Wednesday is Productivity ^[1] Day at AlexShalman.com

What if it was possible to set huge goals for ourselves, but this time follow through with them without getting too far off track? What if we used a simple system that would keep an eye on our progress, and make sure we weren’t performing in a counter productive manner?

I know it sounds like a wonderful but unrealistic idea. However, it doesn’t have to be, if you stick with the system. The key here is the simplicity, and it is very viable if you just keep yourself accountable.

My experience

This is a system I’ve been using for nearly a year, and can testify to its merit. I decided that I was tired of setting huge goals, and allowing them to take a seat on the sidelines, as I got distracted and busy with other things.

I’ve been able to accomplish this, even though new and important things have been popping up that compete for my attention.

I wasn’t able to completely control my time right out of the gate, and I have to confess that time management is still a work in progress for me. Despite that, I have increased my productivity output and increased my ‘free time’, without adding any extra hours to my week.

Beware of Parkinson’s Law

When planning your schedule, it is important to remember Parkinson’s Law, which roughly states that a task will expand to fill the amount of time allotted to it. This means a couple of things for you:

• Give yourself deadlines on specific projects throughout the day. If you don’t, you’re liable to take more time than you really need to get things done.

• Plan your off time with absolutely anything from completing extra tasks, scheduled reading, exercise, or family time. Have an off time task list with you if you must, just as long as you don’t have idle time. When I say idle time, I mean you’ve got literally nothing to do, and are liable to be bored. So if you have free time, use it for a planned leisure activity, or set it aside to think. If you leave your time unplanned, especially following a task that has a deadline, you are liable to break that deadline and end up wasting time

Be Ruthless With Your Routine

Creating a daily schedule that actually works is done through much trial and error. After the first tentative draft you realize that you didn’t account for certain things. Other times you’ll realize that your daily schedule isn’t practical due to an unavoidable exception. Make one anyway. Field test and edit it, until it’s workable.

Our bodies operate on what is known as a Circadian Rhythm, or 24 hour cycle. When we sleep, eat, exercise and work at the same time each day, our bodies learn to optimally allocate our natural resources. For example:

• Your body will pre-release certain digestive enzymes, if it’s accustomed to receiving food at a precise time every day, which greatly aids in digestion.
• Your mind will obtain laser focus, if you’ve trained it to study at a specific time.
• Your body will increase energy levels, for the time of the day when you’re used to physical exercise.
• You’ll be able to fall asleep quicker, and wake up easier, once you’ve programmed your sleep and wake time into your routine.

Use Emotional Triggers

The best person to judge if you’re staying on track with your commitments is yourself. The feeling of disdain, shame or guilt that you experience towards yourself when you aren’t striving to reach your potential and goals is a valuable tool that can be harnessed. What more is guilt, than your emotions gently reminding you that you need to take responsibility?

For grounding myself, and evaluating my progress, I’ve previously written about the seven questions that have changed my life ^[2]. Since writing about them in March, these questions have quickly become the most popular post on this site. The reason is because they’re vital and effective. These questions are great to ask yourself at the end of each week, but we can take things further, by tracking our progress on a daily basis.

Just ask yourself:

1. Do I feel like I did as much as I could today?
2. Do I feel like there was anything more I could do?
3. Do I feel guilty for anything I have done today?
4. Do I feel like I could have used my time more effectively?
5. Do I feel like I can use today to improve tomorrow?
6. Do I feel like there is something I need to absolutely avoid?
7. Do I feel like I can do something to be more proud of myself tomorrow?

Use the answers to these questions to refine your schedule, removed time wasters, and reduce any other ineffective use of your time. You’ll notice that as you progress from day to day, you’re nightly review will reflect that you feel better and better about yourself. Your feelings won’t lie to you here, since the questions you’re asking yourself are designed to get to the truth. Once you are performing at an optimal level, you’ll simply feel great about your productivity.

Keep in mind, that in order to feel really good about your productivity, you’re daily and weekly plans will have to entail everything from tasks, short term goals, long term goals, family time, perhaps even time for religion and spirituality. As you refine your schedule, you’ll even be able to see how much something means to you, based on how much time you have allotted for it.

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