No matter how determined you are to not get distracted and get your work done as quickly as possible, something will divide your attention. It could be a repetitive knocking noise from outside your house, a drilling noise from the construction site next door, or even notifications on your phone.
ContentsThe Pomodoro techniqueEat the frogDon't break the chainTime blockingMust, Should, WillAll of these distractions can easily divert your attention from the task at hand. So even if you have an urban-industrial office that you've sworn can motivate you to work more efficiently, there's still the possibility of you getting distracted by your surroundings or your thoughts. Fortunately, you are not alone in this case. Many others also find it difficult to stay focused, which is why many productivity methods have been created.
Here are five you can try to help you stay focused and become more productive:
Granted, it's hard to stay focused on a task for too long because most people have a short attention span. Instead of forcing yourself to stay focused, you can stay focused for short bursts and quick breaks in between. This is the Pomodoro technique for better productivity.
With this method, you'll be working in short 25-minute intervals, which means you'll need to use a timer. When the 25 minutes are over, you can take a 5 minute break before repeating the process. Then you can repeat the process until you go through your to-do list and complete all of your tasks for the day.
One of the main obstacles to productivity is that you will want to put off a difficult task for as long as possible, hence procrastination. But a good solution to this is to just eat the frog. This is a productivity method that will push you to tackle the most difficult tasks first, which are considered your frogs.
To identify your frogs, you will need to review everything you have to do during the day and measure their level of difficulty. Once you rank the tasks from most difficult to least important, you will identify your frog as the one at the top of the list. Then you will need to eat the frog as soon as possible to make your sailing day go smoothly afterwards.
Finding the right productivity method is all about consistency. If you practice a method long enough, it will eventually become second nature to you. This is the mindset that the "don't break the chain" method aims to teach its users - to instill a habit of productivity through visual stimulation.
You can do this by starting with one goal for the day. Once you've completed the task, you can mark it as done on your calendar or check it off in your to-do list. Then for each day you complete the task, you can continue your streak, which will then make it harder for you to break the chain because you've already gone so far. It's simple but very effective if you can apply it continuously.
Staying focused and productive is the result of good time management, something anyone can proudly say is good at. But that is what the time blocking method is designed to solve. With this method, you will block time in your schedule to focus on your tasks and that alone.
You can start by making a list of everything you need to accomplish for the day and estimate how much time you will need for each. Next, you'll need to block these estimated times into your calendar so you can see how your day is going. This way, you don't risk overloading your schedule with tasks and missing important deadlines.
This last method of productivity relies on your ability to assess your short-term and long-term tasks. You start by creating a to-do list, based on what you need, should, and want to do. This will allow you to visualize your priorities and more easily check off each item on the list as you go.
In the "must" category, you can place urgent tasks that need to be done during the day because they can no longer be postponed. For the "should" category, you can place tasks that need to be done but don't have an imminent deadline. And in the "want" category, you can place tasks that can be done whenever you have free time.
There's no right or wrong answer when it comes to choosing your ideal productivity method. Just choose one and see how it works for you. The best thing about these methods is that if you find that your current method isn't working, all you have to do is stop and switch to another method. By doing trial and error, sooner or later you will find a method you can stick with.
