How do you make your day productive? It’s a question we ask ourselves every day, and it has many different answers. Some people need to get eight hours of sleep before they can even function, while others thrive on just four. Some people work best in the early morning, and others are most productive in the evening after a long break. The trick is to find what works for you! After all, time is our greatest commodity. We have exactly the same amount of time as anyone else on this planet — but we all use it differently. Learning how to make your day productive can change your mood, your professional life and your personal life!
My Black Hole Bad Habits – What Not to Do!
Do you make the most of your time? I know I don’t always. For me, often times when I have the MOST time, I accomplish the least. I tend to go down the black hole of the internet when I have long blocks of time to work. It took me years to realize this.
As a mother of six and a small business owner, I built my business during the early morning hours in the quiet of my house and naptime. That was it! The rest of the day I was caring for children and basically cleaning the house (kids make a huge mess LOL). And I got a lot done – like six figure business done year after year.
Then my youngest started school and I had ALL day to work (well five hours straight in between preschool drop off and pick up). Guess what? My productivity tanked! I wasted hours surfing the internet. Not playing games but chasing all the shiny objects to help build my business but I wasn’t actually working ON my business. It was so defeating too – by the end of the day I would beat myself up in my head because I didn’t accomplish any big goals.
Finally a lightbulb when off in my head to change back to how I was working before – super focused blocks of about 2 hours where I took action. It was transformational again. I was starting to create content and products for my business in those blocks of time and then it was much easier to finish in the next focused block of time. Fast forward to today with my youngest in first grade and kids in out of the house like a revolving door, I manage 4 websites while following my productive daily routines. When I am productive, it jump starts my happy feelings and I feel empowered and excited!
If you need help starting new routines, follow this process with the How to Create a Successful Daily Routine ebook and workbook to get started today!
Here are some additional tips that work for me that hopefully will help you learn how to make your day productive.
How to Make Your Day Productive – 8 Simple Ways to Help
The more you get done each day, the more success you can experience. You also give yourself the opportunity to have more free time, too. Time always seems to be in short supply. If you get more out of your day, you’re making better use of your time.
Increasing your productivity can have a positive effect on your professional and personal life. And like I mentioned above, your mood. Personally, when I am unproductive, my negative self talk goes crazy and I get grumpy with myself and others. It is a bad combination!
Try these tips to learn how to make your day productive
Plan. To get the most out of any day, it’s important to know what you’re going to do before the day begins. Decide how you’re going to spend your day the night before. That way, you can get busy accomplishing things first thing in the morning.
It doesn’t have to be anything formal. If you actually write down the plan though it does become formal. For me, simply writing the action step down in a planner makes it official. Then I highlight it when I complete it – wow that feels amazing!
Get up earlier. You’ll be surprised how much more you can accomplish and how much better you feel about the day if you start your day a little bit earlier. Many of the most productive and successful people in the world share the habit of rising early.
For me, this is the most helpful tip. When I get up early and complete a task before anyone else wakes up, my day will go smoothly. I feel accomplished and proud and it is only 7:00 am!
Turn off social media. Social media is a time-waster. Set aside a time in the evening to catch up with your friends and family, but avoid wasting too much time on this type of activity. It’s a huge mistake to engage in social media during work hours. You have more productive things to spend your time on.
Say, “no” more often. It’s easier to be productive in a meaningful way if you’re attempting to do fewer things each day. Be willing to say no to tasks, obligations, and people that get in the way of your productivity. For example, I say no to cleaning the house every day and we set aside time on the weekends to work together to clean up.
Make a list of how you actually spend your time in an average day. Do you see any activities you can eliminate? Saying, “no” can also mean refusing yourself the opportunity to waste your time on meaningless activities.
Get as much done as possible early in the day. If you can get a lot done in the morning, the rest of the day will go well, too. However, if you struggle to accomplish anything early in the day, the rest of the day usually goes poorly also. This is part of the reason why it’s so important to have a plan and to get up early. Try these morning affirmations to boost your mindset.
If you are not an early riser that is okay. You can still work on getting your most important tasks done early in the day when you brain is fresh and ready.
Stick to one task at a time. Multitasking is for people that don’t want to be productive. Choose one task, complete it, and then move on to a new task. Many studies have shown that multitasking is ineffective.
Focus on the most important task or steps. Avoid just doing the easiest or most enjoyable tasks. Focus on completing the most important tasks, and you’ll be much more productive.
Take regular breaks. You might get less done in the short-term, but you’ll undoubtedly accomplish a lot more over a long day of work. Taking regular breaks refreshes your brain and makes it easier to focus. You’ll be much more effective in the afternoon if you’ve been taking breaks earlier in the day. Try mindful breathing exercises.
How productive are you? How would your life improve if you got more done each day?
Most of us could use a couple more hours each day. Unfortunately, no one has found a practical way to alter time. However, you can learn how to make your day productive to make better use of the time you have.
Need Positive Affirmations to Help Get You Started?
Try this positive affirmation – I am productive to starting learning how to make your day productive today!
