We’ve become so easily distracted these days that we need apps on our devices to keep us off these devices! And if you’re like me, then it can still feel like there are just not enough hours in the day sometimes. So, what can we do? Here are Just Three Things we can do to become even more productive:
- Stop multitasking: My sister has four children and says she has mastered the art of multitasking because if she didn’t, nothing would get done. Good on her. Now I’ve personally seen her in action while she’s “multitasking” and the reality is that she’s not doing two things at once like she thinks she is. She’s actually stopping mid-task one to move onto task two and then coming back to task one. Is it that she’s “bad” at multitasking? No, the reality is that we don’t multitask well. Our brain cannot perform two tasks that require high levels of attention at once. Yes, we can brush our teeth and do something else at the same time because brushing our teeth is habitual and so not a task that requires your brain to be on alert! Where possible, do your best to complete one task at a time and you’ll see how more productive you can be.
- Start becoming more aware: In order to create any change, we need awareness first. If you want to be more productive then you’ve got to look realistically at how and where you currently spend your time because only then you can do something about it. I’ve had clients tell me they simply don’t have five minutes in the morning to start their day differently, but then admit to spending five minutes or more scrolling on social media. People talk about time-management, but essentially it’s a skill that comes down to self-management. How are you at managing yourself when it comes to your time? And if this is something you’d like to improve, what is just one thing you will do differently today to start that cycle of change?
- Continue to use the two-minute rule: I’m sure most of you have heard of the 5-second rule? It’s good. But sometimes I find myself turning what should be the 5-second rule into the 5-minute rule, really productive! And I know when something’s not working for me that I need to do something different. This is when I learned to start asking myself, is this something I can do now? Will this task literally take me two minutes to complete? And if I say yes to that, then I do it. If it’s going to take me longer than two minutes, I put it on my to-do list and set a time to start it.
Linda Bonnar is a Master NLP Coach & Practitioner, an ICF ACC Certified Coach, author of coaching book Press Play, trainer and keynote speaker. To find out more about how Linda can help you achieve your personal & professional goals, contact her
@Lindabonnar_lifecoaching