When it comes to taking advantage of and squeezing time, there is nothing better than a productive people. We understand this characteristic as the organization system that allows us to clearly reduce daily uncertainty and get closer to our goals, both personal and professional, in a tangible way.
Life is not a simple equation. It doesn’t just come down to having certain habits that make us happy and content. Life has a lot of components that go into making it worth living long enough to actually do very well in life. For example, if we have a healthy lifestyle, great relationships, and sleep, we aren’t going to have many problems. But if we have poor relationships, eat habits that lead to poor health, and poor sleeping habits, then our lives are going to be a lot harder.
What is a habit?
Habits can be defined as those actions that are automatically triggered by associated contextual cues. For example, when you get in the car you are used to wearing your seatbelt, which implies that it is a habit. That is, these are actions that are done on a regular basis, without thinking and without making much effort. In many cases these automatic behaviors are learned over time through repetition and practice.
In fact, many of our daily activities are made up of habits. From brushing our teeth to reading at night. While some habits are helpful and can improve our lives, others can be very harmful and cause problems. Habits can cause either well-being or discomfort on a day-to-day basis, but they usually require time to build or leave them.
Productivity, as with other human qualities, can also be cultivated and developed with proper practice and mechanisms. These are the 10 habits that we must incorporate into our daily lives in order to increase the productivity of our actions.
1. Know how to say no
A productive person knows which are those tasks or activities that are not going to contribute anything, just as he knows how to distinguish when he should stop doing something simply because it is not mandatory. If you learn to say no to all those things you don’t want or shouldn’t do, you’ll have enough time to do the tasks that are really necessary.
Learning to say no when you should is not only a trait of productive people, but it is essential in our goals of increasing our own productivity, since we will gain time and personal satisfaction.
2. Do not accumulate pending tasks
In line with the previous point we find all those tasks that we usually let go day after day. The best way to understand this point is the organization. We will start by gathering all the pending activities that we have available, ordering them into those that require our attention immediately and those that are not necessary or we can delegate.
3. Play sports
A good daily physical routine is essential to achieve an adequate emotional balance. Sport keeps our body and mind healthy and is a great synonym of well-being. In addition, it helps to release tension and stress, increasing our will and our organization. Likewise, it is also made up of goals and objectives that, when achieved, will discover how productive we can become.
4. Opt for a single task
Working on multiple tasks at once can be anything but productive. It is very easy to think that you are too productive when you do many things at the same time, but the reality is that in this way work slows down and with it our level of productivity decreases. Obtaining a state of mental concentration on a single task is easy and allows us to focus on that goal even for hours. Opt for the organization and you will be able to carry out several tasks in the same day, but each one with its stipulated schedule.
5. Eliminate distractions
Hand in hand with the previous point we find this new point. Unnecessary distractions are something that most of the population think is inevitable. However, to start being a more productive person in your day to day, you must take the necessary actions to avoid these distractions. There are many ways to do it, for example, opting for helmets when we work in environments prone to contain foreign noise; or moving the mobile away from our workplace to avoid the temptation to consult social networks.
6. Know when to delegate
Loading up with too many tasks at once, or handling too many issues by ourselves can be, in the short and long term, something really unproductive. Not covering more is more productive; on the contrary, a truly productive person is not the one who throws all the work of several people on himself. A productive person trusts and knows when there are tasks that, due to capacity or time, can be delegated to colleagues who will surely be able to focus all their concentration on that task.
7. Set your goals
Setting goals to meet is synonymous with a path that you have to follow. Therefore, first you have to opt for planning, fix your life or your daily routine so that you get closer to your goals and organize the means available for it. Then, the next thing will be the execution of those ideas. Setting goals helps develop an effective planning system and achieve great progress through execution. You have to be realistic and set achievable goals so you don’t get frustrated.
8. Reward the objectives achieved
Training yourself at a mental level is possible and all this will be one more step in achieving the long-awaited productivity. If when you manage to carry out a task of great importance, or that involves a great effort, you get your reward, it will motivate you to carry out the next task with more enthusiasm. Celebrating milestones is the best way to prepare for the next challenge.
9. Accept mistakes
Just as you have to applaud and reward achievements, accepting mistakes is essential to keep moving forward. Accepting mistakes and their consequences will allow us to react faster next time, helping you to prevent future mistakes. Making mistakes is not bad, not assuming them and not learning, yes.
10. Prioritize
Always opt for the most important tasks, the others that are not essential and that will only serve to cause you to end up with none that do not matter. Organize your days in such a way that in the first place are those tasks with an upcoming delivery or of greater importance. Classifying according to this criterion will help you optimize time in a more efficient way.
How long does it take to form a habit?
According to research, a habit used to be created over the course of three months. Still, there are individual differences that can help explain why some people form habits faster than others:
- Personality: Personality is essential to create new habits more quickly or, on the contrary, more slowly. That is, if you are organized or more intrinsically motivated, you are more likely to develop new habits faster. Conversely, a more pessimistic attitude can make it more difficult.
- Effort Required: Not all habits are equally committed. For example, if you want to have a healthier lifestyle, it will not be the same to exercise every day than to drink more water.
- Lifestyle and circumstances: The way of living life will also have an impact on habits. That is, if you have little free time it will be more difficult for you to create habits and establish them in your life.
Conclusion
What is it going to take for us to become successful? When and how do we get there? How do we become one with our goals? What is the role of habit in our lives? What does it mean to be successful? What are the characteristics of a successful person? These are the main questions coming up in our discussions and debates. We have been asking and asking and asking. I think that we have found the answers. What I have learned is that the answer lies in our habits and daily lives.