Saddle-up & hold on tight because today, we’re talking about GETTING SHIT DONE.
Keeping your productivity up is essential for tons of reasons. High productivity helps you better accomplish your goals and stay on top of the ball.
Even more, it promotes those warm & fuzzy feelings of achievement & confidence. One of the best feelings ever, right?
But, in a world with more distractions than ever before, keeping your productivity up is not always an easy feat.
Improving your productivity is a continuous journey. Especially when there are so many things that can distract you & cause your productivity to dwindle right down the drain.
There are lots of super useful productivity tips that get shared on the internet over and over again, but if you feel like you’ve heard it all, this post is for you.
Here’s our roundup of unique, yet effective tips that can help boost your productivity.
21 Unique Productivity Tips
♡ Get a good night sleep.
Sleep is so important. Not only for productivity, but for mental health, beauty, and managing your stress levels as well.
In order to set yourself up for a productive day, make sure you’re getting 6-8 hours of good-quality sleep each and every night. You can do this by establishing a good nighttime routine for optimal relaxation and sleep.
♡ Enjoy a peaceful morning routine.
Your morning routine sets the tone for your day. If your mornings feel super discombobulated, so will the rest of your day. Instead, your morning routine should be peaceful, yet structured, and it should ease you into your day stress-free. Beginning your day with good structure will help you better structure the rest of your day.
Establish a morning routine that works for you. Be sure to include time to drink your water, get some morning sunshine, meditate / practice mindfulness, eat a balanced breakfast, and take at least 10-15 minutes of personal time. Yes, even if it means you have to wake up earlier.
♡ Get a planner & USE IT.
Raise your hand if you’ve purchased a planner before and then never even used it. Yeah…we’ve all been there. The thing is: planners are so useful. They allow you to store an abundance of important information, so that your brain doesn’t have to. That means more mental capacity to take on your day.
There are all types of planners out there, depending on your specific wants & needs. But before you run out & grab the next one you see, you’re going to want to check out The HOT MINUTE Planner. Why? Because it’s made for hustlers just like you, with space not only for your to-dos, but for your beauty routine, goals, affirmations, and daily prompts as well.
♡ Create a dedicated workspace.
Unless you only ever work in an office building, you NEED a dedicated workspace. A place where you can go to take care of business, totally distraction free.
For all you remote workers out there, this might mean finding a dedicated workspace in your home like a spare room or a corner in your garage. Wherever it is, make sure it’s quiet, and away from the hustle & bustle of your household.
♡ Vibe up your workspace.
Not only should your workspace have all the necessities, but it should have A VIBE. When you walk into your dedicated workspace each and every day, you should feel motivated, inspired, and happy. Because motivated + inspired + happy = productive.
Grab some aesthetic wall decor, stationary, candles, plants, rugs, tapestries, and more and give your workspace a make-over. Make it a place you really want to be.
♡ Add plants / greenery to your workspace.
Going along with vibing up your workspace, studies show that adding plants and greenery to your workspace improves productivity.
Adding a little bit of nature to your workspace may also help with stress and anxiety. And furthermore, it gives you a sense of purpose (now that you’re a plant parent, that is.)
♡ Dress for success.
This is one we’ve all been hearing since middle school…”dress for success”. But contrary to popular opinion, this doesn’t always mean dressing in your best biz attire everyday. Instead, it simply means to dress for what you want to accomplish that day.
When you’re already dressed for what you need to accomplish, you’re not only more confident heading into your day, but you’re more prepared for whatever the day might bring. Both of which can give you that extra little kick of productivity.
♡ Practice mindfulness.
We hear the word “mindfulness” thrown around a lot, but what it basically means is to be present in the moment. Multi-tasking, personal feelings, work drama, and so on are all distractions that can prevent us from handling the tasks at hand in the most productive & efficient way.
To increase your productivity, make it a point to practice mindfulness throughout the day. As you focus on each item on your to-do list, give it your full attention. You will find that you not only complete each task faster, but also with more accuracy (less mistakes and re-do’s.)
♡ Stop all that multitasking.
Your brain can only truly focus on one thing at a time. While we’re sure that many of you are mutli-tasking QUEENS, thinking / worrying about too many things at once can actually lower your overall productivity.
When you’ve got a whole ass laundry list of things to do, take it one item at a time rather than trying to accomplish multiple things at once. This will not only amp up your productivity, but it will, again, also help prevent possible mistakes that can arise when you’ve got too much on the brain.
♡ Work in chunks / time blocks.
Do you ever sit down at your computer and you literally don’t get up for the whole day? That’s a big no-no in terms of productivity. You might have gotten a lot done, but at what cost to your brain, eyes, and body?
To max out your productivity, work in time blocks. Think 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hour, or even 3 hour chunks. Set a timer, work the allotted amount of time, and then take a break. Get up, take a walk, get some food – whatever. But take a break and give your brain a reset.
♡ Take strategic breaks throughout the day.
Not only should you take several breaks throughout the day, but they should be strategic. Don’t just plan your breaks for random times in the day, plan them where they make the most sense to keep up your productivity.
