How to be more productive

It doesn’t matter what you do or where you work, productivity is something we all strive to achieve. We all look for ways to be more productive in our everyday life but what exactly does being productive mean? It’s a lot more than checking things off your to-do list. It’s about working smarter, not harder! Being productive doesn’t happen overnight, you may have to work on it for some time so we’ve put together a list of habits you can put into play to help you on your way to being more productive.
 

1. Use your morning to focus on yourself 
   What’s the first thing you do when you wake up? Do you reach for your phone to check your emails or look at your calendar? If that’s a yes, then take a step back and try to ease into your day. Start with a good breakfast, head to the gym or a yoga session. Focusing on yourself first and nourishing your mind and body will ensure you have the fuel you need for a productive day. To help, try applying doTERRA Motivate® Encouraging Blend to the bottom of your feet in the morning to jump start your day.
    
2. Cut down your to-do list 
   For many people, your standard work day is 8 hours. This doesn’t mean you need to get every single task done in these 8 hours so try not to overwhelm yourself. Often we make our to-do lists a little too complex. Look at your list of tasks and complete those that are urgent or have a due date coming up. The tasks that have a longer time frame should be on the bottom of your list. This can help you prioritise what is urgent and what isn’t therefore seeing an increase in your productivity levels. 
    
3. Pick one task and do it
   This can be easier said than done. Some of our tasks may take a few hours or even a full day to complete and within your 8 hour day, you may have meetings and take a lunch break. So how can you tackle this when you have multiple tasks that have the same deadline? Create a Go-Zone! This means, pick a task and work on it for a full hour with no distractions. This can ensure you are focused solely on that one task which can help you to complete it before starting on the next. You can have multiple Go-Zone’s throughout the day but for it to be beneficial, you need to be in the zone for 1 hour at a time. If you’re in need of some extra help to concentrate, try applying InTune® Roll On Focus Blend to your temples and back of neck.
    
4. Figure out your 2 peak hours
   Some of you are morning people and others work better in the afternoon but choose your 2 peak hours where you know you will do your best work. These 2 hours can be used to focus on tasks which may need more focus and attention. The other working hours can be used for phone calls, responding to emails and less urgent tasks. This ensures you are creating a more productive way to manage your time. Try diffusing doTERRA Passion® Inspiring Blend at work to help spark creativity, clarity and wonder.
    
5. Stop and reflect 
   If you’ve been working on multiple projects for a while, take a step back to see what’s working and what isn’t. Use your friends, family and team as a sounding board to bounce ideas off. This may feel like you’re wasting time but in fact you are using this time researching and gaining insight to make sure you execute this project in a quick and efficient way. Taking some time out and reflecting on your work can ensure your productivity levels are high.

Sometimes less is more when it comes to being productive during your work day. What do you do to stay productive?