10 Things I Wish I Knew About Productivity 10 Years Ago

(Source: Pixabay)

Terms like ‘productivity’ and ‘self-care’ get thrown around a lot.

Type either of those words into any search engine or social media site and you’ll be greeted with pages of aesthetic Pinterest boards, tutorials on implementing the Pomodoro Technique, listicle lifehack lists, and Instagram posts where the glorified picture of success is a young adult in wire-frame glasses and a cable-knit sweater sipping chai tea at their immaculate work desk.

I have some bad news. The cavalry is not coming. No matter how many sweaters or Ikea organizers you buy, it doesn’t buy the sense of fulfillment that chasing a goal does.

Sometimes epiphanies occur out of nowhere, but even the easiest puzzle doesn’t fit together without turning a few pieces here and there.

Here are some personal self-care and productivity advice that I’ve battle-tested for 26 years, and feel pretty confident about sharing.

1. Done is better than perfect. It’s impossible to be perfect, but it’s not impossible to finish what you start.
2. When in doubt, clean your desk/workspace. Something about a clean workspace just makes it feel like the world is in order. As the saying goes, out of sight is out of mind. If disorganization and chaos aren’t running rampant across your workspace, you can actually focus on your work. Take a moment to wipe down your desk, organize the drawers, and use this as an excuse to buy some of that fun slime to clean your keyboard. Don’t pretend it doesn’t need it.
3. Listen to your body. If your shoulder hurts, it hurts. Simple as that. You’re not weak. You’re not a useless husk of a person for feeling pain. You just sit curled over your desk like a bug-eyed freshwater shrimp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. five days a week. That’s the reason your damn shoulder hurts. It’s not because you're young or stupid or because you’ve got a back credit score. Where am I going with all this? Sometimes your body just hurts because you need to take care of it better, and it’s not any more complicated than that. Fix yourself up and move on.
4. Worry about controlling what you can actually control. The Nihilist in me truly believes that humans are a freak of nature race living on a random rock propelling through space and that in the grand scheme of things we are so impossibly small it is impossible — and frankly arrogant — to pretend we matter in the grand scheme of things. That is to say, one could theoretically argue that it is impossible for us to truly control our lives. We can only react to it. Our life is a series of reactions to things mostly outside our control. Do the best you can, and with everything else, go with the flow.
5. Everything (and everyone) is biased. Think of your favorite news station or podcast. It has a bias. What about your favorite film? Also, there’s a creator’s bias. Even the act of leaving information out of a story or deeming something as unimportant is an act of bias.
6. Have a work playlist. I have one. Want the link? Here. Go nuts.
7. Fake it until you make it. Self-explanatory. Next.
8. Just write/type it down. Seriously. Grab a planner, bullet journal, or Post-It note and write the damn thing down. Whatever it is. Whether it’s a spontaneous grocery list or a weird pun, awesome! Write it down, because you will forget. You don’t think you will, but you will. Make to-do lists. Dump all your thoughts onto a page and sort everything that comes out based on priority. Make a schedule in your Notes app. Write it in Klingon. Do whatever you have to do. Your future self will thank you.
9. Find something productively mindless you enjoy. It wasn’t until I moved into my condo recently that I realized something … I enjoy building furniture. A lot. It’s a tactile activity that requires hands-on engagement, but you also have directions right in front of you. Plus, the results are visible and immediate. It’s a rewarding feeling. It also leaves you feeling inspired and confident in your own abilities. Maybe your mindlessly productive activity is cleaning or tidying. Maybe it’s ceramics. Finding a hobby is always a good idea, but finding one with an immediate reward has a lot of good perks.
10. Conquer the morning and you’ll conquer the day. Make your mornings as productive as you can. I have an alarm set for 6 a.m. every day, but when do I get out of bed? 7:30-ish. I like having extra time in the morning to just exist and plan my day. Some people might choose to start their day with a workout. Others may choose to pop into work early and use flex time to get a head start on emails. Try to start every day on a productive — or at least a happy — foot. Life is a long journey, and you might as well be somewhat comfortable along the way.

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