When you are
overworked and continually under pressure, bit by bit the stress can rob you of
valuable time and energy – distracting you from doing what you do best. Two strategies fend off procrastination and are super easy to implement into your routine.
Make 2 early activities achieveable
Break free of your to-do list
We sure want you to start your day off right because the tone of your morning will determine the tone of your day.
Our first strategy "Make Two Early Activities of your day Achievable" fits into your morning routine and will help do that. We would, however, be remiss if we did not say this first. The foundation of any day is quality sleep so that you awake with a well-rested body and mind . After a night of restful sleep, you will wake feeling rejuvenated and ready to take on the day. There is absolutely no substitute for sleep.
Learn more about a Healthy Sleep
You wake up feeling overwhelmed. Too much to do, in too little time and you just can’t muster up the energy or the will to do it. Does that sound like some of your mornings?
This easy-to-implement strategy is one of the keys to controlling how your day begins and feeling motivated.
Soon after you awake and before you go to work, choose to do two things that you can complete quickly and effectively because that is the quick-energy start your brain needs for momentum. They should also be achievable so that you start your day with a sense of confidence and stability and that puts you in a proactive state of mind.
The key is to start your day by engaging your brain to do something totally for yourself and within your control. You can pick two activities that are part of establishing a good morning routine such as eating breakfast or reading.
They should not be:
Instead of reaching for your phone, reach for a paper and pencil or ingredients for a tasty breakfast. When you are making your breakfast focus on the food and preparation. When you are eating don’t do anything else. Notice the color, texture, shape, size, smell, temperature, and any other aspect of your food. Pay attention to your senses: how the food smells, feels, and tastes. You can replicate the same attention to any other activity.
The point is to immerse yourself into each of the two activities.
You could make your bed so it is more welcoming for later in the evening. You could sit quietly and listen to music; smile and think of something positive; do one minute of deep breathing or pick one of the many key elements of self-care. You could go for a walk or do something that challenges or excites your brain such as reading your book or working on a puzzle, as long as it is just for you.
Set your alarm five or ten minutes earlier if you must. Just don’t rush out to work or to do things for others before you complete two nice things for yourself, even if the activity only takes two minutes or five minutes to achieve.
Being absorbed in and achieving two things for yourself is a gesture of self-respect. They give you a feeling of self satisfaction, they are calming to your state of mind and help ground you. This approach sets the vibe for an excellent day whether you are headed for a productive day at work, spending time with family, or having a me type day.
Many of us struggle with the never-ending nature of our to-do lists. When important work needs to be done that list of dreary tasks looms. Your to-do list takes up headspace, slows you down, while adding anxiety and stress to your day. The word task is just as intimidating. It elicits an image of a labor-intensive unpleasant chores requiring a lot of effort. Just looking at to-do list of tasks is exhausting which can actually lead to procrastination.
Instead, get into the habit of using terms like assignment and achievement plan. In fact, write that at the top of colorful paper as a heading for you plan. Research shows you spend your time more wisely when you follow a written plan. Your plan will contain only 3-4 assignments. You will give each assignment an appointment time.
Seeing the plan in your handwriting reminds you that you think the activities, assignments and appointments are important. Use of the word “achievement” is strategic because it is purposeful, a declaration of execution and finishing.
Most importantly your brain works best when you give it specific directions.
Essentially, on a daily basis you stop, think, and decide what four activities, appointments, or planned achievements will get your attention tomorrow.
Studies show we work best in 90 – 120 minute cycle of alertness before we need a mental break. When your body signals you that the 90 minute boundary has been crossed, you should disengage and walk away from the computer, the office, technology and your work environment.
Checking email, making a work related phone call, researching a question all count as work, not a break.
A real rest or relaxation break takes your mind away from what you’re doing completely. A different environment like the outdoors or a different room looking at the outdoors does that. Pretend you are going to a meeting, but instead of people you are meeting with birds and trees or your favourite hobby.
Basically you make an appointment with yourself to commit to things like project work, creative time, reading, decision-making, strategic thinking, paperwork, behaviour modification, time for your hobbies, leisure activities, and anything else that really matters. Studies show that people who commit to maintaining healthy leisure time along with their hard work outperform those who doggedly pursue an endless treadmill.
