8 Common Productivity Mistakes You Should Avoid

Do you often feel like there are not enough hours in a day to accomplish everything you need to do? You’re not alone. Many people struggle with productivity, and it’s not always easy to stay focused and motivated. One of the main reasons people get distracted is that they make productivity-sucking mistakes. Below, we’ll highlight some of the most common mistakes people make when trying to be productive and how to avoid them.

1. Treating Cheating as a Reward

Do you often reward yourself with treats when you’re doing something difficult, like dieting, saving money, exercising, or working? While it may seem harmless, treating yourself after achieving your goals undermines the achievement you’ve made. It can discourage you from continuing with your plan, as you’ve already been “bad.”

Instead, try to treat achieving your goals as the reward. You wanted to improve yourself, and now you’re well on your way. Keep that in mind and don’t let yourself be tempted to cheat.

2. Planning Unnecessary Meetings

Meetings can be a major time-suck and can distract you from your work. Often, they’re lengthy and pointless, leaving you feeling unproductive. A good solution to this is to reconsider having meetings altogether. Consider other communication methods, such as Skype, texting, emailing, or phone calls, to discuss important matters.

3. Multitasking

Most people believe they can multitask efficiently, but research shows that trying to do multiple tasks at once decreases productivity and attention span. To be more productive, concentrate on one task at a time.

4. Browsing the Web

With the internet at our fingertips, it’s easy to become distracted and find ourselves online for longer than intended. To avoid this productivity mistake, write down what you wanted to look at online, put it aside, and finish the task you were working on before checking.

5. Putting off Hard Tasks

It’s tempting to start with the easiest tasks at the beginning of your day. However, saving the hard jobs for later may mean they don’t get finished at all. The best time to start the hard work is first thing in the morning when you have the most willpower. Plus, tackling your least favorite task early in the day can put you in a great mood for the rest of the day!

6. Over-Planning

When you have a busy day ahead, it’s tempting to plan every hour of it in advance. However, if you fall behind on schedule, you can become stressed out and feel like you’ve failed. Instead, plan about five hours of essential work to do and leave the rest of the day to deal with any other issues. This way, you have both control and flexibility.

7. Hitting the Snooze Button

Hitting the snooze button and getting an extra 10 minutes in bed may seem like a good idea, but it’s actually better for you to get up. When you first wake up, your body starts releasing alertness hormones to get you up and ready for the day. Every time you hit snooze, you slow down this process, and it’s unlikely you’re getting any essential extra sleep anyway.

8. Thinking About the Big Picture

Having a life or work plan is a great way to keep progressing towards your goals. However, constantly thinking about the big picture while you’re working can leave you feeling overwhelmed and worried. Save life planning for when you’re not working, and while you are working, focus on the task at hand. Every task you complete is one step closer to your goals.

In conclusion, avoiding these productivity mistakes can help you be more productive and achieve your goals. Tackling one task at a time, avoiding unnecessary meetings, and skipping snooze will help you make the most of your day!