It is Monday. You have a stack of things to get done this week. You just want to be productive.
Here is a quick an easy solution. You have probably done that exercise before where someone tells you to “Imagine sitting on a beach, you hear the waves along the shore and feel the ocean mist on your face…” This solution to unproductiveness is similar to the exercise. When you imagine the peaceful ocean water, you desire to be at the beach. Your mind shifts momentarily.
You can do the same thing with your work.
- Think of a place where you will get your work done. I’ll choose Starbucks.
- Pick a task that needs done. Let’s say you need to finish your taxes.
- Set a time and determine the approximate time it will take you to finish your task.
- Eliminate distractions for the duration of your task.
And now put it to work for you. For me, I’m imagining sitting in Starbucks, sipping a mocha on a Tuesday afternoon. I have my paperwork spread out in front of me and an allotted 2 hours to get my taxes done.
By creating a goal that we can visualize with outcome we know we can achieve, we are much more likely to accomplish our tasks in a timely matter. Ordinarily, If I have my taxes sitting on my desk, I would keep putting it off until the last minute. April 14th will roll around and I’ll frantically be pulling documents together to get them done.
So be productive and take the time to imagine when and where you will accomplish a task. You will be much more likely to do it!