What are your secret productivity hacks?
by•
Working and being productive aren’t the same thing.
We often sit in front of the laptop for hours, but between context switching, notifications, and tiny distractions.... we barely get real work done.
So I’m curious: what are your personal hacks for staying sharp and actually getting stuff done?
Here are 3 of mine:
– I use Cold Turkey Blocker to completely shut off distracting sites and apps. No mercy.
– My phone is on airplane mode for the first 4 hours of the workday. No notifications, no pings, just work.
– I always work on two screens one for action, one for reference. It makes a massive difference in speed and clarity.
What about you? What’s in your productivity toolbox?👇
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I'm surprised no one mentioned the importance of timeboxing and the Pomodoro Technique for focused work sessions. By dedicating 25 minutes to uninterrupted work, followed by a 5-minute break, you can significantly increase productivity and reduce mental fatigue. This technique has been a game-changer for me, especially when paired with a minimalistic browser setup.
I’d rather have two ultra-clear, useful hours than eight distracted ones. So I give myself one input: what decision needs clarity today?
If I get that one thing clear, I’ve done real work.
@a11yexpert can you do it or it's impossible to achieve two ultra-clear useful hours?
Most productivity advice treats time as the main resource. But energy is the real constraint.
I track what kind of work I do best at different times—thinking in the morning, collaboration after lunch, admin at night. Then I structure my calendar to match. It sounds simple, but aligning work to energy beats often any app or blocker. That;s my expereince though.
@a11yexpert any apps/tools you're using?
I've been training chat GPT to be my executive / productivity coach... to some success. But still not the same level of accountability and commitment that I would have were I working with a real person.
@marcelo_e_cardoso what's the main issue?
@byalexai Honestly it's my personality type— I'm much more productive when I'm externally accountable to real teams, partners, coaches, etc. While chat gpt coach has been amazing at helping me prioritize, think through goals, plan schedule, etc— it hasn't been able to hold me accountable the way I am with real people. I guess I'm only human ;)
@marcelo_e_cardoso you're not alone. Plenty of people are mentioning this.