Amber Naslund, the SVP of a social intelligence company has a blog called “Brass Tack Thinking.” In her post titled, “My Crazy Productivity Secrets” she took on the issue of being productive. Her words provide helpful insights and tips to help manage your time.
To begin, know what it is that keeps you from being productive. Is it the anxiety of your workload, loss of focus, lack of motivation, unclear priorities? More often than not, the main thing keeping you from being productive are the choices you make with the time you have.
“My choices reflect what’s important to me, and what makes me happy. That’s fluid and changes to an extent, but I’m devoted to a thriving career, a growing business, and excited about passion projects I have on the side. But there is no magic system. Stop looking for it.” – Amber Naslund.
Lay it all out on the table, what do you need to do and what to you want to do. Be honest! It is easy to blend the two and say you need what you want. Sure, sometimes they do align, but when you say you need to finish that movie or play with the dog, you’ve crossed into procrastination territory and the excuses will overflow.
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“I don’t get the “busy as a badge of honor” thing. All that tells me is that you need to learn to manage your time better or get your priorities straight with yourself or the people you work for. Working insane hours is not an achievement.” – Amber Naslund.
As you very well know, more hours don’t equal more work done. If you find yourself dreading the day ahead or constantly spacing out, perhaps this is a sign you want more. A good way to finish what you need to is by enjoying what you do. “Working insane hours” will happen, but the achievement lies in your dedication to spend that time wisely so you can get back to the things that matter most to you.
“I have the responsibility of kids, animals, a house, and a business. The rest has to come after those things, and even the business can’t take over the other ones.” – Amber Naslund.
Remember, your to-do list may look overwhelming but it doesn’t have to dominate every hour of every day. New tasks will always be there to take up room in your schedule. Keep in mind there is only so much you can do in a day and that’s okay! Relax, refocus and cut yourself some slack—work smart and know the difference between what needs to be done today and what can be done tomorrow.
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