Podcast Episode 78 — 6 Productivity and Time Management Life Hacks That Work

Simple things you can do, today.

Photo by Walling on Unsplash

Today I want to talk about time management and productivity hacks.

There are life hack articles everywhere. Some of the tips are great, and others seem like they could work, but often don’t. Here are 6 productivity and time management life hacks that actually work:

Get used to setting a timer.

If you know your tasks are being timed, you are more likely to focus on them. This increases your productivity.

Here’s an example of how to use it to your advantage: The next time you need to clean the bathroom, think about how long you think it should take. Then subtract a few minutes from that and set your timer. See if you can finish before the time runs out. Even if you don’t beat the clock, you will be more focused on your task while you’re doing it and ultimately get more done.

You can do the same thing with work tasks. Once you get used to using a timer, you will be able to make better time estimates for your workload, and you will make more progress than if you didn’t use a timer.

Every hour, take a 10-minute break.

Whatever task you have to do, set your timer for 50 minutes. When it goes off, take your 10-minute break.

You can use these 10 minutes to deal with personal email or phone calls, get a drink of water, or take a quick walk. Make sure you step away from your work tasks for that time, and when you return, you’ll be ready to tackle your next 50-minute work block.

Embrace the concept of “work ahead”.

Basically, this is the modern-day version of “don’t put off anything until tomorrow that you can do today.”

For example, if you need to get gas, do it on the way home from work instead of waiting until the next morning. If something throws off your morning routine, or worse — you forgot you needed to leave early to get gas until you got in the car, it will wreak havoc with your entire day.

Take a few minutes each evening to see if there is something on tomorrow’s schedule you could handle right then, and get it done.