How to Boost Your Productivity during a Pandemic

Microproductivity

I love the term microproductivity. I recently found it on Trello’s blog. Microproductivity is simply breaking down a large project into smaller tasks that we can accomplish one step at a time. As we focus on little jobs, we are much more likely to actually make headway towards the overall goal.  

Microproductivity is at its finest when we have a written plan instead of keeping a list of smaller tasks in our minds.

How to Increase Your Productivity Tip #2: Wake up early

Girl, I know how easy it can be to stay up late and sleep in. Trust me, I know. 

For several DECADES it was my jam to stay up until all hours of the night so I could actually “get things done.” I told myself that the only way I could be productive was to sacrifice sleep at night.

But here’s the thing: I never tried waking up early to see if it made a difference. I just assumed my late night hours of work would be equal in productivity if I was to wake up early and get things done. 

That assumption was totally wrong. 

In his book, The Morning Mind, Robert Carter, PhD, writes that less than 1% of people are genetically programmed to be night-owls. Instead, people who believe themselves to be night-owls are most likely suffering from sleep deprivation, which results in lower levels of cognitive performance, emotional regulation and productivity. 

Benefits of Early Rising

When we wake up early – which most researchers define as anytime before 7am – we allow our brains time to warm up and prep for the day ahead. For moms at home (which many of us are that this point!) this is a total game changer. 

Waking up 2-3 hours before my kids allows me to workout, shower, study scripture, meditate, and get to work on my business. Before I greet my kids, my proverbial cup is already full. I really am able to be a happier, more productive mom throughout the day. 

To get my specific tips on how I wake up early everyday, read this post here. It has loads of actionable ideas to help you start waking up early. I cannot wait to hear how waking up early helps you to boost your productivity, my friend!

How to Boost Your Productivity Tip #3: Dedicate Time for Rest and Play

As a society, we often view rest as the opposite of productivity.

But that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Researcher Alex Soojung-Kim Pang writes in his book Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less, “Rest is not an optional leftover activity. Work and rest are actually partners … the better you are at resting, the better you will be at working.”

While everyone in my family (and every family) is missing their normal activities, like gymnastics, homeschool choir, and church, I must admit that it has been wonderful to put my chauffeur service on hold for a bit. 

It is crazy how much time we spend pick up our kids or dropping them off to different places, isn’t it? I did a quick calculation, and I was shocked to learn that I spend 400 minutes a week in my minivan taking my people to their various activities. Seriously!

With everything cancelled everywhere, I now have almost 1 hour everyday that is completely free!

Intention Matters

Instead of spending that time scrolling through social media, I am taking that hour to spend intentionally resting and playing. We’ve played board games, read countless books, painted, played catch, gone for walks, planted flowers, experimented with new recipes and tried to fly kites. (It was a disaster. Just picture 5 kites all tangled together. That was us. But at least it was fun!).