If you’re anything like me, you get easily side tracked when trying to get some work done. Technology is meant to enable us and allows more freedom and convenience, yet sometimes it does quite the opposite.
In this blog post I am sharing a couple ways that help me increase productivity.
1. Stop checking your phone every 5 minutes (after reading this blog of course)
First one’s fairly straightforward (yes that is one word, I checked) spend less time checking your messages, likes, new followers or annoying trolls. You’re fishing for that endorphin rush you feel when people like your content or slide in your DM’s. You don’t need that! And it can definitely wait.
I personally don’t check my phone the first and last 30-45 min of the day. That means no scrolling through Instagram or 9gag, and no replying to emails or messages.
I set my alarms, plug my phone into the charger and leave it there.
I spend that time eating or getting ready for work (in the morning), or packing my bags or reading in the evening. You could even meditate, read, write or just chill out and hit up netflix for an episode or 2 of whatever.
You look like a knob if you instinctively reach for your phone every single time it goes off.
2. Scheduling Time
Everyone has a schedule to stick to; setting aside time to work, study, train will allow you to get to the important stuff and then spend your free time doing what you actually enjoy!
I usually block off time for myself to train every day, so that means about 90 minutes that I won’t ever schedule any appointments in. Personally this was crucial in training becoming more of a habit and something I would never skip. Studies show that to make something a habit, you have to repeat it 21 times. So stick to it!
If you work office hours, try packing your gym bag the night before, prepping meals etc and setting aside an hour before or after work to get to training. Skipping a workout is less likely if you’ve done some planning beforehand.
I have morning and evening blocks laid out to see my PT clients, then there’s some time in the middle of the day laid out to get some “work” done, this would include whatever’s on my to-do list (more on that in point 3) for that specific day, checking emails, returning calls and working on or adjusting client programs.
When I started my first job I was in my second year of college, so setting out my time was important to getting around to everything and not bombing my PT certification.
3. Learn to Prioritize
Here’s the last one and in my opinion the most important: time management is useless if you don’t know how to prioritize.
Responding to client emails and getting programs sent out in a timely manner is way more important than finding the perfect meme to post in a group chat.
The easiest way to do this, I’ve found, is to have a to-do list with 3-5 items.
You can number the items according to importance.
An example would be:
Items 1-3: Must be done by close of business today.
Item 4-5 : Can be moved to tomorrow if there’s not enough time.
Making these lists can be a pain, so I don’t do it everyday, 2-3 times a week at most.
If there’s anything that comes up that I can’t get to immediately, I’ll add it to the list, mainly so that I don’t forget.
Those are my top tips to spend less time stalking instagram models and more time doing things that get you closer to your goals.