How to Increase Productivity Without Burning Out
As we head toward the fall season our schedules can suddenly feel much busier. I felt this recently at the store seeing the shelves full of Halloween decorations. Halloween?! Preparing for Halloween in August?!! Am I already behind planning for holidays?? I know we all can relate to the feeling of our calendars filling up and our schedules getting packed with work, activities, errands, and events. When we get busy, it’s easy to keep our heads down and barrel through the day and collapse into bed each night. You know the feeling. You’re treading water, barely able to keep up and gaze at the horizon. At times it doesn’t seem possible there could be enough time in the day to fit everything in! We feel wrung out, burnt out, and unhappy. All of us want to avoid reaching this point. So how can we avoid burnout, while working smarter, better, and maybe a little less? Read on for some of our favorite hacks and tips for making your schedule work for you.
Write it Down
We love to use our planners to brain dump everything on our minds. Take 5-10 minutes and let your pen move. Empty out your thoughts, worries, and stress. This simple act can help us feel better and identify what we need to focus on. From there, identify your to-dos for the day and week. There are lots of approaches you can try to tackle your list. Some people suggest tackling the hardest task first. This can feel like a big relief when you finish it and it opens up space in your mind to tackle everything else. Others prefer to group easy tasks together, work through them, and cross them off to build a feeling of momentum and accomplishment. Find the approach that works for you. I love the 2-Minute Rule. If a task takes less than two minutes, do it right away. Mundane tasks can build and weigh on us. Get them off the list!
Limit Distractions
When faced with your list of to-dos and tasks, our number one tip is cutting out distractions. Turn off notifications while working. If possible, put your devices into airplane mode. If working on your computer, close any tabs that are open that don’t pertain to what you’re working on. If web distractions are really tempting, you can use a web blocker to limit what you can access while working.
Declutter & Make it Inviting
When our space is cluttered, our minds can feel cluttered. Set a 10 minute timer and clear any flat surfaces in your work space. This could be your desk, table, countertop. When your space is clear, add a few touches that make you feel good. I love working with a warm lamp on and lighting a candle. If your computer desktop is in disarray, find time to do a little decluttering there too. A clean, organized space will allow you to breathe easier and see what’s in front of you.
Time Blocking and Scheduling
We’ve written more extensively on the blog about time blocking before but essentially time blocking is looking at your day as a whole and breaking it down into blocks of time dedicated to particular tasks. If you’ve never tried the time blocking approach, I encourage you to try it in combination with the limiting distraction suggestions above. It’s amazing what you can accomplish with a little focus.
Another approach you can try that works especially well for artists, writers, and freelancers, is following a schedule of daily themes. If you like to immerse yourself in one task instead of pinballing between multiple tasks, give each day a theme. For example:
Monday - Research
Tuesday - Creativity
Wednesday - Writing
Thursday - Miscellaneous & Mundane
Friday - Errands/Cleaning
Try this fun quiz to see which approach will work best for you!
Rest and Care
It seems counterintuitive to suggest more time for rest and fun when we’re thinking about being more productive. But the more rested and cared for you are, the fresher you will feel sitting down and working through your list of tasks. What helps us? Morning and evening routines! Establishing a good rhythm to your days will give you structure and improve your sleep, nutrition, and mental health. Prioritize your sleep! Try for 7-8 hours a night and give yourself a fighting chance at waking a little earlier to ease into your day with a gentle morning. And walks! Get outside and get fresh air no matter what the weather. Even 10 minutes around the block can bring clarity and new perspective. And last but not least, carve time each week to spend time with those who lift you up. We love scheduling running an errand with a friend! It could be a trip to Target or the grocery store. It’s a chance to hang out and get things done at the same time!
We’d love to hear from you! What strategies do you use to help your workflow? How do you ward off feeling burnt out? Share with us in the comments below!