During the dark, cold winter months, it can be hard to get up in the morning and jump into high gear. Instead, it’s so tempting to want to stay bundled up indoors, drinking a warm beverage and staying cozy.
If you need to kickstart your mornings and get more done in less time, try these simple steps to streamline your day, get rid of bad habits that sap your creativity, and ensure you’re at maximum productivity.
Step 1: Prepare Your Workspace
What do you need to get your work done? What enhances your productivity and creativity? For you it might be music, or your favorite herbal tea, or perhaps a copy of today’s newspaper.
Prepare your workspace in advance. Have your coffee maker or kettle ready with your teabag in a mug next to it, waiting. Have your music cued up. Have your notes organized and sitting next to your laptop.
This might seem trivial, but some of the biggest time suckers are little moments of procrastination, like cleaning the kitchen or making coffee or checking in on social media.
By completely eliminating distractions and having everything prepared and ready for work, you eliminate the procrastination that will destroy your ability to work smarter, not harder.
Step 2: Know What You’re Going to Work On
Similar to preparing your workspace, know in advance what you want to get done in the morning. The night before, jot down what project you want to knock out first thing in the morning.
Whatever it is, it MUST be a project that actually improves your success and creates momentum. Often, we opt for “busywork” that doesn’t actually help us get more done, yet it lets us feel like we’re doing something.
Instead, when making your to-do list, use some objective questions to filter whether a specific task is important or not:
Does this have a lot of potential reward for the amount of time or money you put into it?
Does this project/choice/business decision/chore have the ability to have a disproportionate effect on my success?
Does this change anything you do?
Will it truly impact your business or personal life?
Will it hurt you not to do it?
By running through these questions, you can quickly figure out if what you’re about to start on is truly productive and helpful, or if it’s dragging you down.
If you've found this topic helpful, but still need direction to apply it into your life; then click here to get a FREE 45-Minute Call with a coaching consultant at Achieve Today. They'll walk you through your goals, help you understand why you might be stuck, and give you some solid solutions to your problems.