And to be honest, I was pretty depleted this summer. Turns out trying to start and run a business during a global pandemic takes a crapload of energy!! Don\u2019t get me wrong, I absolutely\u00a0love<\/strong>\u00a0what I do, and being a coach is without question the most rewarding job I\u2019ve ever had. But there isn\u2019t a tonne of skill set overlap between being an awesome coach, and being a successful entrepreneur. Add the pandemic into the mix, and well, let\u2019s just say not ideal.\u00a0
We\u2019ve all had our challenges over the past year and a half, that\u2019s for sure!! So as we enter the fall, it feels a bit like a fresh start. A new year.\u00a0Which got me thinking about being\u00a0productive \u2013 and about productivity\u2019s evil cousin, procrastination.\u00a0
I spent the weekend hiking in Austria, celebrating a friend\u2019s birthday. And I noticed when I got back to work this week that I was SO much more energized and positive and full of power and ideas than I had been the week before. I started to think more consciously about \u201cWhat makes you productive<\/a>?\u201d. (Shout-out to long-term reader Alex for the graphic and the video topic suggestion!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So here are my thoughts and recommendations on the topic of productivity and procrastination.\u00a0I hope you also find some of these resources interesting, stimulating, and helpful!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
PROCRASTINATION<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The title of this article\u00a0really<\/strong>\u00a0spoke to me! I don\u2019t know about you, but this describes me to a T. There are just some tasks I hate doing! \u201cWhy do I spend weeks avoiding tasks that will take me 10 minutes to do?<\/a>\u201d Indeed!! I\u2019d like the answer to this, please!\u00a0 I had to laugh at the opening line of\u00a0this article on procrastination<\/a>\u00a0in the NYT because I absolutely have done this exact thing: \u201cIf you\u2019ve ever put off an important task by, say, alphabetizing your spice drawer, you know it wouldn\u2019t be fair to describe yourself as lazy<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We all do it! Procrastinate, I mean. Not alphabetize the spice drawer, obviously! [I\u2019d say I\u2019m a bit of an anomaly on that one, but I did in fact organize & alphabetize my spice drawer concurrently with a friend. That same friend I was with in Austria last weekend actually. You can tell we\u2019re made to be friends!!] But it is interesting to note the reasons<\/strong> why we procrastinate, because identifying the real reason you\u2019re procrastinating will help enormously when you try to do it less. If, for example, you try to be less lazy in order to improve your procrastinating, but laziness isn\u2019t in fact the reason you procrastinate, this isn\u2019t going to be a very effective strategy. <\/strong>Self-awareness for the win again!<\/p>\n\n\n\n PRODUCTIVITY<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the key ingredients to my productivity is writing things down. There are loads of studies that show that\u00a0writing things down by hand<\/a>\u00a0(as opposed to noting them on a device) \u201cforces your brain to process information in\u00a0a more detailed way, which helps you successfully load that information into your memory.<\/em>\u201d And I have found this to really be the case. Writing down my to do list, organizing my thoughts, seeing my own handwriting on the page \u2013 this has been really effective for my time management. I am a huge fan of the\u00a0Full Focus Planner<\/a>\u00a0for this, and have recommended it to many friends and clients, who are all now fans too. It\u2019s the best productivity tool I\u2019ve found for daily time and task management. (This is just my opinion, not a paid advertisement!!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n And just as my hiking weekend demonstrated to me,\u00a0making time for me time<\/a>\u00a0is a key element required for true productivity. It isn\u2019t just a nice-to-have. And to make it happen, we need to identify what it is we need, schedule it, be clear with others about it, and then actually do it! WHAT I’M READING<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Have you ever had a book recommended to you but you\u2019ve avoided reading it because you just can\u2019t see what the fuss is about?? That was sort of how I felt about Matt Haig\u2019s\u00a0The Midnight Library<\/a>.\u00a0It sounded like it would either be a quite depressing story, or a clich\u00e9. Or worse: both!\u00a0 I hope the start of fall is a happy, energetic and productive time for you.\u00a0I\u2019d love to know what has attracted your energy lately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Turns out, \u201cprocrastinating has less to do with time management and more to do with mood management.<\/em>\u201d Hunh. Interesting. That tracks. The article lists the 5 main reasons why we procrastinate and it\u2019s really quite revelatory. A great article to increase self-awareness!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00a0
If you\u2019re not sure how you can be more productive, or need some ideas or suggestions, this article on\u00a0Achieving Peak Productivity: 15 Ways to get into the Zone at Work<\/a>\u00a0has all the intel. \u201cGet a PhD in Yourself\u201d sounds cute, but is \u2013 as mentioned above – actually a really integral part of productivity and energy levels. Self-awareness and self-management go hand in hand.
\u00a0
Productivity is about working smarter, not harder. Working harder leads to burnout. I loved this\u00a0TED Talk podcast on stress<\/a>. The two presenters discussed how important it is to learn the difference between\u00a0stress<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 which is your body\u2019s response to an event \u2013 and\u00a0stressors<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 which are the things that cause you to feel stressed. We also go through a stress cycle and we need to complete the cycle in order to use up the adrenaline and cortisol that our bodies produce when they are stress. My favourite quote was \u201cdealing with your emotions is a tunnel that you get through, not a dark cave that you get stuck in<\/em>\u201d. I like that visual.
\u00a0
And last but not least, Adam Grant on languishing. He wrote a really interesting article earlier this year about the concept of languishing, and this\u00a0TED Talk podcast<\/a>\u00a0on the topic was a great listen.\u00a0\u00a0He is so relatable and gives some good tips on how to start finding your flow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00a0
How wrong I was!! It was wonderful!
As I\u2019d promised one of my coaching groups that we would read it for our book club this summer, I did then read it and I was so glad I did!! I loved it. It did start off a bit slowly \u2013 and yes a bit depressing \u2013 with the story of a woman who hates her life and decides to commit suicide. But it was such a rich and interesting story of discovery, figuring out what people mean to you, what impact \u2013 however small \u2013 you have on the world. Without smashing you over the head with clich\u00e9s, the story gently encourages you to think about your life and your path.\u00a0
\u00a0
\u201cIt is quite a revelation to discover that the place you wanted to escape to is the exact same place you escaped from. That the prison wasn\u2019t the place, but the perspective.\u201d<\/em>
\u00a0
A quiet, powerful, thought-provoking, refreshing read. I loved it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"signature\"](\"https:\/\/jnhcoaching.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Julia.Signature.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jnhcoaching.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/2021.09.17-Productivity-1-1024x311.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n