It has been quite an eventful and productive last few weeks for me both at work and at home. Whether its a project at work or a personal project, sometimes you have time to kill when waiting for a response or the “go ahead” to complete something.
Those are times when we can try to catch up on other things. Surprisingly enough, I have found that my habits of cleanliness or having an organized area truly effect my work habits in an overall sense.
I have gotten a lot more done, in my mind, which means less stress and more accomplishment to lift my spirits.
So what changed?
Over the winter items began to pile up in the house or in pile by my desk. The room mates and I did a pre-spring clean up and I then just made the choice to stop doing those things.
I have been more conscious of things I need over things I don’t really need. I am still in the process of going through our basement, but we can only get rid of so much at once.
Many of us hate letting go of things or think we might need it again in the future, but most of the time, we don’t. It’s time to let go. Just like Jack was let go when the Titanic sank. (too soon?) It’s tough love, but it was for the best.
It’s Not That Hard – You Have the Time
The idea that it would take me 5 minutes to put something away or clean up the area before I had to leave felt like a daunting task at times, especially when I feel rushed. I would usually end up doing it at the end of the night or in the morning when I woke up.
At times I would let things go, but again, your list just piles up and that makes stress you don’t need.
When you just suck it up, do it right when you first think about it, you feel pretty darn good about getting it done and leave with a good feeling. Whether it’s doing the dishes, putting away recording equipment from a session, or getting rid of the mail that’s piling up on the counter, its really not that hard to just do it and get it over with.
Getting things done right when they come up is a form of efficient productivity and it will effect your habits overall.
We are Not Machines, But I Wish I Was!
Sometimes we just don’t have the time or the energy to keep these good habits in tune though. That’s ok. We are not perfect. We are not machines. We are human beings with flaws and we make mistakes.
Besides from that excuse, it is important to stay on top of our habits and keep them consistent. They say it takes about 30 days for a habit to kick in, so once you can get past the first month of being more productive and tidy, then its smoother sailing from there.
The habits are wired into your brain and you start to do them without even thinking twice.
Tips for Reaching Maximum Awesomeness:
- Don’t let tasks pile up. Short tasks are easy to complete right away. That leaves room for the bigger tasks later.
- Remember that you do have the time sometimes. It’s easy to be lazy, but its even better to have less stress later on.
- If you see a mess starting to pile up, get on that! It’s only going to get worse.
- Try to be organized all the time. Whether it’s your folders on your hard drive or your clothes in your room, they effect your overall work flow, both at the office and at home.
- Make time to celebrate! Now that you have a tidy office, a tidy house and an organized computer, you actually have some free time that isn’t spent contemplating whether or not you should be cleaning up the mess you are lounging upon.
What are habits that you have defeated or habits that have helped you be more productive?
2 Comments