If you reflect on our own levels of productivity; how much work are we actually getting done? Chances are many of us have fallen victim to procrastination. Procrastination has been a problem since people can remember; waiting until the last minute to finish our tasks by the deadline, or sometimes even failing to meet the deadline at all.
So how do we combat this chronic issue? The key to significantly reducing our chances of falling victim to procrastination is to establish your own productivity system. It sounds complicated, but it’s actually pretty simple!
A productivity system is simply a way of organizing yourself in order to give yourself more time to do the work you need to do; this can help reduce stress and get things done faster. So how do we set up a productivity system?
PRODUCTIVITY SYSTEM
The first step to establishing a productivity system is to set your goals. This is the foundation of your system because it answers the “Why?” question to even wanting to become more productive. In order to set goals, you need to figure out what you want to achieve and why. If the goal is compelling enough, it will give you a constant reminder to stay productive.
The second step is to find out the details about your productivity. When can you work on your tasks during the day? What tools will you use to organize yourself?
These questions are crucial to ask yourself as this will help you set yourself up for success. You can do this with minimal research on the best tools to organize yourself. Creating a to-do list will help immensely. You can also use a calendar to organize your days and weeks, such as Google Calendar.
AVOIDING DISTRACTIONS
Once you complete the setup of your productivity system, congratulations! You have completed what most people don’t really bother to do, and you are setting yourself up to become more productive. However, now you need to take into account the resistance. That is the potential distractions that can throw your productivity off.
The importance of avoiding distractions is necessary in order for your productivity system to work. You can be the most organized person, but if you constantly get distracted by your cell phone, you won’t get much done.
One way you can combat distractions is to first find out what is distracting you. For example, most people get distracted by their phones. The next step to this is to then make sure that the distraction is nowhere near your field of vision, or you can make it inaccessible to yourself during the times you committed yourself to getting your tasks done.
WRAPPING UP
Overall, trying to stay away from procrastination is a great mindset to have. However, you need actionable steps in order to succeed in reducing your chances of procrastination. By setting goals, organizing yourself, and eliminating distractions, you can give yourself the best chances of completing your tasks successfully, before the deadline.
