There’s something about work…
When people who waste a lot of time during the day actually settle down and get to work, they spend too much time on low value tasks and activities. As a result, they get very little work done, which then causes them to feel that they are under continuous pressure to get caught up.
Unfortunately, work builds up like a flood. Deadlines come knocking faster than you imagine, the stress mount up until you finally force yourself to do the work at the 11th hour.
This is one lesson I’ve learnt as a writer especially when I have a work load of articles to write. How do you think my countenance would be at the end of the day? Feelings of regrets of course!
Who wouldn’t want to have a fruitful day though? I do want to; and of course, I wish this for you.
But it’s not about having wishful thinking, but actually working towards achieving your goals for the day. There are things you need to have planned out for you to enjoy the rest of your evening after work knowing that your day was fruitful. Only then can you relax.
You should start by…
Planning your day the evening before
I first learnt this when I read the book, ‘Attitude is everything’ by Keith Harrell. You have to have a quiet time to draft out what you want to achieve the next day.
I call it a to-do list, then I write the date and time I propose to accomplish them. It is as simple as preparing your outfit for the next day. You check to make sure it is clean, then you iron it.
This helps you to have fewer decisions to make the next day, it frees up your mental space. That way, you have better productivity throughout the day.
Then, you wake up feeling revitalized
You won’t wake up refreshed if you don’t sleep well. Below are what you need to do in order to sleep well:
- Sleep early
- Do not drink water just before bed, else you’d be waking up at intervals to ease yourself.
- Stay away from drinks containing alcohol and caffeine
- Play soothing music to help.
- Meditate
- You can turn off the lights. This is optional because some persons like to sleep with the lights on. If you’re in this category, you can get a bedside lamp.
The above listed would help you fall asleep faster. For more, see What you need to do to help you fall asleep.
Map out time to do your morning routine
One would ask, “what should be in my morning routine?” It is simple. Wake up before everyone else so that you have less distractions to contend with. Experts suggest waking up by 4am, you can try this.
Then you drink a glass of water to get your body system rolling. Make sure you also set out at least 30 minutes of your time to exercise. You could go jogging or do body stretches in your compound. It would leave you feeling light and nimble as a leopard. Studies have shown that exercise also helps in reinvigorating our mental health.
Then, prepare and eat a healthy breakfast. By this, I don’t mean the regular breakfast ideas that consist of cereals containing sugar and pastries. Rather, it should be a light balanced diet that won’t slow you down during the day. For ideas, see Healthy breakfast ideas for everyone.
Also, make sure you read a chapter or two of any spiritual, inspirational or emotionally enlightening book; depending on your schedule. You can take 10 to 15 minutes of your time to do this.
Don’t forget to write in your journal. This helps me to keep track of my daily activities and know what I should keep doing or what I should stop doing.
Spare time to keep your house clean before you dress up for the day. You don’t want to come back to a dirty house, do you?
By this time, you should have been ticking off some of the goals you wrote down on your journal. Did you get that? Goals you wrote down… Studies show that what you write down sticks for a long time and it helps you to achieve them faster.
Make it a habit to say affirmations to yourself
What are affirmations?
They are short powerful words you say continually to boost your positive thinking. If you can’t remember all the words, you can make use of sticker notes and stick them around your room in a tidy manner. So that you can keep reciting them till they sink into your subconscious mind.
Now you’re ready to kick off your day.
Make sure you do your tasks according to their priority. This is so that you don’t end up abandoning your most important tasks.
According to Brian Tracy in his book, ‘No Excuse’, make a list of all the things that you need to do in a week or in a month, from the time you start work on Monday morning through to the end of the week.
Write everything down, both small and large, including checking your e-mail and returning phone calls. Review it and ask yourself which of them you think should contribute to achieve your ultimate goal.
Don’t procrastinate! Don’t put off work meant to be done in the morning till evening, you’ll end up not doing it that day.
There you have it! Ensure you have a productive day today.
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