Having One Of Those Days? Here's 3 Productivity Hacks To Get You Back On Track

Have you ever felt super unproductive and no matter what you did, you could NOT focus on your work?

In the past, procrastination has really gotten the best of me. I’m sure many people can relate. You just sit there and stare at the screen, hoping you can focus on what needs to get done. Or, you distract yourself by looking at other things, maybe texts from your friends or scrolling through mindless social media. Either way, it’s easy to become unproductive and waste time, but it happens to the best of us! 

In my opinion, this has been one of the hardest things to overcome while attempting to begin or complete a task. Luckily, after dealing with this I have learned lots of productivity hacks to kick these lazy feelings.

Plan!📅

For me, the easiest way to get things done is to hold myself accountable each day for the tasks that I need to get done. Filling out a planner or calendar is super helpful, especially because you can see everything written out. It’s proven that making a to-do list reduces burden on the brain. Scheduling times to do specific things gives you guidance so you don’t get distracted. 

Every time you finish a task you can check it off your to-do list, which is a great feeling of accomplishment. I always feel so happy after I check something off my to-do list which makes me motivated to check something else off. 

Setting reminders on technology like an Outlook calendar or your cell phone help keep you on track. Once they pop up on your screen, you cannot ignore it. Having things written in planners and reminders on my phone help me stay on track even when I am feeling lazy.

Remove distractions

If you are someone who listens to music while working, try to avoid music with lyrics. Hearing words in music can be very distracting, so it’s better to listen to ambient sounds. I have caught myself singing along to lyrics instead of being focused on a task, which is why I now put on some ambient Tipper music while working.

Having your phone is handy but also very distracting while trying to complete tasks. Turning your social media notifications off or putting the phone in “Do Not Disturb” mode can help you avoid seeing the social media distractions.

Close out of the tabs you are no longer using, as they can be distracting and bring you back to websites when you are starting to procrastinate. As someone who loves having a bunch of tabs open, I have learned that closing them when I am done with them is much more productive. 

I have found the most distracting thing is talking with coworkers. It is very easy to get sidetracked in conversations with the people around your desk. The best way to avoid this is working with headphones in or going to a secluded area when you need to focus on a task. Just remember to avoid lyrics when listening to music on your headphones!

Work when you are feeling most productive

If you are given the opportunity to work from home or work on your own time, it allows you to do your tasks when you are feeling the most productive. If you are working from home, you can work whatever hours of the day you want.

If you're not a morning person and can't focus before 10 am, you can work from 10-6. Or, if you feel lazy in the middle of the day, you can take a break and come back to your task when you’re ready to focus. This is one of the easiest productivity hacks that actually saves you time in the long run. Working when you're not feeling productive is the real waste of time.

Telecommuting also removes some of the distractions that come within an office. Off topic conversations with co-workers and people moving around doing other things allows your mind to wander.  I love to join most conversations I hear, which can get in the way of work sometimes. This is probably why I sometimes finish things faster at home than in the office.

Using these productivity hacks could leave you with more free time and less stress during your work days, and afterwards too. I even used my productivity hacks to write this blog post!🙅😴