How To Be More Productive: 11 Tips You Might Want To Bookmark

Productivity is a new gold, and many people live in a productivity rush. Being trapped in it, it’s easy to start running faster and faster just to do more. Instead, you should focus on managing time properly to do more with less.

Take a look at our time management tips and choose those you’d like to start practicing today. There should be at least 5 extremely useful ones in this list for each productivity hunter!

1. Start your day before going to bed

You probably heard about planning your day the night before. But there is more to that than simple planning. Before going to bed, you have a chance to relax and imagine what you want your tomorrow to look like.

Many people claim that this technique works. It doesn’t mean that the coffee will never be spilled on your favorite shirt, but some things will definitely get closer to your ideal image.

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2. Find your most productive hours

Though it’s often forgotten when it comes to building routines, we are all different. If it’s almost unbearable for you to get up at 5 am and jump straight into a yoga routine, don’t cling to this pattern.

Everyone has their own productive hours, and if yours are in the middle of the night, let it be so. Catching these hours is way more effective than hatching and trying to do something when things don’t go.

3. Block distractions

One of the greatest time management tips in our modern world of endless notifications is to block distractions. It really helps you concentrate, so don’t slack on this one.

Let’s keep it simple:

• Check social accounts at the dedicated time only
• Switch phone/mac to do not disturb mode (no notifications)
• Don’t check email as soon as each message comes
• Regularly unsubscribe from all sorts of spam

4. Take small breaks frequently

Concentrating on something for a very long time is not effective. You don’t even notice how the focus gets lost and attention starts wandering. To help it, take short breaks once in a while.

The best option is to go outside for at least several minutes. Fresh air helps your brain reload and keeps your health on a better level in general.

5. Find inspiration

When you are in a bad mood, spend 15-20 minutes doing or watching something positive, pleasant, or funny. Working when you have a good mood is way more productive.

But be careful to not get carried away. Watching 15 minutes of a “Game of Thrones” episode might easily become a huge distraction simply impossible to turn off.

6. Use an online calendar

There are many planning techniques from the old good paper planner to an online calendar. If you haven’t tried the online calendar yet, it’s the best time to try it out. There is a number of features that will help you make planning more effective.  

Keep an eye open for the scheduled block of time for a task vs reported time upon the task completion. It is a useful feature that will assist you with more effective planning.

7. Delegate or outsource

Don’t try completing everything by yourself. There are people who can help you. They dedicate their days to particular tasks you need to get done. It means they are more professional in some things than you. Save yourself some time by delegating one-time unfamiliar tasks to them.

Try Upwork. They have all sorts of freelancers from personal assistants to link builders to accountants. Whatever budget you have, you’re likely to find reliable help on the platform.

8. Track your time

Time tracking is one of the most essential and efficient time management techniques. Not only does it contribute to your productivity habits, but also helps to be honest when it comes to spending (or wasting?) time.

Another benefit of time tracking is that you can budget the time better. If one of your goals is to increase income, this tip is especially important. Indeed, time is money.  

9. Grant yourself some treats

One of the learning theories states that the best way of shaping behavior is through positive reinforcement. If you do something well, thank yourself for it. It can be an episode of your favorite TV show or a plane ticket to Hawaii – whatever corresponds with your day.

Seems a bit too automatic for us humans? Just give it a try. Tasks you hated yesterday might turn into quite pleasant ones tomorrow thanks to the basic positive reinforcement technique.

10. Prioritize by saying “No”

You can’t complete all tasks in one day, that’s why you plan your week. You can’t do all the marketing and accounting and coding, that’s why you hire assistants and delegate. Nobody can do it all, even with a productivity superpower.

It is the art of prioritizing. By saying “No” to some things, you dedicate yourself fully to others. Giving them more time, you contribute to the best result exactly where you need it.

11. Be agile in changing the game plan

Don’t set your plans in stone. Allow yourself to be flexible when certain tasks are not going well. Let yourself drop something that has lost its importance. Let the world around you change and change along with it.

The game plan is something you are writing for yourself. Whether you do it the night before or in the morning, you are the only boss of the plan. You are equally responsible for following it or changing it. All the time management tips can only help you when you are ready to make it work for you. Good luck!