The Single Most Useful Productivity Hack You Can Use In Less Than 2 Minutes Everyday
Okay, I hate "hacks."I'll be honest.They're usually taken out of context, oversimplified to suit every scenario, and don't actually move the needle.This one feels different, to me.
It's a little weird, so stick with me for a sec.
Gerunds.So, gerunds are those verbs that end in "-ing."
- Working.
- Planning.
- Compiling.
- Visioning.
- Assessing.
Etc. etc.
I see people use these works in their task list all the time.
"I'm going to be working on the report for our Atlanta warehouse, today."This is no good!
What does "working on" mean?
It has no clear beginning or end.It doesn't explain how much work will get done or when the whole task will be done.It just says "I'm busy."
We want to avoid being busy. We want to be productive.
A better task description would be:"I'm going to input the McKinsey report into our database so I can decide if we need to close the warehouse in Atlanta this week."Focus on what you will actually achieve, today. This is a core principle of the Agile Framework and it will keep you focused on discrete deliverables.And that's what productivity is all about.Small, incremental deliverables.
2 Minute Action
Review your task list for today.Use these 3 Questions to avoid the gerund trap.
- What did you achieve/finish yesterday?
- What will you achieve/finish today?
- Do you have any impediments or dependencies that might stop you from finishing, today?
What Your Savings Account Says About Your Productivity
Of the Americans who have savings accounts, the median savings account balance is $5,200. The average, or mean balance is $33,766.49. (Citation)
This means 2 things:
- High savings balance folks are pulling the average wayyy up by having wayyy more savings
- Most Americans have a few grand in the bank.
Think about that. Regardless of what you’re pulling in, the lesson I’m pointing out here isn’t frugal spending, cutting out lattes and avocado toast.
The lesson is about the urgency and impact.
Most people don’t save a lot because retirement feels so far away. They also feel like they will start saving when they have more money coming in. Of course, what usually happens ends up being very different from what actually happens. If income increases, then their lifestyle inflated to consume that new income. The strange thing is that even without putting a lot away, you could really make a big impact over time. Remember that urgency is the reason most people take action, but you’re smarter than that.
1% improvements double every 70 days, not 100.
The key isn’t major windfalls or life events, those rarely, if ever, happen. The key is small, daily, relentless action. Excercise, saving for retirement, building your career, changing the world, whatever. Its all the same method.Try to take it all on at once and you will fail. Adjust to the reality of slow, incremental progress and you will get to the end thinking that it was never that bad.
2 Minute Action:
Do you know how much of your income you’re saving?A good starting rule would be, of your cash-in-hand, take-home income (after taxes):
- 50% goes to Needs (rent, food, most utilities)
- 30% goes to Wants (cable, Netflix, restaurants)
- 20% goes to Savings
Here’s a spreadsheet I created and shared on my VAULT. It helped me get on the right track with my finances and get out of high interest credit card debt. It’ll take you 2 minutes to plug in some numbers and figure out how you’re doing.You can absolutely do this.
The 3 Questions That Will Change Your Productivity For Life
You've heard of Scrum, right?
I used it to run a software company that helped the Department of Defense build satellite constellations around the globe.I used it in my consulting work with Johnson & Johnson.And I still use it in my work, today.Without getting into all the principles, terms and details, I want you to focus on 3 specific questions that are the core of Scrum.
- What did I do yesterday?
- What will I do today?
- What are my impediments?
These questions are powerful because they require you to focus on what you actually FINISHED--not what you worked on. The difference is that finishing something moves you closer to your goal. If the task is too big, it requires that you break it down into a do-able piece. This means you're finishing more tasks, building confidence, momentum, and a trackable trajectory. The most important question of all, of course, is the last one.
What are your impediments?
Too many meetings ramble on about status, what-ifs, or about how some new feature will be put into place. For most people in the room, the status won't matter as much as where you're feeling friction.If you want to live a productive life, start asking yourself these three questions every day.They'll force you to stay focused on what matters, they'll give you constant feedback, and will help you break down impossibly large goals into manageable pieces.