How to get more work done in a week than most people do in a month

How to get more work done in a week than fruchtwein people do in a monthHow to get more work done in a week than most people do in a monthTheres no single hack for getting more work done in less time, but instead a host of habits, and work systems can produce the best return on your time.Getting more work done is about knowing what to do, when to do it, and how to get it done in the shortest possible time to maximise the little time you have everyday.It meanschoosing tasks that strategically align with your work objectives.Its the ratio between input and output.Is everything really urgent?What are the most important actions you can take today that will get your closer to your work goals in the shortest possible time?Imagine the repercussions of choosing to do urgent (but leid important) tasks instead of focusing on important actions.The secret to mastering your time is to systematically focus on importance and suppress urgency.Oliver Emberton said that.Its profound and so true.Urgenc y wrecks productivity.Urgent but unimportant tasks are major distractions.In 1954, former U.S President Dwight D. Eisenhower said,I have two kinds of problems the urgent and the important. The urgent are not important, and the important are never urgent.Separating important tasks from urgent ones is a problem for many people.The urgent are not important, and the important are never urgent.Urgent tasks put us into constant reply mode.They are distractions.Important work are tasks we have planned that move goals.Our brains are so drawn to urgency that we choose objectively worse options over objectively better (important) options.To maximise time and do more focused work, question your choices constantly, and develop the ability to watch your mind as it gets whipped up by sudden requests.When a task you have not planned to do falls onto your plate, ask yourselfIs this really important?And then think about not only how, but when, to best handle it.Whats on your plate?When you try to ta ckle too many tasks everyday, you will be overwhelmed and achieve less.When everything is important, you will be tempted to skillfully juggle multiple priorities at the same time, and your productivity suffers in the process.It pays to prioritise your tasks and work on the most important ones first thing in the morning, when you are most active.Even if everything on your plate is supposed to be equally important, you still need a way to break down which ones you spend your time on, and how you slice up your time, says Alan Henry of LifehackerWhenever you are faced with a lot to do, take a step back to recognise the rushed mindset and its consequences.Instead of rushing to get them done at the same time, start by asking yourselfIs this really important?And then think about not only how, but when, to best handle it.Ultimately, the goal should be to question your choices constantly, and to develop the ability to recognise tasks that just distract you from your real work.Stop feeding yo ur distractionsInterruptions like notifications, loud noises, social media, someone knocking on your door, and switching to check emails every now and then, break your flow.They interrupt your concentration.Theyre just enough to pull your focus away and make you have to start over.Anytime you are pulled away from your tasks, it takes time to readjust to them when you jump back in - up to 25 minutes in many cases.Your life keeps diminishing while you waste your time feeding your distractions.Successful people prioritise They focus They disconnect from everything else to get tasks done.Beware of deceptive time-wasting activities that disguise themselves as work Lengthy discussions with colleagues, long meetings and treating other peoples work as emergencies when you should be concentrating on your high-value work.Writing in the first century, Seneca was surprised by how little people seemed to value their lives as they were living them - how busy, terribly busy, everyone seemed to b e, and wasteful of their time.He noticed how even wealthy people hustled their lives along, ruing their fortune, anticipating a time in the future when they would rest.In his book (translated by John W. Basore), On the Shortness of Life, Seneca offers powerful insights into the art of living. He observed, It is not that we have so little time but that we lose so much. The life we receive is not short but we make it so we are not ill provided but use what we have wastefully.Life is long if you know how to use it, he counselled.Take control of your time and start distributing it right.Start by reviewing your daily routine.Track your daily activities for some time to clearly see where your time is being spent. Meetings, phone calls, emails, notifications, small chats, and many other distractions are constantly splitting your attention.Record ALL your appointments, deadlines, and everything in-between.Analyse the actual time you spend on each activity with what you think is the best am ount for each.Schedule the heck out of your days. Schedule everything in advance.Make a plan and know whats going on each day.This helps you figure out how youre spending your timeNotice where time leaks, then declutter your routine.Stop doing busyworkBusy does not necessarily means productive.Busy work makes you feel like you are moving quickly and being productive in the process. But in effect, you are not.If you took time to measure your work, you will be surprised at how little valuable work you are doing.Oliver Burkeman of BBC writes, When youre busy, youre more likely to make poor time-management choices - taking on commitments you cant handle, or prioritising trifling tasks over crucial ones. A vicious spiral kicks in your feelings of busyness leave you even busier than before.Many of us confuse being busy with being effective, or efficient.If you start your day by answering emails. You could get sucked into answering questions, replying to every email, and advancing the cau se of other peoples actions.Be proactive about your emails.Dont get caught up in reactive mode.Most of us have no problem with being busy, but were often busy on the wrong things, says Angie Morgan, co-author of Spark How to Lead Yourself and Others to Greater Success. You could spend nine to five just emailing, but thats not driving results or moving you toward longer, bigger goals. When people say, Im so busy, it really means, Im a poor planner, or, I dont know how to prioritise or delegate.Adopt the one thing approach.Make the hard choices and work on your most important priorities instead of responding to urgent tasks.Your time is limited. Doing everything is not an option.A simple system to change how you workSet a very clear intention of how your day will go the next morning, particularly in the beginning, the night before.Visualising this intention and writing it down into your schedule can make it happen more automatically in the morning without wasting time.Planning tomorro w today is a powerful habit that changes everyday.Its a system that can completely changes how you workBefore the day ends, identify and write down the best actions (to-do) you need to take tomorrow that will help you get closer to your work goals.Every morning, focus on completing your action list from yesterday before midday.Rinse, improve and repeat. Every day. Every week. Every month. Every year.You could double your efficiency with this simple process/habit.Adopt the 135 method to create and manage your action list for the dayOn any given day, assume that you can only accomplish one big thing, three medium things, and five small things, and narrow down your to-do list to those nine items.This means that your daily schedule will featureOne very important taskThree tasks of medium importanceFive little thingsOf course, this can be flexible, depending on important actions you need to take to advance your work goals.A daily priority list gives you a great roadmap to follow so that you dont feel overwhelmed and dont have to waste time thinking about what needs done.I use a combination of behauptung methods to get through the day depending on how much work I have to get through.As you practice being ruthless with your to-do, youll find it gets easier and youll be able to pick the right method at the right time.This article first appeared on Medium.

