Productivity Tip That Isn't an App

In our post Start Here to Reduce Stress and Create Ease, you went through a brain dump of what the space looks and feels like when you’re in your ideal productivity zone. After you let it rest for a moment then came back to it to read it, we hope you gleaned little golden nuggets of realization. In that time of reflection, you started to form some concrete ideas about what effective productivity strategies look like for yourself. Don’t think of this as a complete overhaul of your life. Just think of adding things in, not subtracting things. Layer in the good habits you want to implement; the bad habits will fall away naturally.

I Set non-negotiables

Once you have done the groundwork, now it is time to move on to setting non-negotiables. Now you know what works and doesn’t from a productivity standpoint, you can start forming a solid no-no list that will allow you more time and brain-space for your passions, family, friends, and community. Non-negotiables as a concept is fairly broad and lives in a world of grey. Its definition is different depending on who you ask, but we believe that this is a good thing. It allows you freedom to make it work for you. A non-negotiable is a firm and solemn promise of a boundary you set in your life (real or virtual).

If you’re having trouble thinking of non-negotiables, here are some great ones you can use as a jumping-off point:

• No screens after 7:00 pm.
• No email before 9:00 am
• I will allow myself a weekly planning time to align with my goals
• I will not accept any projects that don’t contribute to my goals
• I will have a 24 oz. water bottle with me always so I drink more water
• I will use my calendar app for all my events and to-dos
• I will do tasks when my Calendar reminds me and not put them off
• I will get at least 7 hours.

It is so important to know where the line is as we are managing our schedules or the line will continue to get pushed. You have to have enough respect for yourself and your life to find that line and enforce it. Don’t worry about upsetting family, friends, or colleagues. They will either learn to respect you and your boundaries or they won’t. It’s very easy to see toxic relationships when you establish boundaries. Those unhealthy attachments or over-reaches will naturally fall away as you draw the line in the sand and begin communicating it with your circles.

Saying “no” is actually a gift to both you and the person you say it to. Think about it this way, if you say “yes” to something even though you absolutely do not have enough time to manage it well and it honestly does not bring joy into your life, not only will you be moaning later about this time-suck, the project will suffer too. You’re not showing up with a full cup and excitement for something you regret. By passing on the ask, you’re allowing it to go to someone else you will be suited to it and be able to tackle it better than you. And you will have time and space for things that truly matter to you.

The bottom line is: don’t keep buying new plates when you haven’t even done the dishes yet. You can’t take on more projects when you aren’t allowing yourself even space to tackle to ones you’ve already committed to. When you have less to focus on, you can focus on doing a few things well which brings you a true sense of pride and accomplishment… and less stress is the point.