10 Most Extreme Productive Work Habits (Genius)
I found the most surprising things ultra-productive people do differently, and a BeMore Festival 2023 surprise for all subscribers.
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Q: I’m always distracted at work. What can I do to stay focused and continue to deliver at work?
Hey subscribers 👋, Felix here — it’s been a crazy year is it. This week’s newsletter, I’d like to elevate your productivity level (the hacks I’ve tried). If you want to be successful, many experts and life-hackers say you should:
Wake up at 6 am
Take a cold shower
Exercise
Meditate
Journal and brainstorm
Review and set goals
Read news and industry sites
Consume inspiring content
Eat a protein-rich breakfast
Whew. That’s a lot to accomplish before 8 am. I’m not sure when the dogma of morning routines began to spread, but suddenly, these mile-long checklists are everywhere — especially in the startup world. The people in Bay Area, I’m looking at you.
Routines can be great, but I think there’s a misplaced emphasis on morning.
Everyone has different peak hours. If you want to enhance your productivity, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, or if you go for a run at 6 am or 6 pm. Instead, it’s up to you to make the most of your day and to learn when you work and feel your best.
Tackling the most important, most strategic work during my prime time enables me to stay motivated, make steady progress, and avoid feeling overwhelmed.
10 Surprising Things Ultra Productive People Do Differently (Genius Strategies)
I lean into a Forbes research, and here’s a quick summary for you and my tried-tested reviews 💪. Two of my favorites are #5-They Use a Notebook, and #11-They don’t think about time; they focus on energy. Let’s get into it (tell me what you think later).
1. They focus on minutes, not hours
Average performers default to hours and half-hour blocks on their calendar. Highly successful people know there are 1,440 minutes in every day and there is nothing more valuable than time.
2. They focus only on one thing
Ultra productive people know their Most Important Task (MIT) and work on it for one to two hours each morning, without interruptions.
🔮 Actinable insights: What task will have the biggest impact on reaching your goal? What accomplishment will get you promoted at work?
3. They don’t use to-do lists
It turns out only 41% of items on to-do lists are ever actually done. And all those undone items lead to stress and insomnia because of the Zeigarnik effect. Highly productive people put everything on their calendar and then work and live from that calendar.
🔮 Actionable insights: Throw away your To-Do list. Use a calendar and schedule your entire day into 15-minute blocks.
✅ Personal review: This is tried and tested, it’s REALLY good.
4. They beat procrastination with time travel
Think and do in longer-time horizon. Your future-self can't be trusted. What can you do now to make sure your future-self does the right thing?
🔮 Actionable insights: What can you do now to make sure your future self does the right thing? Anticipate how you will self-sabotage in the future, and come up with a solution to defeat your future self.
5. They use a notebook
Capture everything in your notebook so your mind can stay carefree; move to-do's to the calendar. ✅ Personal review: This is a big win for me, and I always recommend people to have it.
6. They use email only a few times a day
Don't let email or social media interrupt your flow; schedule times to read and respond to email. They don’t respond to each vibration or ding to see who has intruded their inbox.
🔮 Actionable insights: Use a calendar and schedule small blocks where you check your emails.
7. They avoid meetings at all costs
Meetings are notorious time killers. They start late, have the wrong people in them, meander in their topics and run long.
🔮 Actionable insights: Don't hold meetings. If you have to, keep them short and make everybody stand up. I keep my meetings maximum 15-30mins (mostly).
8. They say “no” to almost everything
“If something is not a “hell, YEAH! Then it’s a “no!” Remember, you only have 1,440 minutes in every day. Don’t give them away easily.
Every "yes" is actually a "no" to something else. Say no to everything outside of your goal areas.
9. They delegate almost everything
Ultra-productive people don’t ask, “How can I do this task?” Instead they ask, “How can this task get done?” They take the “I” out of it as much as possible.
🔮 Actionable insights: Identify your unique ability, utilize it, and outsource everything else. Aka your “zone of genius.”
10. They theme days of the week
Highly successful people often theme days of the week to focus on major areas. For example, I’ve used “Mondays for Meetings” and make sure I’m doing one-on-one check-ins with each direct report.
🔮 Actionable insights: Create a set day of the week schedule to focus on major areas; batch your tasks during the day. Batch your work to maximize your efficiency and effectiveness.
(Bonus) 11. They don't think about time; they focus on energy
You can’t make more minutes in the day, but you can increase your energy which will increase your attention, focus, decision making, and overall productivity.
🔮 Actionable insights: Do work sprints. You can’t make more minutes in the day, but you can increase your energy which will increase your attention, focus, decision making, and overall productivity.
That’s it for this week! Hit me up if you have any stories, feedback, or insights to share. Have a fulfilling and productive week! 🙏
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Written with ❤️,
Felix
That’s it for this week! Hit me up if you have any stories, feedback, or insights to share. Have a fulfilling and productive week! 🙏