I think the human body and brain is wired to not do anything. Well, except survive.
To do that, we’re all wired to conserve whatever mental and physical energy we can. Which makes the act of getting things which are important, but not urgent to our survival, pretty hard.
It’s easy to not get anything done, or not get anything important done. I’ve listed down some of my bad habits and go to activities that don’t get me productive.
Are you doing any of these?
Be Distracted.
Meaning that you don’t have focus on accomplishing what you set out to do, in a reasonable amount of time.
And it can be easy to be distracted, from important distractions to downright utter useless ones.
I remember one time I didn’t set my cellphone on silent mode, and later I found out I hadn’t finished what I had set out to do, which was write, because I was so caught up to replying to the messages that kept pouring in.
A lack of focus, being always distracted, jumping from one thing to the next makes it hard to get any real results or contribution in a short amount of time. And this does include boredom – cue mindless internet surfing.
Multitasking is a myth. We’re not really wired for it, and it doesn’t help us get anything done faster, and with better quality.
Playing Games The Whole Day
This has its own entry because there was a period in my life when I was so unproductive, and it was because I played hours upon hours of computer games.
It’s easy to get hooked, because the games satisfied the achievement feeling that I so longed for in that time of my life. I was trying to bounce back from failure, and playing games gave me the instant gratification that the process of building back up my life could not give me at that moment.
Everything in moderation. Don’t sink too much time into this, that is starts to crowd out the more important things in your life.
Don’t. Just don’t.
Be Fearful
When we’re afraid, our capabilities shrink, and our mind shuts down, making it hard to see possibilities and openness.
For a long time, I was afraid of putting up this blog, afraid of what other people might think. That shut down my confidence, and didn’t push me to start doing relevant things to help me.
I had to fight it, and just do it, despite all the fear I felt. Besides, action is the quickest remedy for fear.
Keep Talking About What You’ll Do.
But not taking any real, committed, and consistent action, towards making it happen. You’ve got to walk your talk.
It’s not about “backing yourself into a corner” since you’ve told so many people. It’s not about the “law of attraction,” that you proclaim what you want to the universe, and it will come to you.
Those things come to people who do something about it, and put themselves in a position to receive and take advantage when the time comes.
It’s about Doing. Creating. Sharing.
Don’t keep talking about them. Do them instead.
Don’t Have A Goal
This is like having a dartboard without a bulls-eye. Or a plane ticket without a destination.
What is the clear destination for all of this effort? Where do you want to go? What is it that you have to do today, to get you to where you want to go, someday?
Don’t See The Point
As Michael Hyatt said in one of his videos:
“Those who lose their why, lose their way.”
Apart from having a goal, it’s also important to ask yourself: “What makes this so important for me to achieve?”
We only ever work for things that are important to us, or are important to people who are important for us.
And when the obstacles and problems keep popping up, it’s better to have something that will help you push through them.
Not Learning Along The Way
Life is a journey of trial and error, where the exams and test come before the lessons. If you want to get better at life, and get better at getting things that matter, done, you have to learn.
Learn what works, what doesn’t work, why and how. Life is a journey of constant improvement. In my experience, I’m happy to say that I’m not the same person I was several years ago.
And looking forward, I would be happy to be a better person in the future.
Not learning is a sure strategy for failure. Not only in having a successful career, but in becoming the person that you want to be.
Not Taking Care Of Yourself
Because taking breaks, resting up, and recharging, is crucial to being productive and happy.
Dr. Stephen Covey says in his book, “The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People,” not to kill the goose that lays the golden egg, if you want to have golden eggs everyday. You can’t bring the golden goose back to life once it’s dead.
See the similarity? Golden goose = you. Golden egg = productivity.
Everything in moderation. Don’t go out killing yourself just to achieve something.
Otherwise, you won’t be around to enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Not Taking Time For Reflection
Taking time to look back, take stock on what has happened, and pick up lessons and stories, is immensely valuable in becoming a productive person.
You have knowledge, you have experiences, and it would be a shame not to mine there for applicable lessons, approaches, and stories relevant to what you’re doing now.
That, and the calm that comes with knowing that you’ve faced down hardships and challenges before, and have gone through them, learning a thing or two.
Not Maintaining and Building Healthy Relationships
We’re not islands, and we don’t live on this world alone.
There are things, and there are times, when to become productive, we’ll need the help of other people, and we’ll need their support, encouragement, wisdom, and patience as well.
I’m guilty of this as well. I realized I wasn’t good at maintaining relationships, and at taking care of circles of friends. This has impacted my productivity negatively, as there are less people I can turn to for support and help.
And there are less people that I know already who I can readily offer my skills and help. In hindsight, that action would’ve helped me get back on my feet faster, instead of playing hours upon hours of games.
Get Productive
As I was writing this, I found it hard. Because we can be productive if we want to, and the awareness of what stops us from being productive, is usually enough to help us to become productive, to get started, and put up structures and systems in place to keep us productive.
And it’s not only about getting productive and getting a lot done.
It’s about getting the most important things, done.
It’s about getting what matters most to us, done.
How have you not been productive? Please share in the comments below!
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