5 ways to be productive

It is always harder to focus during the summer. The weather is nice, offices have summer hours, and everyone would rather be on vacation. It is hard enough to be productive without the warm weather distracting people, and much, much worse when you must stay at the office longer because you were day dreaming about leaving. Here a few tips to get more done in less time, so you can enjoy the season and succeed at work:

1-Become an early riser
This is one of the most underused productivity “hacks” on the planet. Ever since I decided to start waking up at 5am every day, my productivity levels and happiness have gone up dramatically.

Most people aren’t up that early, so no one can bother you or disrupt you from what you want to do. Use this time to exercise, meditate, or to get a head start on your day.

2-Measure your success
Every now and then, it’s a good idea to measure your results and see how things are coming along.

How’s your progress? Are you pacing in the right direction? Are things getting better? Worse? It’s always a good idea to track your progress regularly.

With an app like Rescue Time, you can easily keep track of the time you spend throughout the day. It helps you to find out how much time you’re really on-task and so you can review your progress.

3-Do Your Most Important Tasks Before Lunch
Priorities and projects with tight deadlines should be done first. Do not get bogged down by emails or meetings, and do not let anything else distract you. Some days you may be working straight through tea time, but make sure you get done what absolutely needs to get done today. Anything that "would be nice" to get done or does not need to be addressed until tomorrow or later in the week can wait.

4-Don't Overwhelm Yourself
Being ambitious is good until it is overwhelming. Then it is counterproductive. Trying to do too much will only cause you stress, making you less productive and more anxious. So refine your to-do list, and be intentional about what needs to be done today.

5-Use time blocks
For example, when I wrote this article, I gave myself a one hour time block. This prevents unnecessary dilly-dallying like updating your Facebook status and checking email.
Use an app like Alarmed to keep you on track. Here’s a snapshot of the app from my iPhone.