Step 2: Forget the hacks, focus on productivity fundamentals
Imagine playing in a basketball game against LeBron James. You have the best shoes, the most expensive pair of athletics shorts, a fancy headband, and the greatest jersey in the world. And he has no shoes, ripped shorts, and a dress shirt. Who would win?
It sounds ridiculous, but we play this same game against productivity every day.
The tools don’t matter as much as we think.
Novices LOVE to focus on productivity hacks, apps, and tools. It’s easy — and frankly, more fun — to play with shiny new tools than to simply do what works.
But usually the fundamentals — things like a simple calendar, pen, and paper — work as well as (if not better than) some app.
Take a look at a sample of my calendar system.
See how it’s not a super advanced set of apps? I purposely make it easy on myself so I can follow through and easily update it.
EXECUTION is more important than the tactic itself.
How you can start using this right now:
- Decide ahead of time and map out your schedule for the week either, on paper or in a simple calendar system
- Set an alert in your calendar or on your phone to review this every week. Keep thinking ahead, and you’ll never be caught off guard or pressed for time
Step 3: Develop laser-guided focus
In the video above, BJ Fogg talks about “competing motivations” — sometimes even our best efforts to be productive are thwarted because something else comes along.
Sometimes these are external distractions: an emergency comes up, we have family demands, and work gets busy.
But just as often, we cannibalize one goal by shifting focus to another. The result? We don’t make much progress on either.
Developing FOCUS and being able to put some ideas on hold is a skill that almost guarantees we make progress on what matters. Let me show you what I mean.
One of my close friends, Noah Kagan, a former employee of Mint and Facebook and the founder of AppSumo, showed me the power of having laser-guided focus — he was able to start not one, but two multimillion-dollar businesses that continue to see growth year after year.
He does this by setting one big goal at a time.
How’s you can do the same right now:
- Pick your number one goal. Is it earning more money? Starting a business? Finding your Dream Job?
- Grab a pen and paper and write it down. Really, do this now. This isn’t a silly “thought exercise.” We’re doing this to commit ourselves to one course of action and follow through
Advanced Productivity Systems: Create habits you can stick to
As you may have noticed, our struggles with how to be productive are really struggles with creating habits — which is why I put together the very best material on setting goals, creating habits that stick, riding motivational waves, and getting back on track (if you ever fall off).
If you’re ready to stop making excuses, break out of that rut, and make a major change in your life, this free guide is for you.
Take a look at what’s inside:
- How to wake up productive and get more done by noon than most people do all day (covered in Part 2)
- “If I wasn’t so lazy, I’d ____.” I’ll teach you how to keep being productive even when you “don’t feel like it.” (covered in Part 3)
- Ever spent a busy day filled with distractions — answering emails and putting out fires — and walked away feeling like you finished nothing? I’ll show you how to stay productive and eliminate distractions (covered in Part 6)