JohnFirst, these aren’t hacks, I just thought that was a catchy term. Also, I’ll be the first to admit that as hard as I work at times, I am just as lazy. One of my favorite things to do is to sit down, turn my brain off (if it allows me to) and let time pass. Regrettably, I’ve recently been spending a lot of time doing nothing which puts me off my game; which tends to make me think harder than usual. It’s like my brain becomes lazy and doesn’t want to kick into gear you know? In order to combat this, I’ve been trying out different ways to keep productive, yet allowing my brain to not be under constant stress so I can keep some bandwidth at the end of the day. Here are a few things that has been working for me:
Calendars
Yes, basic monthly calendars do wonders for me; with some minor tweaks. I currently maintain three calendars just using Excel – one for work, one for my personal life (whatever my beautiful wife wants to do), and then a hybrid calendar on my phone that has critical/important or overlaying events from my work and personal calendars. It is vital for me to keep my work calendar at work, and my personal life one at home. By doing so, it allows me to focus on those specific areas of my life.
In general, I always want the quick details that I can consume in one go because I’m so lazy to read fine print. I also think it may also be scientifically proven that people often glance over information while using a monitor (but don’t hold me to it). These work for me because it gives me a quick glance at previous, current, and future items. There are also priorities that are set for weeks and an area to hold a list of things that need to be completed. This also helps because I don’t have to remember as much and keep that brain bandwidth for other things. The con here is that like most things, it requires maintaining that I’ve been trying to; daily for small updates and weekly for a week overhaul.
Task Tracking
For individual tasks that are needed to complete something like a mobile application, I like to use a task tracker – basically a to-do list. I used to use Excel or a text editor, but I found it to boring and I tend to lose it in the numerous tabs I when coding and taking quick notes.
I recently started to try out Trello because of recommendations from my wife and friend Grayson (check his blog). So far, it has helped – whenever I remember to use. Regardless, I use Trello to help keep me on top of my start-up application. As you can see, I’m starting to use this to define things I need, methods I need to create, and what has been completed. It’s not fully functional as you can tell, but if you can remember to use it, I think it helps greatly because of its simplicity.
Planning
I dread this the most, but planning is the core of everything; including my calendars and task tracking; the reason that I dread it is because it takes time. Planning consists more than just putting stuff on a calendar. It requires you to know what to prioritize, what needs to be completed, when is the best time to do things, and many other conflicting things. Overall, if you just take some time, sit down with no distractions and plan away; it can lead to an increase in productivity and efficiency.
Relaxing
You’re probably like “What? Isn’t that what we’re trying to avoid?” Well, yes, and no. When I said that I turned off my brain, I literally do that for hours and never want to come back to real life. When I say relaxing now, I’m saying take a break when you’re trying to work those consistent long hours. Give your mind and body a break to recuperate from the hard work; it needs it and it will thank you for it later. It’s synonymous to athletes that overwork their body. Overtime, it deteriorates instead of builds because it needs rest. Try to take up something like the pomodoro technique. It’s a time management method where you work for an X amount of time, take a break, and then cycles again. I’ve tried, but I tend to go over those minutes when I’m in deep thought.
With these few things, I’ve seen myself getting things done faster. I am definite that it’ll change over time, but this is what is working for me right now. Overall, just listen to Nike and “Just Do It”. I know it’s hard to get up from a comfortable spot or work when tired, but just do it. You’ll thank yourself later when you see how far you’ve come.