Is your productivity in chaos? Productivity should be the cornerstone of your business life.
Feeling low and out of sorts? Tired of the same old humdrum of a day.
Even worse are you going into a deep hole of depression? Not getting things accomplished. Not accomplishing set goals.
Do you think this will pass? If you do, then you are wrong!
You have to get a handle on this before it becomes a problem, or you can give up on those dreams that have inspired you.
Solutions to your productivity chaos.
Nothing feels worse than knowing you had an unproductive day.
In my life, some days are just a drag. I just feel like coasting and getting the bare minimum done. Sound familiar? Don’t give into it.
Productivity is a form of energy, motivation, and commitment all rolled into one.
Why then, is it so hard to keep up the day to day while trying to be productive? To get the most out of your life and to avoid a bad decision you have to prepare like you are going to war.
I believe and so do others that non-productive days can result from:
- Bad diet.
- Lack of regular sleep.
- Too much alcohol or whatever.
- Loneliness can be a factor if you work remotely.
- Personal problems.
- Health issues.
- Lack of free time.
- Lack of exercise.
- Lack of daily vitamins.
- Lack of focus.
- Missing objectives or goals.
- Just overwhelmed.
These are issues that plague us all at different times. I believe this is the hard in hard work. The mental and physical requirements can be overwhelming at times and de-incentivizes us. This is why I say prepare like you are going to war.
Bad diets cause us all to bog down.
A constant barrage of junk food is a bad sign and you will feel bad if all you’re eating are pizzas, subs and Big Macs.
The carbs will load you down and suck your energy. You gain weight which means it takes more energy to get that body around.
White bread, breakfast cereal, diet drinks, canned fruits and veggies, and other sugary, salty and fatty foods are hard to resist. (an exert from Diabetes Forecast, Discovery – Weight Loss by Matt McMillen. Sept/Oct 2019)
Try to eat fresh produce, fruits, beans, and other whole foods to increase your energy while losing or maintaining your weight.
Eating smaller portions of fresh food with lower sugar content. An example is a yogurt. It’s good for you but watch out for large amounts of sugar. There are yogurts that have as little as 2g of sugar per serving.
Sugar is in everything so try and lower your intake so as not to crash in the middle of the morning or afternoon. Cut out desserts, soft drinks and sweets immediately.
I made this change and lost 36 lbs. in a couple of months. I feel better and have more energy. I’m trying to improve my diet every day. It’s important to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Sleep time is important to a productive day.
Every adult needs 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night.
Your body needs to rest. Plan your day and work around sleep. You will be glad you did.
And despite the notion that our sleep needs decrease with age, most older people still need at least 7 hours of sleep.
The last hour before bedtime do something that doesn’t include a telephone, computer or television. Like reading a real book, playing the guitar or drawing.
Take it easy on the alcohol or whatever.
One thing I learned in life is that alcohol is not only full of sugar, but it will steal your productive mind.
I quit drinking alcohol 12 years ago. My last 12 years have been so much more productive than the previous years since I turned 21 all combined.
This is the truth I get so much more out of a day now. I wished someone had imparted that knowledge into my thick head years ago.
Loneliness is a barrier to productivity.
Facebook groups are a very popular way to connect with other writers, but so is Twitter, Reddit, and forums formed by different groups usually in association with a company.
I used to connect every week with a couple of guys in my same situation which enabled us to work on things together and to learn from each other.
I really looked forward to it every week. If you make a friend in your group, it’s good to try and connect every week with 1 or 2 friends. Kind of a mini-mastermind group.
Don’t wait, get out there and find some interesting people.
Can’t work productively with your personal problem(s)?
This is a tough one. If you can’t block it out during working hours than do something about it.
If nothing else admit to yourself out loud that there is nothing you can do.
I always pray and shift that burden to God. He’s on top of it.
So, go back to work.
Health issues taking precedence in your life.
This is one that might derail you and cause a halt to your work activities.
The best I can offer here is trying to prevent health issues before they start.
In any event, don’t delay going to a doctor for help. The earlier the better. If you have a bad cold with a really bad cough get to a doctor and get it remedied.
If you’re having mental issues there are doctors you can see quickly. So, don’t delay here either!
If you have a life-threating health issue, then put everything on hold and get your team together to work on returning you to good health.
I know these solutions about your health are oversimplified but my point is to be productive you need to work on your health, and it should come first.
Lack of free time to relax and recharge.
Feeling like a vacation would be nice about now? My answer is to do something different and fun.
Go and spent time with a friend or relative. Sit on the deck and discuss how your productivity is lacking and you can’t figure it out.
It is important to listen to your feelings as well as friends. I have found that talking with someone you are close to will help to overcome whatever has your productivity shut down.
Sometimes just changing the scenery and thinking about other things can bring productivity right back into your life in a way that nothing else can.
Lack of exercise leads to productivity chaos.
Wow, this one really hits home I bet. Get your earbuds, tune in to a playlist or a podcast and run or walk somewhere close by and back. Maybe 30 minutes a day minimum.
I saw an article that says work for 45 minutes then get up and exercise for 15 min all day long. Exercises like crunches, lunges, and squats. It’s easy and you get immediate blood to the brain to think clearly and get a lot done.
Try a stand-up desk so you never sit at work.
Your body is meant to move not to sit there for hours on end. I think with the right regiment you can stay fit at work and become more productive.
Start a vitamin regiment every morning.
If I miss taking my vitamins in the morning I feel my body waning late afternoon.
Just a fact vitamin’s help.
Lack of focus happens in productivity chaos.
Multi-tasking is not a good way to be productive. It wears you down and creates stress that is unbearable.
Focus on the task at hand and give your full attention to that project before opening another can of worms.
Make sure your workspace doesn’t distract you, causing a loss of focus on the subject of your current project or task.
Another distraction is email and social media. There is a time to focus on those tasks but not in the middle of another. There are even apps you can download that will disable those time wasters on your computer.
Are you missing objectives or goals?
A good sign of productivity slippage is missing objectives and /or goals.
You should make sure goals and objectives are thought out clearly and are attainable. If you miss them you need to understand why. After all, that is why they’re there.
The stress that accompanies missing goals is what needs to be managed. Just take it in stride. Figure it out and move ahead.
No one said business would be easy. Don’t let it interfere with the task at hand.
Getting swamped and overwhelmed is a strong warning about productivity choas.
Decide on the task you want to complete tomorrow every night before you leave. Maybe 2 or 3 of the most pressing ones but no more then three.
Work on accomplishing that the next day and chalk up a win if you succeed.
If you didn’t succeed figure out why. Correct and move on.
No matter if you win or not it’s never a loss if you can figure out the cause.
Because then you have a chance to correct it.
The Bottom Line on productivity chaos.
Productivity is a moving target. We don’t work in a perfect world.
Believe me when I tell you issues will arise every day. Expect them, solve them and move on.
If you read the article and you grasp the issues and solutions we discussed you should be able to diagnosis the issues quickly.
These are basic productivity problems you will face as a small-business person or a solopreneur, so get with it and grow your business.
Don’t let anything change your mind about those dreams that have inspired you. You can make this work just use some common sense and change anything in your life that gets in the way.
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