Work Smarter Not Harder: the Ultimate Productivity Hacks
Published in Readers Club Publication January 13, 2025. https://medium.com/readers-club
“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” — Paul J. Meyer
We are all busier than we have ever been, with more distractions and competing demands for our time and attention. Mastering simple yet effective strategies to use your time more effectively is a powerful skill.
Many books have been written by experts on productivity and organization. Drawing from those expert insights, the key to productivity is not in doing more but in doing the right things effectively.
James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, said that the core productivity tip is straightforward: “Do the most important thing first each day.”
Now, in this article, we stray from that idea with a slightly different approach. We recommend tackling the small tasks first to clear time to focus on that most important thing. But the end result is the same. The key is to create intentional strategies that work for you. Understanding the difference between being busy and being productive can transform the way we work and live.
Our top productivity hacks here are around organizing your workload and your email inbox to maintain a small, manageable to-do list.
That old adage, “A cluttered desk leads to cluttered thoughts,” is so true, and it also applies to your virtual desk — your laptop, and email.
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” — Stephen Covey.
“Life is too complicated not to be orderly.” — Martha Stewart.
Productivity Hacks to Stay Organized and Efficient:
1.Start and end every day with a handwritten to-do list
There’s something really satisfying about physically crossing things off your list each day — it gives you a sense of accomplishment and helps you stay focused on what really matters. Plus, it’s a great motivator to keep pushing forward.
2.Use a Priority order in your email inbox
Color code or flag things that need to be done. Read and assign a tag to every incoming email. If it does not require action, archive it or move it to a folder where you can find it later if needed.
The key here is keeping your inbox and your to-do list short and achievable. Otherwise, it becomes overwhelming quickly, and that is when we tend to procrastinate.
3.Prioritize tasks in order of the time it will take them to complete from shortest to longest
This is where we stray from James Clear’s advice — For me what works is to start your day by tackling those quick items on your to-do list. It’s like the Snowball method of getting organized — knock out the easy stuff first, and you’ll feel that rush of accomplishment. Once those little tasks are out of the way, your mind will be free to dive into the bigger, more complicated projects without those nagging chores hanging over you.
4.Respond to every request right away
Here’s a quick tip that might sound counter-intuitive but really works: respond to every email you get right away, even if you don’t have an answer yet. Just say something like, “Thanks for reaching out, I’ll have this for you soon.” Then, flag the email and add it to your to-do list.
This helps avoid people sending follow-up emails and gives the impression that you are super responsive. Plus, you have now held yourself accountable to get that task done, so it is less likely to slip through the cracks, sneaking up on you later at an inconvenient time. You’d be surprised how quickly some tasks can be done if you dive in instead of procrastinating.
I once procrastinated an assignment I was dreading. I put it off for weeks. Two days before it was due, I resignedly began working on it, only to find I had the whole thing completed in a couple of hours. I spent so much time avoiding it, with this nagging anxiety about it. If I had just reviewed the assignment and assigned it a priority on my to-do list, I would have quickly seen it was fairly simple and not nearly as daunting as I first thought. I wasted energy I could have spent on my most important task, my passion project where I want to spend my time.
Staying productive hinges on adopting effective strategies that streamline your workflow and reduce overwhelm. By implementing simple yet powerful habits, like maintaining a handwritten to-do list, keeping your inbox cleared out and organized, and quickly responding to emails, you can create a more organized and efficient workspace.
