The Productivity Project: Accomplishing More by Managing Your Time, Attention, and Energy

by Chris Bailey

Frankly, this is the downside to working on your productivity. When you do it wrong (and I have), and you’re hard on yourself in the process, you end up less happy than when you started.

research shows that productivity and happiness are in sync. In fact, the happier you are, the more productive you will become.

when your brain is happier, it “performs significantly better than it does at negative, neutral, or stressed. Your intelligence rises, your creativity rises, [and] your energy levels rise.”

When you set daily and weekly intentions that are realistic and not too hard to achieve, you’ll be motivated to achieve them.

When you clear attentional space to think, you give yourself more clarity and feel less pressure. Making small, incremental improvements, rewarding yourself, finding your resistance level, working mindfully, and cultivating your focus and energy levels are all ways of taking it easy on yourself and having fun as you invest in your productivity.

1. Disconnect from productivity more often

2. Recall three things you’re grateful for

In addition to meditation and exercise—which Shawn is a huge advocate for—my favorite two tactics of his are recalling three things you’re grateful for, and journaling one positive experience you had at the end of each day.

3. Journal about a positive experience you had

neurologically speaking, when you journal—or if journaling isn’t your thing, talk about—a positive experience you had at the end of each day, “your brain stamps it as meaningful.” Over time, doing this helps you train your brain to think happier by letting you recall the most positive and meaningful parts of your day.

4. Break tasks down

Creating subgoals for larger projects, spending more time planning out projects to add structure

to them, and keeping a running list of things you have to get done for each of your projects will make your work more structured, rewarding, and engaging.

5. Ask yourself for advice One of my favorite ways to become more productive when I’m facing a challenge is to ask myself for advice.

6. Reward yourself

7. Know You Can Grow

People who have a growth mindset believe that through hard work and persistence, they can accomplish more. They embrace obstacles as challenges to be overcome, instead of seeing them as roadblocks, and they see working hard as the only way of mastering a skill. If you think your intelligence and abilities are set in stone, you are wrong. Reminding yourself that you can always grow and that your intelligence and abilities aren’t fixed is a great way to challenge yourself to become more productive.

8. Create an Accomplishments List