The top 5 mistakes people make when trying to get in shape for summer

The top 5 mistakes people make when trying to get in shape for summerThe top 5 mistakes people make when trying to get in shape for summerI know summer is approaching. Some of you might be a little concerned that youre notlage looking in the best shape this pool party season, and that is totally understandable. As far as weve come in terms of body positivity and acceptance, many of us still feel insecure about the way we look. A lot of concerns I hear from new clients this season deals with time constraints. They have a high school reunion coming up, they have a huge event like a wedding coming up, they have to sh*t on their ex at this July 4th partyall of that. I understand the time crunch factor can push people to do illogical things, and Im here to talk you out of making some crucial mistakes when youre trying to get your summer body right.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and mora1. B uying detox teaQuick fixes are not your friend, as tempting as their Facetuned promotion pictures may be. Youre going to end up messing with your gut health and digestive system in the long run by resorting to these methods, and that is SO not worth it. Instead, I suggest making sure youre getting in enoughwaterthroughout the day. I would LOVE if you could work your way up toa gallon a day, but slowly increase your water intake day by day or youll risk diluting the sodium in your blood. By increasing your water intake, youre naturally suppressing your appetite (thirst often manifests itself as hunger) and providing your body with the resource it needs to naturally detox your body.2. Working out too hardIf you are not already consistently in the gym, do not start going every damn day and working yourself to the bone. Not only does thatnottranslate to quicker results, but youre also risking injuring yourself. I would rather you be able to work out efficiently for three days a week for next four months (ideally for years to come, but one step at a time) than work out six days a week for the next two weeks then youre out of commission because you hurt yourself. For workout ideas, check outthis circuit you can do right at homeor my Instagrams Fit Friday posts.3. Going on a fast or extreme dietInstead of using this time to further reinforce yourself in a cycle ofrestrictive fad diets thatdont work, why dont we try something new? Lets try something a little more achievable so that this will be the last time you have to feel this kind of pressure during the summer. Start making little changes every week, whether thats swapping soda for unsweetened tea or water, or replacing the buns on your burgers with lettuce, and binnensee how these little changes positively contribute to your physical and mental health.4. Consuming artificial sh*tSo lets say youve already got the workout and diet part on lock and want to give it a little nudge because were prepping for some partie s. Starting right now (unless youre a week away from your event date), start to increase your intake of fiber and prebiotics. The reason I have you starting now is that sometimes the side effect of increasing fiber intake is bloating, which can last up to a week. But after the bloating, the fiber helps your stomach stay on flat-flat. So ersatzdarsteller that intake of vegetables and keep it that way all through the summer. Trust me. A week out from the event, I suggest decreasing your sodium intake and limiting sugar in your diet to fruits only. And dont try to cheat with Splenda or Sweet-n-Low. Stop putting fake, artificial sh*t in your body.5. Expecting dramatic resultsAt the four-week mark, if youve been working out consistently and eating cleaner, you could expect slight weight loss and increased overall tone. Youll definitely fit in your clothes better, and Im hoping, youll gain a whole lot of confidence. If youre hoping for aPrincess Diaries-style transformation in four weeks, its probably not going to safely happen. Heres the deal if youre unhappy with your body, chances are it didnt take four weeks to get you to that point, so dont expect four weeks of good behavior to completely transform you. A lot of people you see with bangin bodies have putyearsof work and consistency into their diet and fitness routines, so stop comparing yourself to someone whos already completed three laps when you just got in the race. Thats unfair to yourself. Youre you and thats enough. Youre trying to be a better version of you, and I commend you for that. Lets look long-term, and schedule your transformation for next summer, instead of aiming for a one-month transformation, because desperation never leads to anything good.This article originally appeared on Betches.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

