#9 - Productivity

• Challenge

• The human brain is hard-wired to get distracted easily. Modern distractions like apps and devices are rewarding and addictive. Getting distracted continuously leads to unproductivity.

• Opportunity

• Keep productivity simple. Set clear goals, use simple tools, eliminate distractions, focus and get stuff done.

• Actions

• Keep it simple. At bare minimum you only need 2 steps: go where you usually work and start on one small thing. After you finish that, it's easier to keep going.

• Define productivity for yourself. One definition: getting the most important things done consistently, with sustainable speed.

• Limit the amount of big goals to a maximum of 5. Having too many priorities equals no priorities.

• Focus on 1 high impact task daily. Pick something that will take 1-4 hours and is aligned with your big goals. Do it first. Then do other tasks.

• Tools

• Try to limit the number of tools used. 0 tools will make your life harder. 30 tools will waste more time than save.

• Think also about the ecosystem advantages of having a set of tools from one supplier (O365 and G-suite are good examples). Data transferring is easier. UX can be smoother. Saving time and nerves.

• Timetracking

  • Timeular

  • Toggl

  • Simple

  • 144blocks

• Organize yourself

  • Any.do

  • Todoist

  • TickTick

• Notes

  • Evernote

  • OneNote

  • SimpleNote

  • Leuchtturm1917

• Pros

• Time is the great equalizer. We all have 100 blocks of time available each day. It is up to us how we use it.

• Switching the mindset from getting more done to getting the important things done is relieving. You'll never have time to do everything. But you'll always have time to do the most important things. Apply the Pareto principle.

• Cons

• The pandemic changed everything. We're amidst a cultural disruption no one has ever seen before. It's also OK not to feel productive all the time. Lean on your network to get support. Try to find joy in little things.

• Cases

• Habits of successful people can be inspiring but they're not mandatory. Create your own habits. Trust in the basics outlined in this report. Productivity comes down to simple building blocks. However, in case you want that small bit of inspiration:

• ​Jack Dorsey themes his days, exercises/meditates in the morning and focuses on deep work when in office.

• ​Leo Babauta says that his single most important productivity tip is simplification.

• ​Elon Musk uses 5-minute blocks to organize his day.

• Forecast

• Hybrid work will go mainstream. It saves commute time and allows people to choose their most efficient working location.

• Going hybrid will mean building a productive workforce that can work regardless of the location. This means having focus on social connectivity, mental wellness, physical wellness and proper tools.

• Resources

• ​Which Productivity Method Is Right For You? - Get a personally tailored productivity method that works best for you.

• ​Zen to Done: The Simple Productivity System - Leo Babauta's excellent system on minimal productivity.

• Takeaways

• The modern world encourages distractions and context switching. The solution is simple though. Pick a task, eliminate distractions, focus and get to work.

• Real productivity is not about getting more work done. It's about getting the right things done consistently and with reasonable working hours.

• Team productivity can be a bit more complicated than individual productivity, but simple principles will go a long way.

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Thanks for reading. See you next week!