Good strategic break times include: in-between tasks or meetings, at meal-times, mid–morning + mid-afternoon, times when you need to clear your head, and so on. Any type of break is good, but strategic breaks are better.
♡ Try the 1-3-5 rule.
Working on something big & intimidating? Consider implementing the 1-3-5 rule. It can help you conquer big projects and to-dos in smaller, less stressful increments.
Basically, if you have 1 large project / task, start by breaking the project into 3 medium sized tasks. Then, go even further by dividing those 3 tasks into 5 smaller tasks each. So now you have 15 tasks (which might seem like alot), but each one is suuuuper easy. And when all are completed, your large project is done!
♡ The Ivy Lee Method
If planning & time-management aren’t your strong suit, try the The Ivy Lee Method. This method is a productivity hack that helps you prioritize what’s most important by: making strategic lists + knocking out tasks in order of priority.
This method is SO EASY to follow and perform. For a full-on breakdown of this method, click here.
♡ Utilize your stationary.
Stationary shouldn’t be…well, stationary. Although your staplers & cutsie little thumbtacks do look totally adorable on your desk, each piece of stationary has a purpose that will help keep you better organized. So use them. (See our top stationary picks below.)
♡ Get some fresh air.
Studies show that being cooped up inside all day is a no-go for productivity. Why? Because the air inside is not as fresh and clean as it is outside. (While this does vary by location, most of the time the air is fresher outside.)
Make sure your brain is getting a fresh influx of good, clean air at least every few hours. Your brain will function better. You will physically feel better. And, you’ll get a little Vitamin D kick. So many wins with just a quick step outside.
♡ Eat several small meals throughout the day.
If you want to have a truly productive day, you need to fuel your body. This whole skipping breakfast & eating a carb-loaded lunch thing is the perfect recipe for a midday crash. Nodding off at your computer? That doesn’t sound very productive….
Instead opt for several small ( & healthy ) meals throughout the day. This ensures your brain & body have the protein, carbs, fiber, vitamins & minerals they need to help you conquer your day without fatigue and / or “hitting that wall”. Plus, scheduling in small meals throughout the day is the perfect excuse to take some “mini-breaks” from whatever you’re working on.
♡ Adjust your work lighting.
This one is so simple, yet so helpful. Don’t get us wrong, dim, yellow lighting is a vibe. It’s just not a get-shit-done vibe. Dimmer lighting tells our brains it’s time to start thinking about bed. Whereas natural sunlight and bright, LED-lighting tells our brains to wake the fuck up and get moving.
So, if you’re routinely working in dim lighting, consider amping up your lighting game. Throw those shades open and soak up allthe natural light you can. And when you can’t, make sure the lighting in your workspace is white & bright.
♡ Use positive & uplifting self-talk.
When we talk about positive self-talk, we’re usually talking about body positivity. But as it turns out, positive self-talk goes beyond the self-care niche and also has benefits in the productivity niche as well.
Swap your “I don’t know if I can get all this done today” for “I am going knock my to-do list out of the park today”. Set your intentions & manifest them through positive and uplifting words to yourself. Speak them out loud or write them in your journal – either way, you’re setting your productivity in motion.
♡ Utilize a helpful app.
There really is a mobile app for everything. And there are TONS for productivity. While all productivity apps are not created equal, most usually provide a user-friendly experience, with features for personal task management, file sharing, and team collaboration. As well as real time project management tools like time track, video calling, and even remote team collaboration tools.
Here’s a roundup of some of the most popular productivity apps:
+ Google Workspace / Google Drive
+ Hive
+ Calendly
+ Trello+
+ Evernote
♡ Read books on productivity & self-growth.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution to productivity out there. The tips and practices that work best for you might not work as well for the next person.
To see which productivity tips are out there & to help decide which are best for you and your lifestyle, educate yourself. Snatch up some books on productivity & deep dive into the science behind productivity tips. See our top productivity book picks BELOW.
♡ Listen to the experts.
Sure, some (or should we say most) of the sh*t you see on social media is mumbo jumbo. BUT, there are plenty of science-backed resources out there that can help you adopt the necessary life changes it takes to increase your overall productivity.
Luckily, this subject comes up on The Skinny Confidential HIM & HER Show pretty often. So, you’ve already got the perfect place to start. Hear from Lauryn & Michael, as well as other professionals & experts on productivity:
+ How To Boost Productivity And Stop Procrastinating By Taking Massive Action with Lauryn Evarts
+ Alexandra Potora On The Secret To Success & The Key To Productivity
+ Lauryn’s Time Management & Productivity Hacks
Productivity Tools That Are Helpful AF
You can stalk Lauryn’s favorite office supplies here and we highly recommend these books.
books on productivity:
+ Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
+ Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
+ The Daily Laws: 366 Meditations on Power, Seduction, Mastery Strategy, and Human Nature
Use these tips & tools to step up your productivity game and stay on top of your game.
Being highly productive doesn’t mean you have to structure your day from morning to night. What it does mean, though, is taking advantage of the tips and tools at your disposal to make the most of each and every day.
We hope these tips & tools will come in handy besties.
x, The Skinny Confidential team.
+ stalk this post for even more productivity tips.
++ how to say no and get stuff done here.
SHOP TSC OFFICE:
