How to be more productive: Plan ahead of time
Although this one can look very different from person to person or even from task to task, it is very important to plan your day. In order to explain the variety in planning, I will use a personal example. Many times when I write my blog posts, I do not have my ideas mapped out for the day/week/month. I may have a list of ideas, but what I choose to right on at any given time depends on where my brain is when I sit down to write. Instead, I have planned out and set aside a time to write a blog post, and I go from there. I highly recommend using a planner and physically writing what each day will look like down as well. It helps a great deal to be able to SEE what you need to do each day. Regardless of how planning looks for you, one thing is for sure, if you walk into a task with a plan you will be more likely to hit the end goal.
How to be more productive: Find a quiet spot free from distractions
Moms, I know this can be a difficult one, which is why again, planning is key. It seems that right when we get settled in to work, the baby needs fed, the kids are fighting, or someone is into something they shouldn’t be, right? Yeah, I know how that goes! This is EXACTLY why I started coming up with a plan. I have started to pencil in my work time when my toddler is either sleeping, or my husband can be with him. I will go to another room and get right to work. I know what you are thinking “that’s great but what happens if the baby wakes up or my husband is late getting home from work?” Well, then you get to learn what it means to be flexible by regrouping and replanning. Maybe you can map out more time the next day in order to make up for the lost time, or you can push back your work time for the day.
How to be more productive: Be intentional
This one was a big one for me. Much of my business revolves around being online and on social media. Therefore, I would get on my computer or on my phone, log in and start “working”. I put working in quotes because pretty soon I would be scrolling through Facebook or Instagram looking at things that didn’t pertain to what I originally signed on for. Soon enough that would remind me I forgot to play someone back on Words with Friends which reminded me I hadn’t played Tetris in a long time and next thing you know I am having my husband watch our child so I can hide out in my room and play games… please tell me I am not alone here! How did I change that, I learned what it meant to be intentional. On days I plan to write a blog post, I leave my phone in another room and I don’t even open social media tabs on my computer. On days I am working on social media posts, I don’t stray from my business page. I go in with a plan and I am bound and determine to be able to check that task off by the end of my work time (more on this later.
How to be more productive: Break tasks down
This is something I learned from a newborn. Not literally, but he forced me to find a way to accomplish things which led me to this. I am a teacher, therefore, I get to spend time home in the summer (although I promise you, our work is never completely done). The summer after my son was born, I had so many ideas on what I would get done. My house was going to stay clean, I would have supper made for my husband every night when he got home, I would rock my own business, I would take graduate classes and while doing all of this I would be a full time mom. I quickly learned that I couldn’t fit all of this into one day, but I COULD fit parts of each task into each day. Here is my example: I knew at that time my son would sleep for an hour or two in the morning and a couple hours in the afternoon. Keeping this in mind, I broke each big task into multiple small tasks. During his morning nap, I would work on school work and do something for my business. During his afternoon nap, I would do the cleaning chore I had written down in my planner for that particular day of the week and I would start preparing supper. I wasn’t cleaning my house each day, but instead I was doing ONE small cleaning task each day whether it was dusting, sweeping and mopping, laundry, picking up, etc. Then, the next day I’d do another task. Each Sunday I would go into my planner and assign the tasks for every day the following week. I’m telling you, it worked soooo well, ladies!
How to be more productive: Check things off as you finish
I get a sense of accomplishment from physically checking things off of my list. This is another reason a planner is a great idea! When you are able to check things off, you can see what is done and what still needs to be finished, and seeing what you’ve finished feels pretty darn good!
There you have it, my 5 tips for increasing productivity. Now go on and be productive. You’ve got this, lady!
Xoxo,
Brittany Eckert
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