When people think about productivity, they often think about calendars and to-do lists and project management, and all of those things are a big part of what we will discuss in coming episodes. But there’s a big difference between being busy and being productive. True productivity requires a purpose to guide the activity. In this episode we talk about a process for coming up with principles to guide our decisions in such a way that our activity is consistent with our true values.
A brief summary of the basic steps:
- Set aside a time when you can be quiet and undisturbed. Gather your calendar, your to-do lists, paper and pen, and your favorite beverage.
- List/describe the roles you play in life, and the relationships that are part of your life.
- Taking into account your personal values, prioritize these areas of your life. Don’t forget to make your physical, mental, and emotional health a priority.
- For each role, answer this question: “What kind of ______ do I want to be?” For each relationship, ask yourself, “How do I want this person/these people to remember me when I’m gone?” Spend some time journaling your thoughts about what each role/relationship would look like if it was all you want it to be (your part, not theirs!).
- Honestly evaluate where you are today in each of these areas. Write it down.
- What will it take to get you from where you are to where you want to be? Write down two or three specific steps you could take in each area to move in the direction you want to go.
Tip of the Week: Back up your digital data.
- External hard drives (I use the Seagate Backup Plus)
- Cloud services, such as Dropbox and Box
- Online backup services
For more info, check out this article from the University of Pittsburgh’s IT Department on Backing Up Your Data
Tool of the Week: Some great options for online backup services.
Resources:
- Creating Your Personal Life Plan, a free ebook from Michael Hyatt
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, By Stephen R. Covey
- Time Management From the Inside Out, by Julie Morganstern
Next week’s episode will be a discussion of my “Top Ten Tips for Managing Your Day,” and another upcoming episode will talk about setting achievable goals.
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May i be sincere with you?? When i heard the 000 podcast i thougth that it isnt worthing my time. But then i insist and what a pleasant surprise. IM LOVING IT.You have here a big fan in Portugal. And by the way im Laura too.
Thank you for your higthly productive information, transparency and kindness
Laura Lourenço
Thank you, Laura, for your kind words. If you have any questions or suggestions, please let me know.
Hello Laura. The Productive Woman comes at a really good time in my life. I had some serious health problems over the last two and half years and it has been like a rug was pulled out from beneath me. I am on my way and basically recovered, but I have had a heck of a time getting my direction back. I look forward to the next episode. Thank you for the tips, tools, and the resources are an added bonus for me. Laurel
Laurel, I really appreciate hearing that it’s been helpful so far. I can imagine how tough it must be to get back on track after an extended bout with health issues. I hope you’ll feel free to send me any questions you have that I can address in future episodes. You can email me at feedback@theproductivewoman.com.
Laura
Thanks for the tips Laura! I need help to set goals because without the list, my incentive grows weak no matter the motivation.
I really appreciate your feedback, Kelly. We’ll be talking about goal setting in an episode very soon.
Laura