People work an average of 45 hours a week; they consider about 17 of those hours to be unproductive (U.S.: 45 hours of unproductive). We could all be accomplishing a lot more – but then again, none of us wants to be a workaholic, either
Manage Your Mood
Research shows how you start the day has an enormous effect on productivity, and you procrastinate more when you’re in a bad mood
- Happiness increases productivity and makes you more successful
- Doctors put in a positive mood before making a diagnosis show almost three times more intelligence and creativity
- Optimistic salespeople outsell pessimistic counterparts by 56%
- Students primed to feel happy before taking math achievement tests far outperform their neutral peers
Don’t Check Email In The Morning
Whenever possible, do not check email for the first hour or two of the day.
- Research shows email: Stresses you out
- Can turn you into a jerk
- Checking email frequently is the equivalent of dropping your IQ 10 points
Define Your Goals The Night Before
Define your one or two most important to-dos before dinner, the day before
- Establish a closing ritual
- Know when to stop working
- Straighten up your desk
- Back up your computer
- Make a list of what you need to do tomorrow
Before You Try To Do It Faster, Ask Whether It Should Be Done At All
Doing something well does not make it important.
- The vast majority of things that people do quickly should not be done at all. Instead, do what is important… and not much else.
Summing Up
Manage your mood
- Don’t check email in the morning
- Focus is nothing more than eliminating distractions
- Have a personal system
- Define your goals the night before
- Helping others takes time but research shows it makes us feel like we have more time
- Once you are more productive, you will have more hours to fill so why not use them to make others and yourself happier?
Focus Is Nothing More Than Eliminating Distractions
Focus is a function of limiting the number of options you give yourself for procrastinating.
- Put yourself in a padded room, with a problem that you need to work on, and shut the door. Focus is thought of as this magical ability. It’s not a magical ability
- Distractions make you stupid. One study found that top CEOs are interrupted every 20 minutes. How do they get things done? By working from home in the morning for 90 minutes.
Have A Personal System
Defining routines and systems is more effective than relying on self-discipline
- Develop a routine so that decision-making is only applied to the most creative aspects of your work, or wherever their unique talent happens to lie
- Great systems work because they make things automatic and don’t tax your limited supply of willpower
