The first key point I should mention here is Nir Eyal’s emphasis on time-boxing as a valuable technique in productivity. Simply having checklists and to-dos elongating each day will not do the trick for productivity if we are not mindful of the pace at which we work or the time we have in a day to complete those tasks. Another technique I have found pretty useful is prioritizing work and picking up as many as possible in a day, but of course that becomes harder when we have work with deadlines in the mix with passion projects and time taken to relax. Eyal’s solution of time-boxing takes this into consideration, which I think is a valuable mention. Here’s another great article on time-boxing that I found useful.
“The people we love most should not be content getting whatever time is left over. Everyone benefits when we hold time on our schedule to live up to our values and do our share”.
Not scheduling time for our family and close friends while we schedule the rest of our week will certainly lead to disaster. Personally, I’ve found that I tend to forfeit the video calls with my parents when burdened with assignments and that I almost always reach friends’ gatherings later than I intend to because of other work that needed my attention. It makes so much more sense to schedule your day including time for your relationships, so that you’re not choosing between good sleep or talking with your boyfriend at the end of a long day.
“We implemented a 10 minute rule and promised that if we really wanted to use a device in the evening, we would wait 10 minutes before doing so.”
For me, this simple rule was eye-opening in its results, decreasing temptations to unlock my phone for absolutely nothing, spending minutes re-reading headlines I’d already looked at, opening up Whatsapp to check if I had any new messages (when my notifications are turned off), or re-checking and re-reading emails. Setting this small time requirement before unlocking phones when studying or when you’re out with friends might just create the difference between productivity and time helplessly lost surfing the unlimited web.
“Phubbing, a portmanteau of phone and snubbing means to ignore when in a social situation by busying oneself with a phone or other mobile device.”
I’m sure you’ve done this, as have I. I’m also certain you’ve been annoyed at your friends doing this around you. For me, this was a reminder to stop.
“Schedule time for yourself first: By time-boxing ‘you’ time and faithfully following through we keep promises we make to ourselves.”
Just as we set aside time for relationships, it becomes obvious that we need to do the same for ourselves, demanding time taken from our schedule to see how we are coping up with the week or the month. Taking this time means we get to slow down and reassess our goals – that we have the possibility of changing and restructuring our week if we have to. For me, a weekly time off to look at my schedule made sense, a time for me to rewrite the goals for the week if needed or push myself more when necessitated.
– Swathi Chandrasekaran
Once again, here’s me on Goodreads! Say hi, drop book recommendations and let’s connect over more reads.
Perplexed Potatoes 