Is it possible to make these roads cross like I want them to?

 

When I think of productivity, I have high expectations about what my life will look like. Then there’s the reality. However, no matter what, I continue to look for ways to make these two paths converge.

You can find articles about productivity all over the Internet. Experts offer seminars and talks. Friends offer suggestions. However, we generally know what it is that would make us more productive.

For example, I know that removing the notification from some apps or muting certain groups resulted in a lot less noise on my phone, which resulted in less distraction, which resulted in higher productivity.

I also know that actually turning off my phone (putting it on airplane mode) stops my phone from buzzing when I get text messages. I know that closing the cover on my iPad means that I don’t see when a news story pops up. Merely removing those distractions from my life increases my productivity.

No question.

But what else could I do?

The Pomodoro Technique

I’ve implemented the Pomodoro Technique for my writing recently. It keeps me seated, which is a huge help to me. I look at the clock and see that I have 12 minutes to go. Being an adult, I know that I can remain seated for another 12 minutes. In fact, I’ve used it to complete any number of tasks. Also, there’s a built-in competitive piece to it. But using it, I am competing against the only person I really have any business competing against: me.

The basic of the Pomodoro Technique is that you write (or clean the closet or fold laundry) for 25 minutes and then take a five minute break. Look it up. There’s tons out there, including an actual website.

Ambient Music

I’m not sure how I heard about brain.fm, but I’ve been looking for something like it for a while. It’s music or sound that helps you focus, relax or sleep. I use to focus on what I’m working on. Does it help? Well, for me, coupled with the Pomodoro Technique, I’ve gotten a lot done in the past couple of weeks.

Further Research

My recent research into the subject of productivity has meant that I’ve read quite a number of articles on the subject of productivity. As is the current fashion in article writing, most of these articles are based on lists. Going through the lists in these articles, there’s quite a bit of repetition.

For example, a lot of these articles mention writing things down. I am a huge fan of writing things down. There are Post-its and little slips of paper all over my desk, in boxes, in blank books I carry to meetings. I love writing things down. Do I do it in any kind of structured manner? Maybe not so much. I’m looking for a method to do that. I’ve tried a few things that I think might work for me. They do to some extent.

But then I read a suggestion that didn’t seem like it applied to me so much: group interruptions. The example they give in the article is that you should ask your assistant to come in with questions and progress reports at certain times of the day rather than coming in every time they need something.

Interestingly, I don’t have an assistant.

However, I am using the Pomodoro Technique, which sort of does that. I force myself to wait to check my phone, get another cup of coffee, write that email until the clock tells me I’ve sat here writing for 25 minutes. So I guess that one applies to me.

Bullet Journaling

A few years ago, I bought a journal that I was going to make my Bullet Journal. I’d run into a woman I knew who showed me hers and told me all about it. It looked sort of amazing. I started one. My expectation was that I would finally have everything in one spot. I thought about how easy to find everything it would be. If I were looking for a particular piece of information, a note I’d taken, a title of a book that someone had recommended, all I would need to do is go to the page where it was located and there it would be!

The reality was that new categories kept cropping up. Ideas were difficult to categorize. Why should I start a new page for TV shows when the Recommended Films page of the journal was almost blank? Or I’d forget it. Or I’d fall a bit behind in my daily updates. I didn’t do so well. I lasted a week.

Guess what! I just started a new one.

What I’ve realized about all of this productivity expectations is something I’ve always known: I am an optimist. I see an amazing solution and I think, That’s going to be great! My expectation is that it’s going to work and that it will work beautifully. The reality, unfortunately, is that not all systems work for me.

People are individuals. That’s why there are so many tips and tricks on productivity. Nothing works for every person who tries it. We all need a different mix. There are so many articles written about the same subject because different people respond to the different ways the material is presented.

My advice is to always keep your expectations high. Test things out. Find out what your reality is. It’s fun to learn new things. It’s fun to learn more about yourself and how your brain works. And not only that. It’s endless fun because you’ll never get to the end of it. And yes, Virginia, these roads will cross!

 

A version of this article appeared on medium.com, posted on April 10, 2020

EXPERD, Human Resources Consultant, Jakarta – Indonesia