How to be More Productive & Slay your Goals

If you’re anything like me, I always have a million goals that I want to accomplish. From cooking dinner, having a clean and tidy home, building a successful blog, reaching health and fitness goals, to balancing all of THOSE, with spending time with family, friends and hubby. Oh, and also practice self-care on weekly if not daily basis while also maintaining a nighttime routine.

Is your head spinning yet? Mine is.

Even though I’m aware that the expectations I have of myself aren’t realistic and can even seem unfair to ask of someone, I’m working on changing that. I know it comes from a deep-rooted belief that I am defined by how much I do rather than who I am as a person. But that’s a whole other story altogether. Let’s stick to the main point of this blogpost for now: how to be more productive.

With the fast-paced lifestyle that we all inevitably live, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with our endless to-do lists and commitments and expectations we have of ourselves. Luckily, I’m also an overly organized person that can’t go through a single day without planning. My constant need to be efficient and not waste time has helped me figure out really effective productivity hacks which has helped me reach some of my goals this year!

[bctt tweet=”Discover the best productivity hacks that will help you reach your goals!” username=”seppyforlove”]

I take pride in being a very efficient person, but it can sometimes be detrimental because I’ll often over-do it and tire myself out. So when you apply these tips, make sure that you are balancing out being productive with also being mindful of your current state. Sometimes, sitting your ass on the couch and recuperating should be part of your weekly goals and you should consider that as being productive because self-care is an important component of slaying your goals. I know I’m still learning that so this is a reminder for you just as much as it is for me.

So. Do you want to slay your goals and save time? If yes, then continue reading to get my best tips on how to be more productive.

[bctt tweet=”Do you want to slay your goals? These productivity hacks will help you!” username=”seppyforlove”]

{ Do everything in twos }

Why do a task twice, on two separate occasions, when you can do them in the same moment?

Let me explain.

It will take you less time in the long-run if you do something twice in the same moment, rather than starting from scratch and doing it all over again. Get it?

For example, if you do meal prepping over the weekend, why prepare lunch for one day when you can prepare it for two days. Taking the extra few minutes to cut a few more veggies or pack a second meal will save you time on Monday evening because you won’t have to do same thing over again.

Every evening, I prepare my gym bag for the next day, and I have bag inserts where I put my clean gym clothes in. When I prepare an outfit, I prepare two at the same time. It takes less effort and time to pull two pants, two tops, two pairs of socks etc. rather than doing it every evening.

This might seem minimal, but trust me, in the long run, you will find that you have more mental space during the week to do other things rather than constantly going through the same tasks that could have been done at the same time.

You can use this productivity hack in cooking too – if you’re cooking onions for a recipe, cook double the amount and keep half in the freezer so that next time you need cooked onions for another meal, it’s ready and you’ll save time from having too cut and cook onions again! It’s genius!

So next time you’re doing something, think about whether you can do it in twos so that you can save time that can be dedicated to working towards yours goals instead!

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{ Start with the hardest task }

Do you tend to leave the hardest task to the very end and sometimes push it to the next day?

Avoid procrastinating and get it done right away. Starting with the hardest task will increase your productivity because you will feel more accomplished once you’ve completed that annoying task. Your sense of fulfillment will be greater and it will help you gain momentum and be more productive when you tackle the next task on your list.

{ Eliminate distractions }

Next time you sit down to get something done or you’re doing your laundry or cleaning your house, pay attention to how much time you spend checking your phone or stopping and doing something else instead. That’s a lot of wasted time, isn’t it?

When I have a specific goal in mind, I eliminate all forms of distractions and focus at the task at hand. I even give myself a time limit by which I have to finish something so that I’m sure that I’m as efficient as possible.

For example, if I want to have a blogpost ready, including writing the post, preparing the graphics, scheduling it and formatting it, I give myself a time limit by which I want it all to be done. I put my phone on ‘Do not disturb’, I turn music off (unless I’m able to concentrate better with it), I take a quick bathroom break so that I don’t have to get up mid-sentence (because that happens way to often and it ruins my creativity flow. Damn you, small bladder!), I fill up my water bottle and I get into the zone and only focus on the task at hand.

When you limit distractions, you avoid losing valuable time that could be dedicated towards completing your goal. The more focused you are, the better the quality of your work will be and the more productive you will be.

This can also be applied to doing your chores. I often found myself standing in the middle of my living room, broom in one hand and my phone in the other, scrolling through Twitter. I can justify that Twitter or Pinterest are part of my ‘work’ for the blog, but wouldn’t it be better to take 30 minutes of focused attention to broom the living room and then taking 5 minutes to scroll through Twitter rather than brooming half-assed for 10 minutes, scrolling through Twitter for 2 minutes, grooming for 5 minutes, scrolling for 5 minutes… you get my drift.

Eliminate distractions and you will increase your productivity because your attention and focus will be on one goal.

{ Have a plan }

To increase your productivity and slay your goals, you first need to know what your goals are and what your plan is to achieve them. Thus the importance of setting goals to begin with!

I’m talking about concrete goals but I’m also referring to less tangible goals like ‘feeling happy’ or ‘feeling rested’.

On Sundays, I like to take time and organize my week. This way, on Monday mornings, I wake up feeling ready to tackle my week and I know what to expect almost every day. Because I know what my goals are, I organized my week according to what I want to accomplish. With a plan in hand, I know what I need to accomplish on which evening. This way I know that after the gym, I shouldn’t wander around the mall aimlessly but should instead get my butt home so that I have enough time to work on my blog and also have some downtime to relax.

Empowering yourself with a plan will help you be more productive because when you know what your goals are and the strategy to accomplish them, you don’t really have much of an excuse but to stick to the schedule and get it done!

[bctt tweet=”Productivity hack : Stick to the plan and GET IT DONE!” username=”seppyforlove”]

{ Take small breaks }

You have to be realistic about the expectations you have of yourself and remember that you aren’t the Duracell bunny and you can’t keep on going on and on (and on).

[bctt tweet=”You’re not a Duracell bunny – take small breaks and you’ll be more productive” username=”seppyforlove”]

Once you have a realistic and clear plan, make sure to schedule breaks as well. Work on a goal for a certain amount of time, and then your reward can be 5 minutes of social media, or getting up from your desk and talking to your roommate or S.O., or to call a friend for a quick chat.

Scheduling small breaks will increase your productivity because you will be re-fuelling yourself throughout the day which will preserve your energy levels and your focus. That way, you wont be completely brain dead within a couple of hours of starting to work on a task. Instead, you will have focused time where you have been working on something and then you have scheduled time to take a break and be able to get back to your task refreshed.

[bctt tweet=”Productivity hack : Schedule small breaks to refuel your body and mind” username=”seppyforlove”]

{ Self-Love Lesson }

Being productive is important, especially when you have goals that you want to accomplish. But don’t forget that part of slaying your goals is also taking care of yourself so that you can enjoy the process and avoid burnout and feeling overwhelmed.

What are some of your productivity tips? What are strategies that have helped you slay your goals?

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