7 Ways to Master your Mindset to Boost Productivity
Changing the way you think about time will change your life
“The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis'. One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger–but recognize the opportunity”.
There it is, the abundance of time we’ve wished for is now our reality, yet somehow we still can’t find the time for what matters. We wish this time away and dream of normal, but what if we could use this time to our advantage?
What if we could train our mind to zone in on our goals and take action towards them without procrastination and the nagging self-doubt holding us back.
The time is now, and here’s how to make the most of this unprecedented opportunity and create a productivity mindset.
Mindset Hack #1 - Take back control of your time
“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”
You decide what you give your time or energy to. Owning this simple truth will help you take your power back and jump into the driver’s seat.
Instead of spending your time obsessed with news and information that isn’t serving you and stressing you out, shift your focus to what you love to do.
Doing what makes you feel alive is the easiest way out of stress and fear.
What activities bring you joy?
What have you always wished you had more time to do?
Schedule these activities into your calendar with the time and place. This makes you 2 to 3 times more likely to achieve them according to the research of Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson, a social psychologist.
Then set your environment up for success.
Want to drink more water? Put a glass of water beside your bed each evening.
Want to spend more time cooking? Print off recipes that inspire you and make sure you have all the ingredients you need.
Want to improve your health? Have your workout gear ready to go the night before.
Decide now what’s important to you, otherwise other people, situations and circumstances will.
Mindset Hack #2 - The secret to stop procrastinating and use your time effectively
“Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today.”
Procrastination is the number one productivity killer. It has many causes, including perfectionism, lack of motivation and self-confidence. To address procrastination, start with the root cause and not the symptoms.
Have a strong enough WHY to drive past the limiting beliefs holding you back.
Why is it important for you to reach your goals? How would having your visions come to life benefit you, your family, your community and even the world? Go there.
Create a vision worth going all out for. Write down all of the details of what your life will look like when you achieve what you set out to. Read this weekly to keep motivation strong and make procrastination a thing of the past. This is a surefire way to master your productivity mindset and end procrastination.
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Mindset Hack #3 - Create your productivity mindset in the morning
"Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it."
The morning is when your willpower is the strongest. Use this to your advantage. Begin the day with any or all of the following: meditation, journaling, affirmations, exercise, or anything else that makes you feel like the best version of yourself.
Your schedule is a reflection of how much you value yourself. Put your self-care activities in your calendar first to boost your chances of completing them. This sets the stage for the day and helps you create a mindset built for success.
You also have the sense of accomplishment you need to build momentum and have the energy to tackle the rest of your to-dos for the day.
If you can only sit still for five minutes, use that as a starting point for your meditation.
Have a hard time writing down your thoughts? Start with a simple journal prompt like, what needs to happen today for me to feel like a success?
Set your alarm to wake up before everyone else in your household so you can complete this routine without interruptions.
Your mind is the most open to suggestions when you first wake up, so create a positive mindset by having a not-to-do list.
That can include not checking your phone until you’ve finished your morning routine, setting a time each day to respond to texts and emails instead of as they come in, and creating undisrupted work time.
Mindset Hack #4 - Reset in your mindset in the evening
“The last thought in the evening is often the first one in the morning.”
Each day may or may not goes as planned but reset your mindset in the evening to prevent getting stuck in unhealthy patterns.
Start by celebrating your wins. Review your day and think of everything that you handled well and that made you smile, big or small.
Maybe it was staying calm when your children tested your patience.
Saying no to something that didn’t light you up or fitting in a few quiet moments to yourself to drink your coffee.
Next, take a few moments to process what came up for you. Did you feel more stressed out than normal? Did something come up that really bothered you? Feel it all, even the emotions you want to avoid and then let go.
Take gratitude further by writing down a list of the things that you’re deeply appreciative for. Things that filled your day with light, love and everything that matters.
Take thinking out of the equation and make a plan for tomorrow. List your top 3 – 5 priorities that you absolutely need to get done. When you wake up, you simply have to execute.
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Mindset Hack #5 - Train your mind to work smart
“Never mistake motion for action.”
Switching between work, email, social media, texts has become the new normal, but multi-tasking is not only less productive and inefficient, but it also increases stress, and leads to working and long-term memory problems as reported by the National Center for Biotechnology Information.
Making the switch to work smarter starts with rewiring your mind and setting up your environment for success. The Pomodoro technique is a popular time management method that breaks down tasks into 25-minute intervals with short breaks in between.
This is uninterrupted work time, which means all other tabs are closed, your phone is put away, and you focus on the task in front of you.
Better focus creates better results.
Mindset Hack #6 - Do less and achieve more
“Ask yourself if what you’re doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow.”
Forget the hustle, the key to success doesn’t lie in how much you can fit into a day instead, it’s prioritizing and focusing on doing work that creates results.
According to the Pareto Principle, 80% of our results come for 20% of our actions.
Make a list of all the tasks you do each week and see where you’re getting the most results in your life and business.
Maybe your spending hours on social media and have yet to have one visitor on your website from the platforms. See where your clients are finding you instead.
Or maybe you’re eating a keto-diet all darn day and not feeling any or looking any better. Pick healthy habits that are helping you look and feel your best instead.
Create a productivity mindset by zoning in on what’s working and getting you closer to where you want to be. Eliminate or limit anything that’s taking you away from your goals.
Become a master at analyzing your actions and your results for guaranteed long-term success.
Mindset Hack #7 - Create new empowering beliefs
"Your Reality is a Reflection of your Strongest Belief"
All the mindset hacks in the world won’t work until you believe that you are worthy of having enough time for what matters to you. Change this fundamental belief, and everything else will flow.
How?
Start by deep diving into the beliefs that surface when you try to reach for more.
Like, who am I to do this, there are already so many people doing this, and I have nothing special to offer.
Write them down and ask yourself, are these beliefs 100% true?
Are they even yours?
List examples when the opposite of the belief was true. Then come up with a new set of empowering beliefs to help you break through your mindset blocks.
The thing is we can’t break through blocks unless we’re aware of them. And with awareness comes a call to action.
Commit to trying even one of these productivity mindset hacks and say goodbye to feeling stuck and hello to having more time for everything that matters.
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