Productivity is always measured by the results you achieve

There are days when you are super productive, striking things off your list, feeling on top of the world when that happens. And then there are days when you feel you’re just not able to get anything done. Procrastination and laziness rule and the result of such days is shame and guilt.

“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” Paul J. Meyer

Did you know – Laziness is our body’s way of saving energy? It can also be due to fear and anxiety

All of us tend to feel lazy doing few things but in other areas, we are enthusiastic and rearing to go. Let me share an example –

Before I began creating videos, I procrastinated for almost a year. I used to tell myself

• What will I talk about when they’re already so many videos?
• Will my insights be valuable?
• How will I create videos with zero budget?
• Will anyone watch it?

It’s been 2 years and so far I have created 120 videos.

What do you think broke this chain of thought? Here are the 3 hacks I use regularly to break such chains –

1. Self Talk

If fear or lack of confidence is causing you laziness then address it through self-talk.

For example, in my case, my fear was who will watch my videos. I really really wanted to start creating videos. I want the world to see that I have invested heavily in personal development and life skills and now want to share it with the world. I told myself deliberately I will just create it and not share with anyone. The moment I told that to myself, the pressure to perform and succeed disappeared.

You can also write the negative statement like – I can’t do it.. and replace can’t with can.

2. Power naps

If laziness is due to energy drain or exhaustion, then taking a power nap will accelerate your performance. By the way, power naps are not an elaborate siesta. It’s about 10-20 minutes and you have to put an alarm to wake up. Because after 30 minutes, you get into a deep sleep cycle. And after that, if you wake up without completing the REM cycle you’ll feel even more exhaustive.

Power Naps ensure your body can’t enter a state of deep sleep that’s why you feel energetic right after you wake up. I love my power naps and even if it is for 5 min, it can pump up your energy instantly.

3. Phone free hours

What’s the first thing you do after waking up? Most of us instinctively check our phones. We put an alarm in them and then directly open apps when we wake. Although this is not for long, it plays out on how your day is set.

When checking social media or email, the brain releases a lot of dopamine — a neurochemical that makes you feel rewarded. Once done, the brain craves dopamine so it will stimulate the repetition of behaviours that led to the dopamine release in the first place. Long story short, if you check your phone first thing in the morning then you’ll do it much more throughout the day.

So don’t check your phone first one hour of waking and before sleeping. Believe me your day will be productive.

Good luck!