6 Tips for Choosing Professional Maternity Clothes

6 Tips for Choosing Professional Maternity Clothes6 Tips for Choosing Professional Maternity ClothesLike the license to eat what we want when pregnant, women at this stage of their life often feel we can wear anything marketed as maternity clothes. However, not all maternity clothes are appropriate for the workplace. In fact, the challenge for pregnant women is to maintain a fashionable style without going broke purchasing a new high-end maternity wardrobe. Keep ansicht smart shopping tips in mind when choosing maternity clothes for work Find Ways to Keep Wearing Your Clothes Leaving the top button undone on your jeans or pants is fine when you use an elastic band or safety pin to hold them up.You can also invest in a Bella Band, which is an elastic band that can be worn throughout your pregnancy to help keep your pants from sagging down (great invention and a huge money saver).Buy Clothes That Will Grow With Your Body In the first few months of pregnancy, you have no idea how your w eight gainwill progress throughout the coming nine months. Therefore, buying maternity clothes at the outset isnt wise. Instead, buy skirts and pants with elastic waistbands that will give you the longest wearing time. You will, however, wake up one day ready to put on your stretchy black pants, and they simply wont fit. Many pregnant women will try to get more wear out of these items, but you need to know when to put that pair of pants in the box for use during your next pregnancy.Invest in Wardrobe Staples With many high-end designers making their lines of maternity wear, its tempting to buy trendy maternity clothes, especially for work. However, any smart fashionista will tell you to try to resist this temptation and stick with stocking your pregnancy closet with wardrobe staples. Buy Black, Gray and Brown Pants Then use accessories and different tops to vary your daily attire. If your job calls for business attire, buy a basic dress that can be worn to work, as well as out to di nner. Invest in one suit jacket. Basic, non-trendy clothing also will come in handy if you plan to get pregnant again in the future.Price Shop Maternity clothes can become very expensive especially because you wont be wearing some of these items for more than three months. Therefore, dont invest your entire maternity clothes budget in one designer suit. With so many maternity clothing designers today, you can price shop and still get decent apparel. In fact, many discount retailers, like Target, carry maternity clothes or Zulily. Buy as You Go Because your size can change drastically from one day to the next when youre pregnant, you should buy maternity clothes as you need them. Buying in advance, especially when there is a change of season coming up, isnt wise because you may jump up a size, and never get to wear some items. (For this reason, always check a retailers return policy for unworn maternity clothing).Borrow From Friends or Buy Used If youre one of those people who cant fathom going nine months with such a limited wardrobe, it pays to announce to friends, friends of friends, and colleagues that youre in the market for maternity clothing. Many women have maternity clothes boxed in their attic that can prove to be great maternity clothes finds for you that can help you vary your wardrobe. You can also find gently worn maternity clothes on Craigslist, Facebook Yard Sale pages or your local mommy listservs.