggl to gauge whether she’s spent enough time with her daughter Olympia. Neat thing is, it’s free and it has a reporting feature so you can actually see where your time is going.
Yes!
#4 Strategically Schedule Your Hardest Task During Your Peak Performance Hours
Did you know there’s a certain time of the day when we’re at our absolute best?
For some, it’s the wee early hours in the morning when the hubby and kids are asleep and there are no interruptions.
Others are more like night owls; they get their energy after 9pm.
For me, it’s between 11am-1pm. And I aim to schedule my most challenging work during that time because I know my brain is working!
An easy way to find out your peak performance hours is to take note of the times when you feel your best. Here are two great resources that go into more detail:
On the flip side, discover the time when you’re sluggish. For me, it’s between 2pm-4pm. So during that time, I usually have my lunch break or do low-impact work/activities like responding to emails.
Find out when you’re at your best and maximize that time. This tip alone can be a game-changer towards increasing your productivity.
#5 Keep Your Eyes On Your Why
Knowing the reason behind what you do can keep you going during times when you just don’t feel like it.
Frankly, highly successful people have their moments when they just don’t feel like it. They may not feel like getting up early to workout or to eat their frog.
They’re human, you know.
The biggest difference here is they’re not driven by emotions or feelings. They focus on the bigger picture, the bigger why.
Every morning, declare your goals and meditate on them. Visualize yourself in the moment of achieving that goal and the impact it will bring.
Have visual reminders on your desk so it’s constantly in front of you.
The more you’re focused on the prize, the more likely you’ll find the stamina and energy to push through the hard moments.
#6 Discover What Motivates You…and Leverage that!
I am motivated by prizes and rewards. So, I leverage that.
Every week I have a reward I’m working towards. If I crush my three biggest goals for the week, I win my prize.
If I don’t, I have to return it or give it to someone.
Last week it was the Solo Beats headsets✅, this week it’s a Melanin Millionaire shirt.
I’m having so much fun rewarding myself while meeting goals 🙂
Whatever motivates you, incorporate that into your weekly wins celebration.
Let’s enjoy the journey along the way!
#7 Take a Break
Daily and weekly.
Unfortunately, I’ve learned this the hard way…several times.
You see, if you don’t take a break, your body will take a break for you…
And it’s never at a convenient time or the preferred way to rest.
It’s vital to recharge. Whether that’s a coffee date with your business bestie, taking a walk midday, and completely resting on Sundays, find ways to implement breaks in your everyday life.
It’s just what your body needs to get through the finish line🏁.
#8 Intentionally Schedule Time for Family and the Things You Enjoy
Building on Habit #2, purposely plan out time in your planner that you’ll spend with family and do the things you love.
I mean, this is exactly why we do what we do! To spend more time with the people we love and do the things that bring us joy.
We schedule the things that are important, so let’s ensure the things that do matter are on our calendar.
#9 Morning Routines Rock
Morning routines are powerful. It gets your mindset ready to conquer what’s ahead.
It’s self care at it’s finest because you’re giving yourself the first moments of the day.
Not social media. Not email. YOU!
Thing is, it doesn’t have to be a whole power hour. A good 15-30 minutes before getting the kids up and on the bus will do wonders to get you in a state of peace, stability, and power.
Here’s what my morning routine consists of:
- Prayer
- Glass of water
- Put on the kettle for the coffee
- State my 2021 goals aloud
- Declarations (or some call them affirmations)
- Meditation
And, yes, I aim to do all the things in one pomodoro.
You can find more ideas on how to create an amazing morning routine for yourself.
The moral here: Whatever time you can find in the morning, give it to yourself to get you mentally and spiritually ready for the day.
#10 Outsource Your Weaknesses
There’s no need to try to do it all. The things you may struggle with most in your business–whether that’s accounting, social media posting, or marketing–is what someone else excels at.
It takes you longer to do these tasks than it would if you just simply outsource them.
Besides, you’re allowing someone else to operate in their strengths…to do the things they enjoy while getting paid for it!
AND, it frees you up to operate in your core competencies.
Those are boss moves: leveraging the brilliance of others so you can focus on what you do best.
Sara Blakely said, “as soon as you can afford it, outsource your weaknesses.”
Ditto!
#11 Get Dressed💄
We all heard the phrase, “dress for success.”
But that’s for the office, right?
Nope. It also applies to working from home in your own business.
You see, when you keep your pajamas or house clothes on all day, you stay in a relaxed, lackadaisical mood. And it can show up in your performance.
That’s not how we handle boss business!
Instead, put on that outfit that speaks confidence. Enhance your beautiful self with some MAC or Mary Kay to showcase the powerful, gorgeous you. Add jewelry to further accentuate your look.
You’ll be AH-MAZED at how getting dressed can dramatically increase your confidence and your productivity.
#12 3 Big Weekly, 3 Small Daily
This👏🏽right👏🏽here👏🏽!
It’s one of the most effective productive daily habits that keeps you centered on what’s priority.
Here’s how it works:
At the beginning of each week, ideally Sunday, set your three major goals for the week that align with your annual or quarterly goals. Just three.
Next, chunk down those goals into an actionable list. In other words, what are the tasks involved to make the major goals happen?
Schedule these tasks throughout the week, focusing on 3/day. The daily goals align with your weekly goals so that by Saturday, you would have accomplished your major three for the week.
This, my friend, is how you move the needle every day in your goals and dreams. Things are not getting lost, time is not slipping by, you’re intentionally working on your dreams every day…little by little.
Slow and steady wins the race.
By golly it does!
#13 Have a Weekly Retro
I love Sundays. It’s a day of rest, reflection, and goal planning for the week.
So, in addition to getting ready for the week, take a few moments to evaluate the previous week.
What went well? What did you crush? What were your wins?
Reflecting on what went well gives you a moment to celebrate and relish in all that you’ve achieved.
Likewise, think about what didn’t go well. What hindered you from meeting your goals? What would you have done differently?
When you do this week in and week out, you’ll avoid making the same mistakes. It also gives you a chance to gain some learnings so you can tweak and adjust your plan moving forward.
Weekly and monthly retros can be a game changer towards your goal planning.
#14 Get Stuff Off of Your Calendar
This recently happened to me where I had so many meetings, client calls, doctor appointments, and parent/teacher conferences all packed in two weeks that it severely impacted my work performance.
Thing is, not all of these shenanigans were priority. I could’ve rescheduled, moved some things around and got ish off of my calendar before it showed up.
“What goes on on the inside will eventually show up and show out.”
Aim to get things off your calendar so you can operate at your best. Know the difference between what’s urgent and what’s important. Email and texts can wait–unless, of course, it’s actually important.
Reschedule some things, communicate with clients and colleagues when it’s a busy moment. We will feel a huge weight off our shoulders once we start to release or delegate the things that are just time spenders.
The Best Way to Implement these Habits of Productive People
This is all a learning experience, and we grow as we go forward. With that said, don’t try to take all of these habits on at one time. You’ll end up quitting or in Overwhelm Land.
Instead, pick 1-3 that you will give your sincere focus on and go for it. Modify as you progress.
The key here is creating long-term winning habits that get you closer to your dreams. Focus on your picks for 90 days so it really sticks.
The growth and achievements you’ll experience over the next quarter will be gratifying❤️.
Really great and helpful read, I will definitely be using these tips!
Wonderful, Glenda. So glad you found it helpful! Thanks for stopping by💖
Fantastic article! This is tangible productivity advice at its best.
Thank you, Jessica! I appreciate you❤️