In a world saturated with demands, let’s redefine productivity by steering clear from the illusion of busyness. This list includes smart strategies that prioritize your wellness and accomplishments.

As Your Day Starts

Your mental and physical energy is at its peak right after a full night of rest. Use this time to tackle work that requires more focus and mental energy. Studies show that people are happier and more awake in the first half of the day. The golden timeframe for meetings is around an hour after work starts until lunchtime which is typically from 10AM-12PM.

Start with the small tasks so you can feel accomplished and gain momentum. Schedule your tasks in groups, and separate these groups with break times. For example, holding a brainstorming session in the morning before taking a relaxing lunch break, and after feeling refreshed and recharged, cleaning your email inbox and editing your notes.

Fake Productivity

Multitasking means ‘dealing with more than one task at the same time.’ Switching back and forth between projects is not considered real multitasking. Only a very small percentage of the human population can actually do several mental tasks at the same time. 

Don’t settle for the feeling of productivity by trying to multitask. Every time you switch from one project to another, you need a moment to switch gears, mentally or physically. These small amounts of wasted time add up, and could be better spent on the actual work.

Practice Meeting Etiquette

Limit your meetings to a maximum of 45 minutes to avoid an unfocused audience or include breaks for longer meetings. I personally find that 30 minutes is the ideal amount of time for discussion and efficiency. Consider who really needs to be in the meeting to avoid wasting others’ time and having unnecessary conversations.

Include any meeting details beforehand. This helps attendees know if it is a relevant or irrelevant meeting to them, get on the same page, and prepare questions or notes ahead of time. High five for better meetings!

The Hungry Hour

Planning is not just about blocking time off on your calendar. Your workload may suddenly pile up, and if it isn’t easy to fix a meal for yourself, you’ll probably miss the golden hour for a regular meal time. This will mess up your hunger and digestion cycle. Are you prioritizing your job over your health? If you’d like to be a healthy person, focus on the opportunities a healthy lifestyle allows for you, such as the energy to enjoy life, or the ability to spend more time with family or friends.

If you’re prone to laziness and pickiness like me, meal prepping ahead of time or planning where to get lunch from will help you quickly get food in your belly instead of missing the lunch window. If you struggle to find time for cooking, look into microwaved meals and snacks to get you through your day. I enjoy snacks because they encourage me to take a break from work. There are plenty of healthy options as well depending on your budget or willingness to prepare foods.

Walk Away

Remember, there will always be more work. Unless you’re working on an emergency (which might be a loosely and overly used term), plan for small breaks from your work every day. For desk jobs, getting some fresh air and physical exercise will boost your mood and health immensely. Taking breaks will help you to work better as you feel refreshed and come back to your work with fresh eyes, catching any errors or brainstorming solutions to a tricky problem.

The best time for a break is right after you finish a task and before you start another one. This helps you to feel accomplished and mentally disconnected from the task. Fight the temptation to check on your next task if you are easily distracted from taking your break. A good breaktime is 5-10 minutes.

Before Your Day Ends

Prepare your to-do list for the next day before you sleep. This helps to keep you focused and mentally ready for the next day. If any other tasks come to mind, add them to a separate list. This alleviates the pressure of trying to remember everything you need to do.

Avoid snacking, especially on sugary foods, as they will keep you awake with a sudden burst of energy and disrupt your sleep schedule. Give yourself time to unwind with a relaxing activity such as reading, playing a board game, or journaling. Talk to God about anything that’s been bothering you, and trust him to work while you rest.