How to be super productive and have time for yourself
You probably can’t tell your boss though!
You’ll get so much done in a day, you may surprise yourself.
Firstly, there are no shortcuts: hard work is hard work, but you may be surprised how much you achieve with this approach. It can take some time to get going and maintaining the timeframes can be difficult, but this is a muscle you can develop. The payoffs are worth it.
(Caveat: please modify it to your work structure, style and routine. One size does not fit all!)
The Background
There is a myriad of research on how productive we can be in a day. Most organisations either ignore this completely or are unaware of it. Additionally, there are outliers who can buck the research. If you are one of those, congratulations!¹
Some of the data is quite damning:
- According to Jack Flynn at Zippia.com, the average employee is productive for 2 hours and 53 minutes a day. That’s only 31% of the average 8-hour workday.
- The average employee is interrupted every three minutes. Funny story: my manager just popped in to ask us to drop what we were doing and complete a small task. I kept to my schedule! 😎
- It may take people 23 minutes to get refocused after an interruption — bang goes your 25-minute Pomodoro!
In addition to being constantly interrupted and having to re-focus, it is draining on your own personal resources. So no wonder why, at the end of your day, your eyeballs are hanging out and you just want to sleeeeep! 💤
Let’s give a big welcome to … 90:30!
Similar to the Pomodoro technique, this is an expansion in terms of time frames. It is as simple as that but … this approach allows you time to fully switch off, if you want to, and take some time for yourself to recharge and go again.
Plan your day in 90-minute increments and fill that time with either one task that will take amount of time or a few tasks that need to be completed and you need to find the time to do them.
At the end of the 90 minutes, walk away. Do something for 30 minutes that energises you: go for a walk, take a nap, play a video game, grab a coffee. The point here in not to rush. Move slowly and purposefully, you’ll be back at your workspace soon enough. Take your time but make it relaxing and energising (which may mean do a workout, so … not relaxing!😁)
The discipline and benefit come when you get back to work, the 90 minutes allows you time to get into the flow state and really get motoring on your production. You will find you achieve a lot most times.
What’s this got to do with my boss?
Imagine telling your boss you take a 30-minute break every 90 minutes! That isn’t going to fly for most bosses. And I’ll accept it may not be possible in many workplaces, and you may think this is “Pollyanna” stuff. But the research backs this up.
If you work an eight-hour day, just to set a baseline, this will allow 4 x 90-minute work periods. That gives you up to six hours of productive work, depending how well planned and disciplined you are. (If you want to do more, start at 8am and go through to 5:30pm — that will give you 7.5 hours! Totally your call!)
As the above research shows, based on traditional working methods, hours of work and work breaks provided by many organisations, the average level of productivity is 2 hours 53 minutes. You’re doing 200% more than the average — with breaks 🍕! What’s not to like?
You get the benefit of the dopamine hit through your own achievements, you get ahead of the curve in your work, and you have time to recover during your day.
Some caveats
Of course, there are roadblocks here:
- Relying on others may affect time frames and break times.
- Structured work schedules also interfere.
- Overly vigilant boss
- Customer demand requirements
But you don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. You have to work within the parameters you have. However, there are many situations where it will work. And, as we all know that Rome wasn’t built in a day, it may take some time to get to this level of effectiveness and production. And keep in mind this isn’t about burning ourselves out. It's the balance of production and achievement with recovery … just like every athlete!
So … can I tell my boss?
My guidance here is to do this when they compliment you on your output and results. Results are the best recommendation. But I’d still be cautious. If you get to do this, “everyone will want one”. If others are not as productive as you, it will ruin your routine and you may be asked to “work to rule”, which while not logical, makes it easier for organisations to manage their people. People who rock the boat, even well intentioned rockers, are generally unwelcome.
¹ Outliers are like unicorns and in this case, unhelpful. Many “unicorns” think they are the norm. Why wouldn’t they, they’ve been this way all their life. But many times, they put those expectations on others and others, seeing the unicorn’s amazing output, expect that they can do it as well. Not always.
