The definition of productivity:
“the effectiveness of productive effort, especially in industry, as measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input.”
Productivity is all about being effective and efficient in the least amount of time possible. Being effective and efficient in the world of work requires a significant amount of attention and, more importantly, an undeniable work ethic.
This may sound easy at first, but when you test the limits of your productivity, you’ll soon realize the major toll on your mental and physical health that makes it seem impossible to stay focused throughout the process of getting things done.
I have found many ways in which we let our productivity fade away in the form of habits. These productivity deficits have a wide range of negative impacts that will only hurt you in the long run and add more to that mental and physical toll.
Today, I will establish and explain 5 common habits that ruin your productive potential and why they hurt you in the first place.
1. Keeping Your Phone Near You
While it may seem smart to keep your phone within viewing distance while you working, just in case something important comes up, it’s not.
From experience, I can say that leaving your phone near you while you work will completely ruin the purpose of working in the first place. Phones and notifications in general are one of the biggest distractions in the world of productivity.
As I said before, productivity is all about being efficient and effective in the least amount of time possible. Leaving your phone near you or keeping your notifications on while you work is going to distract you from your work. This distraction will take away from your time, efficiency, and effectiveness; essentially breaking all the rules of productivity.
Most of the time, a phone simply provides random pop-ups and notifications that mean nothing to the work that was previously in front of you. It’s important to keep in mind that you can always attend to these distractions later, but in the meantime, those notifications are only going to collapse the structure of your productivity.
When I begin my desk work, I (gently) chuck my phone at my bed to make sure I don’t even see it as I get things done. I recommend you do the same.
2. Putting the Smaller Tasks First
Prioritization is a big factor that fuels the effectiveness factor that lies in productivity itself. It’s important to get the right things done first.
It may seem like a good idea to get the smaller tasks done first so you don’t have to stress about them while you work on the larger tasks. Again, this is a terrible idea.
This is because when you get the smaller things done on the to-do list first, you tend to open yourself up to things you don’t want to encounter before your larger tasks.
Here’s an example:
Jimmy had 3 tasks on his to-do list. He needed to run to the market to get groceries, write an argumentative essay for his English class, and read a productivity article. He decided to do these in order of whatever he felt like, so he drove to the market first.
On the way, he ran into lots of traffic. This made him angry for the rest of the trip home. Then when he got home, the motivation that he left with had suddenly vanished by the time he got back. All for a simple and easy task that could have been done before everything else.
He finally forced himself to write the essay. Due to the misfortune and anger that had come his way, he couldn’t focus hard enough to write the amazing essay he wished to write initially. After the essay was finished, he was so mentally exhausted that he decided against reading the article; therefore, he didn’t complete the goals he wanted to for the day.
See the domino effect? Jimmy had been significantly affected emotionally and physically by the small things that caused the larger, more important things to go down with him. It happens a lot more than we think.
This is why it is so important to prioritize our tasks in the right way.
The motivation we have at the start of the day is something we should take advantage of. We all start with a clean slate of emotions and physical capabilities as we begin the day.
Starting the more complex or larger tasks with that new sense of motivation and putting them at the start of the to-do list, will pay off. Not only will that sense of accomplishment essentially carry us throughout the day with a healthy mindset, but it will also give us more motivation to get the smaller tasks out of the way.
Our day-to-day lives, in a way, depend on what we get done first and what we push off for later.
3. Not Taking Breaks
The habit of staying at your desk is a tricky one.
One might think that staying at your desk all day and working constantly without any breaks is a good idea. One might even think that this way of work is the center of productivity. I don’t blame you.
It may seem like constant work means constant productivity, and while it is at the moment, it’s only setting you up for failure in the near future.
Being productive isn’t only about getting work done nonstop, it’s also about being consistent with that work ethic. If you sit at your desk and only work for the entire work session without getting up, then your eventually going to either burn out or discourage yourself.
Taking breaks is going to give you a chance to refresh. This could be a small change in the scenery or a long walk outside. Overall, it is critical to understand the importance of taking breaks when it comes to working for long time intervals.
In a survey, nearly 90% of North American employees claim that taking lunch breaks helps them feel refreshed and ready to get back to work; which also showed an increase in productivity, a decrease in stress, and an improvement in mental well-being.
On the other hand, sitting at your desk for extended periods of time can cause many physical, mental, and performance-related issues including heart issues, anxiety, and an overall decrease in cognitive performance.
Breaking this habit of constant work can be quite difficult due to the flow state we all tend to enjoy, but taking breaks is just as important as getting the work done itself. Not only is it keeping you healthy, but it’s also setting you up for consistency and success in the future. The Pomodoro Technique is a great way to start a healthy habit of taking breaks.
Habit #4: Waiting For Something to Happen
It’s a normal part of human life to contemplate big decisions. Too many decisions can overwhelm us from time to time. The main thing to understand is that those big decisions need to be decided on at some point.
It’s a very common habit to push things off to the side to do later. Maybe you’ve been “wanting” to write a book or have been “trying” to get plane tickets to Hollywood to see your favorite actors and celebrities. The fact is, you’re just procrastinating those big decisions and waiting for something to reassure you or even make your decision for you. Just do it.
This is a very common habit that many people develop throughout their lives because they overthink the possibilities. There will always be a reason not to do something, but that doesn’t mean that the pros don’t outweigh the cons.
This habit is destroying your productive potential in a way that affects your effective and efficient self. When this habit of overthinking and waiting takes you over, your just wasting the time that could be used to act on those big decisions that lead to even bigger actions.
Habit #5: Perfectionism
As an organized person, I like to keep my things clean and in the right places. Although it is a good idea to be organized, it isn’t an excuse to obsess over every detail of everything you do.
Perfectionism is all about being absolutely perfect with every little detail when it comes to not only work but life in general. This “perfect mindset” will lead you to a waste of time and a terrible workflow.
Your everyday to-do list is never going to get done if you worry too much or overthink insignificant and trivial details throughout your day. Essentially, building a giant mountain of work for yourself that hasn’t been completed due to the perfectionism that you live by every day.
Again, this waste of time will enforce negative impacts on your future self.