What are your best productivity tips and habits?

Audrey Rampon
36 replies
I'm writing an article on how a solid daily routine helps get more productive and brings more focus to what really matters. I know what works best for me (my daily yoga and meditation, tea breaks on my balcony since I work from home, block focus time in my calendar for the important tasks to complete, put my phone on mute during certain tasks, etc), but I'd love to get more perspective and ideas from other busy people. Thanks for sharing your tips! ***Edit*** Thanks peeps for sharing your ideas! For those interested, here's the article I wrote: https://bit.ly/3gsvTQx

Replies

Shubham
All amazing replies to this post, I'll add the one that has worked for me all through grad school - making a schedule (not a todo-list) and keeping a journal of the progress I make each day. It helps me quantify my 'productivity' to some extent. For e.g, if I tasked myself to implement a new feature to an application and couldn't do it at the end of the day, I'd feel a little embarrassed. However, if I tasked myself to work on it for 2 hours, and pull it off - I'll feel a bit more accomplished. Plus, then I can note down whatever progress I've made and be ready the next day to move forward. Good luck :)
Audrey Rampon
@thatshubham Excellent, thanks for the book recommendation! Out of curiosity, I just watched one of his Youtube videos, and I can definitely relate to that: "strict goals aren't fun/sustainable and they don't last"
Audrey Rampon
Thanks @thatshubham for the great addition! I totally agree with schedule vs. to-do list. That's actually on this principle that we have built our product. And I also agree that breaking down one difficult task into smaller, more manageable ones, helps find satisfaction at the end of the day. Thanks for your comment!
Shubham
You're most welcome @audrey_rampon! That pointer about breaking down goals into micro-tasks is an absolute gem as well. ps: If you're into reading, may I suggest "Finish" by Jon Acuff - the book shows us not only how to finish (something we picked up) but how to do it well.
Miriam Dorsett
Here are my tips on scheduling productivity for solo founders: https://mdorsettnow.medium.com/s... Would love to hear your thoughts on whether you like any, and look forward to reading your article!
Audrey Rampon
Brilliant! Thank you @mdorsett! I'll check it out, and will definitely share my article when it's live.
Miriam Dorsett
@audrey_rampon Perfect! Looking forward to reading.
Kaloyan Dobrev
Here is my list for productivity: 1. Get up early as possible 2. Get enough sleep - the brain need to recharge 3. Exercise daily 4. Schedule time for every task and the double it 5. Schedule time for fun - it sounds bizarre, but in this era it really helps 6. No external distraction - phone mute, music off 7. Set notepad and write the task to it after completion - scratch - it must be physical - very important
Audrey Rampon
@kokiweb Good thorough list! I'll definitely re-use that :) Thank you
Allison Braund-Harris
My company wrote a similar blog article! Feel free to grab anything that inspires you— https://hardly-work.com/how-to-o...
Lakshmi
My best productivity tip is to have deadlines to projects. A basic habit like a fixed start and finish time for work has worked well. Loving and believing in what you do is the best productivity tip of all. If you don't like/believe what you are doing, then there is no motivation to work on it. Lastly, because I'm a startup founder, it helps to talk to others about my work, it inspires ideas and motivates.
Shiva Prabhakaran
I work in time blocks on 25 minutes. For this, I use a Pomodoro app to help me manage intervals and focus time.
Audrey Rampon
@killshiva I also like the time block strategy. Which app do you use?
Shiva Prabhakaran
@audrey_rampon Right now, I'm using Google Calendar. I used to work with Notion before but Google Calendar notifications made it easier.
Mayank Gupta
Work for 25 mins, rest for 5. Make a place for work and tell no one to disturb you while you are working. Concentrate on doing one thing at a time.
Fong Kam Ling
set my daily x5 things to complete check list every day before I sleep.
Fong Kam Ling
Do journalling too. I use CustomJournal App
Alex Goff
For me, I cannot understand why more people don't track their time. Some track their money to the penny yet have no idea if they have spent half the time they usually do with their partner or family.
Tanoy Chowdhury
A couple of tricks that has helped me to be more productive at my work are - 1) Listening to concentration music 2) Using a pomodoro timer + website blocker app Otto 3) Finding a place where I can sit for an extended hours without getting distracted or complaining about back pain
Audrey Rampon
Thanks for sharing @tanoy27! I've tried music, but it definitely doesn't work for me :p
Sheiryl Jose
Work from Home Productivity: Factors that Affect It and How to Manage Them https://lessandra.com.ph/blog/20...
Audrey Rampon
@the_nifty_mom Awesome content, thanks for sharing!
Mrinalini Rabindranath
Setting specific goals and rewarding myself with break times whenever I get a task done
Rashmi Gupta
use tools, be aware of technology..don't jut stuck to old comfortable way of working, you will end up improving the productivity in one way. I like the things other people mentioned so far too :)
Artem Smirnov
Don't go to sleep too late, don't work for 2 hours before going to sleep, if possible, get a nap during the day at a fixed time (if you're not 20y old). And, of course, Pomodoro FTW. Changed my productiovity a lot.
Audrey Rampon
Thanks @artem_smirnov1, actually you're not the first one to mention pomodoro on this thread, I don't use the technique myself but I'll give it a try.
Vio Vanica
I am fan of Scott H. Young - I like this article of his - https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog... - Rule #1 – Your system needs to fit your work (not the other way around); Rule #2 – The system should counterbalance your worst tendencies; Rule #3 – The system needs a way of dealing with exceptions; Rule #4 – A good productivity system shouldn’t “feel” productive; Rule #5 – If your work changes, your system should too; Rule #6 – Always measure against your baseline (not somebody else’s); Rule #7 – A system cannot give your work meaning or motivation.
Raghav Goyal
Building on your hobbies as habits! Something we're doing at habbit.co.in
nilova.pande@qinaps.com
I make a monthly table of to-dos and then break it down to week. Everyday in the morning I make a task-list and try to tick of as many as I can. However I try to complete everything planned for the week by cheating a little. I don't keep to many things for Fridays as I know that invariably there will be a spill-over from rest of the days. I have a 9month baby and a 4 year old, who are at home due to lockdowns, can't punish myself too much for not being a workaholic.
John Champ
I find very helpful to have a morning routine doing things that you enjoy before getting into work. Having a schedule is also important, without one it usually takes much time to complete your pending tasks.
Audrey Rampon
@pixelcave_john I totally agree! I also use the pre-work time to do some other things that I enjoy.
Erwin T.
Clean Desk. No Distractions. Quiet Room. At least 20 min. of "getting" into the zone (absolute focus) and work. Once you are in, don't let anyone or anything get you out of the zone.