It is, in fact, a valuable skill in itself to commit to showing up every day. Every human being wakes up every day with an initial question or primary purpose. What am I doing today? You might wake Monday morning thinking about training a coworker. Tuesday it’s about delivering a presentation, Saturday its meeting friends for lunch. Sunday it’s the game final.
Instead of making day-specific tasks your focus, you should have one primary objective and it should stay the same every day:
Rather than fretting over the assignments or tasks themselves, that one primary question mentally centers you on showing up for that one appointment and everything else you do up to that time fuels your energy to show up for that appointment.
If you only do the work when you feel like it you will be trapped in an endless loop of procrastination. That is hardly a professional approach to being a student, administrator, entrepreneur or authority on anything worthwhile and it not the person you want to face in the mirror.
There will be days when it is inconvenient, annoying, maybe even painful to step up and keep that first appointment, but...
You may have an inclination to do the fun stuff first thing in the morning, thinking that you will tackle the difficult or disagreeable assignments later. It is more rewarding for your brain to know that once you get the tough stuff done first, it will have some fun things to do later.
Whenever possible, put an objectionable assignment at the top of your plan. Once you finish something you dislike you will feel relieved it is out of the way. Your next assignment will be more agreeable. Knowing that your experience will improve between assignment – and in a short period of time – helps you to feel more relaxed. It makes for a more positive experience. As you finish each assignment your positive experiences continue to mount and your feelings of satisfaction move up a notch. When you feel satisfied, you are more likely to follow through and finish your next assignment. That is a good way to finish your day.
No matter how tempting, it might be, ignore your phone, messages and email during these appointments. Schedule chunks of time for those items outside your assignment times.
Whenever possible, leave non-essentials or mundane tasks until after you have completed your achievement plan of important work. If the nature of your work dictates that you have other responsibilities that cannot be ignored, you can designate times when you are open to interruptions or to do routine tasks. This way, disruption will not affect the quality of your important work as much.
Keep your plan obvious, so you can see it at a glance. Seeing the plan in your handwriting reminds you that the assignments and appointments are your primary concern. As you complete each achievement put a bold check mark or star on your plan.
Reward yourself. You’ve given your brain something better to do than avoid or procrastinate. Your brain loves rewards. It is important to acknowledge and reward yourself for those achievements no matter how small. Make your reward proportional to the accomplishment.
It might be helpful to maintain a timeline of recurring deadlines or upcoming projects. Use that as a starting point to create a weekly plan of twenty or fewer items that you can refer to for your daily appointments.
Key point #1 – Start your day off right because the tone of your morning will determine the tone of your day.
Key point #2 - For a quick energy start to your day and to feel grounded engage your mind to do accomplish two things totally for yourself and within your control.
Key point #3 - At the end of each day, write down the four most important assignments you need to accomplish tomorrow. This is your Assignment and Achievement Plan.
Key point #4 – Work is not the only thing on your Assignment and Achievement Plan that matters.
Key Point #5 – All you have to do is show up every day and stick to keeping those four appointments with yourself.
As a small business owner
you should assess whether you are sourcing enough good ideas from outside your
immediate think group. The more ideas generated, the greater the chance of
finding innovative ways to combine them into something new.
Inspiration can strike when you least expect it, but that is rather an inefficient way to drive innovation and creativity. Want a do-it-yourself approach to decision-making and problem solving? Try one of these brainstorming techniques to develop your ideas.
Professionalism is what you do visibly that impresses and inspires others and what you do behind the scenes – integrity, self-regulation, conscientiousness – that allows you to fulfill your role to the best of your ability and gives you a sense of satisfaction and self-worth.
What are the basics of copyright law in Canada? How can you protect your rights as the creator of intellectual property? Did you know that under Fair Dealing the users of copyright material also have rights under Canadian Copyright law?
Kindness should extend to our colleagues and work family. In the workplace, kindness is a catalyst that helps to build trust, drives morale, improves well-being, engagement, and productivity. Kindness makes you feel good and that is a good way to spend your day.
As a professional, you want to get the job done – and done well. You do what is necessary to produce results that exceed expectations. You recognize whatever you do to keep advancing personally and professionally also helps your business to thrive.
