2 Simple Things That Will Maximize Your Productivity

How many times have you gotten to the end of your day and you’re left thinking the day flew by only to leave you with a longer ‘To-Do’ list than what you started with.

I’m right there with you sister. It doesn’t help that I’m ADD so getting distracted is VERY easy for me to do. This means I have to constantly fight the urge to stop a task half way and focus on something else.

I’m also the type of person that loves setting and achieving goals. To do this I have had to figure out ways to be more productive and manage my time. This journey was a lot of trial and error.

Lucky for you I’m here to share with you the fruits of my labor making your path to productivity much easier.

Now you need to understand that there’s a multitude of things you can do to increase your productivity but I’m only touching on the 2 that I feel are the most important.

These 2 simple things will help you feel like you gained 2-4 hours more each and every day. At the end of the post I’ll point you to a few more posts to help you even further if you want.

Now let’s not waste any more time since this is a productivity post.

1. Wake Up Earlier (5am or 6am)

I know I’m not theonly person to suggest this to you, but it really is that good. I get it, I love sleep too, but you won’t believe how much more you get done by waking up earlier than everyone else in your house.

Just imagine yourself alone to do whatever you want or need without 1 single interruption. What does that look like? What chores are you able to complete in half the time? Are you able to spend time in your devotional and pour into yourself without having to hear tantrums in the background? Are you able to take consistent steps towards achieving your big goal? Sounds nice right?

Not only will you have an hour or two uninterrupted, but it will put you in a better mood to enjoy your day. For me, when my kids wake up before me and start asking me 101 questions puts me in a sour mood so fast and sometimes it takes me so long to shake it off.

When I wake up before the kids my mood is 10x better throughout the day.

Now don’t get me wrong. Just because it’s helpful to you doesn’t mean it’s easy. The will power it takes for me to crawl out of bed every morning and leave the warmth I’ve created under my blankets is like pulling teeth sometimes, especially when I first started doing it. I had to ‘5,4,3,2,1 GO!’ myself every day to get myself out of bed.

(I’m referencing the 5 Second Rule by Mel Robins. If you don’t know what it is I highly suggest you read her book and/or read my post 3 Simple Ways to Start Waking Up at 5am)

I promise the more you do it the easier it gets. That’s because you’ll start to enjoy that time alone and actually look forward to getting up before the rest of the house.

You don’t have to wake up at 5am but I do suggest at least 1 hour before everyone else in your house. Anything less than that and it won’t feel worth it.

To read more tips on waking up earlier read my post, ‘3 Simple Ways to Start Waking Up at 5am’

2. NO Social Media on Phone

If you thought waking up early was hard then you’re in for a treat with this one.

Yes, I’m telling you to delete the Facebook, Instagram, or whatever other social media app you have on your phone.

This is going to look different for each person and you really need to be honest with what apps take up your time. Don’t be embarrassed about it, because I can promise you there are people out there that spend as much, if not more, time on the same apps.

For me that’s Facebook, even though I like Instagram better. For some reason when I click on the Facebook app I get sucked in and next thing I know I’ve wasted 10, 20, or even 30 minutes of my time mindlessly scrolling.

If you need some help to figure out which ones take up your time the most then just take a look at your screen time settings on your phone. Warning! This is going to shock you and may make you feel a little ashamed at how much time you spend on some of these apps.

This was the thing that opened my eyes to the reality of where my time was being spent.

From that moment on I deleted Facebook from my phone and never looked back.

Disclaimer: Once in a while I will download the app to post something to Market Place or ask a question in a group, I’m a part of, but once I’m done, I delete the app. If I want to check my notifications I have to log on to my computer. When I do this, I set a 10-minute timer and once it goes off, I close out Facebook and move on. Yes, I set limits for myself just like I do with my kids. I still have Instagram and Tik Tok but I spend less than 10 minutes a day on each of those apps and some days I don’t even click on them.

For some of you this may be more than just 1 app, be honest with yourself. If you aren’t then you’re only hurting yourself.

Waking up early and deleting some social media apps on your phone are simple yet effective ways to increase your productivity, but don’t get simplicity confused with easiness. It’s simple to get out of bed in the morning and to hit the delete button on an app, but mentally it can be hard to voluntarily leave the warmth of your bed or cut yourself off from social media. Even though it’s hard I can promise you that if you will implement these two things, you’re going to see a drastic difference in the number of things you’re able to get done each and every day. Not only will your to-do list decrease regularly but your mood will be boosted right along with it.

If you try these out, we would all love to hear how it helps you so drop a comment below or feel free to email me at Laci@LaciBean.com