8 Daily Tips for Being Highly Productive

 

Want to get your focus back and be highly productive?

There are no secret tricks here. Do one thing at a time. Stop multitasking—it’s just another form of distraction. Yes, this is easier said than done, I know.

8 Tips for Being Highly Productive

Here are eight daily tips to help you get focused and highly productive:

1. Work backwards from goals to milestones to tasks

Writing down “secure three first interviews in 60 days” at the top of your to-do list is a sure way to make sure you never get it done.

Break down the work into smaller and smaller chunks until you have specific tasks that can be accomplished in a few hours or days: Sketch a detailed outline with critical success factors and actions to achieving this goal.

That’s how you set goals and actually succeed in crossing them off your list!

2. Prioritize the Most Important Tasks (MITs):

Identify two or three tasks that are crucial for your daily success. Tackling these MITs early in the day ensures that even if the rest of your to-do list gets derailed, you’ve made progress on essential goals.

3. Stop multi-tasking

No, seriously—stop. Switching from task to task quickly does not work and is actually bad for you.

In fact, changing tasks more than 10 times in a day makes you less effective. When you multitask, your IQ actually drops by an average of 10 points, 15 for men, five for women (yes, men are three times as bad at multitasking then women).

4. Stay disciplined about eliminating distractions

Lock your door, put a sign up, turn off your phone, texts, email, and instant messaging.

In fact, if you know you may sneak a peek at your email, set it to offline mode, or even turn off your internet connection. Go to a quiet area and focus on completing one task at a time.

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5. Schedule your email

Pick two or three times during the day when you’re going to use your email. Checking your email constantly throughout the day creates a ton of noise and kills your productivity.

6. Use the phone

Email isn’t meant for conversations, plus it can be impersonal and easily dismissed. Don’t reply more than twice to an original email. Pick up the phone instead.

7. Work on your own agenda

Don’t let something else set your day. Most people go right to their emails and start freaking out. Sure, you will end up with an empty inbox, but nothing important will be accomplished.

After you wake up, drink water so you re-hydrate, eat a good breakfast to replenish your glucose and set prioritized goals for the rest of your day.

TIP: If possible take a 45 minute nap in a low lighted room for extra energy in the afternoon.

8. Work in 60 to 90 minute intervals

Your brain uses up more glucose than any other bodily activity. Typically you will have spent most of it after 60-90 minutes. (That’s why you feel so burned out after super long meetings.)

Instead of pushing through longer periods of work, take a break. Get up, go for a walk, have a snack, do something completely different to recharge. Consider incorporating mindfulness or light stretching into these breaks.

These brief pauses can re-energize your mind and prevent burnout, ultimately contributing to sustained productivity.

And, yes, that means you need an extra hour for breaks, not including lunch, so if you’re required to get eight hours of work done each day, plan to be there for 9 to 10 hours.

Still having problems staying focused and being highly productive? Hire a coach!