How Productive Are You Really

You have twenty things you must get done this week and today you get done two. Were you productive?

Too often, we have completely unrealistic expectations for how much we can actually get done in the time we have available. So we think you can get it all done, when in fact, it is an impossibility to do so.

You get done two things. How much time and effort was spent on thinking about the OTHER things on your list and how you should be doing something else?

This is one of the biggest sources of unhappiness – always thinking that you should be doing something else.

This is a huge productivity killer because you waste your precious time thinking about everything else on the list rather than just doing what is right in front of you.

We also have to battle with other people’s expectations about how quickly we should be able to get stuff accomplished, and what we should consider priorities. If you are unable to speak up for yourself or tend to be a people-pleaser, than thoughts about others expectations can interfere with your productivity and accomplishing your tasks.

In addition to expectations, we often don’t celebrate our accomplishments so we don’t feel good about anything we do. Our thoughts can be quite negative and harsh as we judge ourselves fiercely for what’s not done or what’s not good enough. So on one hand we are criticizing ourselves and on the other we cannot see the good in what we do accomplish.

If this is what goes through your mind every day, it’s no wonder you feel like you’re not productive! And you’re not happy. How could you be?

Your coaching tip of the day is twofold:

1) Congratulate yourself for a job well done when you complete your tasks on your to-do list, regardless of how big or small. And

2) Tame your judgmental thoughts! The only reason to judge is to assess where you might need to improve. For example, are you focused on pleasing others to the point where you care more about what others think rather than what you think? Use any judgments you have of yourself to determine opportunity for improvement, like assessing your expectations so that you can learn to be more realistic about how long it takes to complete different tasks.

As you gain understanding of time, set more realistic expectations for how much a person can actually accomplish in the time you have available, and celebrate your accomplishments, you’ll feel better about your work. You’ll be happier and feel more successful as you gain control over your time and your efforts.

Til next time, think good thoughts.

Your partner for success,

Coach Julie