4 mental traps that kill productivity

Productivity has many enemies: endless meetings, intrusive colleagues, multitasking, and more. But most often we are confused by mental traps. PhD, professor at the University of Toronto Andre Kukla in his book writes that these are habitual thought patterns that waste our time and energy without giving anything in return.

Once we learn to recognize and neutralize these "enemies", we can significantly increase our productivity. Here are some common pitfalls that can get in our way.

1. planning error

This trend underestimate the amount of time it will take to complete a task. Part of the planning error is due to the fact that we are too

optimistic we look at our productivity and overestimate our strengths.

Because of this trap, we are constantly behind schedule. If at work you have to deal with strict deadlines, for example, the deadline for the completion of a team project depends on you, a planning mistake can significantly damage your reputation.

Another consequence of it is that we are trying to do the impossible and manage to complete a huge amount of tasks in a short time. This leads to imbalance. When we take on too much work time for loved ones and there is no personal life.

High expectations and lack of control over deadlines is a direct path to burnout. When we miss an important task, we have to sacrifice hours that we should have spent on entertainment, self-care, and even sleep. Gradually, this leads to emotional, mental and physical fatigue caused by prolonged or repeated stress.

How to overcome

Do not use to-do lists without a time limit. Lists by themselves are useless. If they do not have clear deadlines, they do not help at all to prioritize and follow a realistic schedule.

Timeboxing will help solve the problem. This method consists in allocating a certain period of time for each task in the schedule. It allows you to effectively deal with the planning error, because it makes it possible to visualize working time.

To make the reception even more effective, prepare in advance. Set a timer every time you do a task, like exercising or sorting through work papers. So you will understand how much time you usually spend on such things, which means schedule will be simpler. You will be able to enter the exact time in the calendar and get a real idea of ​​what you will have time to do in one day.

Don't be afraid to manage your time freely. Set aside for each case not the minimum amount of time, as in the optimistic scenario, but the maximum amount, as in the pessimistic one. If you finish everything early, you can rest before the next task.

2. transitional moments

These are the moments during the day when we move from one activity to another. For example, when we open a tab in the browser, we get annoyed that the page takes a long time to load, and open the next one to fill the time. Or when we check social media while returning to work from a meeting. It all starts with a harmless 5 minutes, and ends with guilt after half an hour of wasted time.

How to overcome

The next time you feel like checking social media dispel boredom or just to be distracted, wait 10 minutes. Most likely, when they expire, you will already change your mind.

Imagine that the spontaneous impulse to do something is a wave, and you are a surfer. The 10 minute rule gives you time to "ride the wave of desire". You take a break, notice your feelings, and then get the better of them. This helps to resist sudden desires and cope with feelings until they subside.

The 10-minute rule works well for dealing with a variety of distractions. For example, with the desire to eat something harmful or watch another series at two in the morning.

3. Simple effect of urgency

This trend choose urgent and fast tasks, rather than important and long tasks. In other words, we prioritize a short task that will take 5 minutes over a major project that will take hours of work.

A perfect example is email. According to statistics, an ordinary employee receives 121 messages per day. Even if you answer each email in 2 minutes, it will take 4 hours. But this time can be spent on really important things.

How to overcome

Timeboxing will protect you from the tempting call of small tasks. Reserve a period in your schedule for concentrated work and alert anyone in need, such as family or superiors, that you are not available at this time. This will relieve you of guilt and anxiety due to the fact that you do not respond to letters or messages. Everyone will know that you are inseparably engaged in business.

Try not to indulge your desires. At first, you might be tempted to quickly check social media or toss your clothes in the washing machine if you're working from home. Remind yourself that now is the time for concentrated work, and everything else is strictly prohibited.

4. Feeling of shame

Humans are not machines, so our productivity periodically declines, even if we plan our time responsibly and spend our attention only on important things. This is a natural process.

Shaming yourself for not doing something is absolutely useless. Yes, you may have overslept your morning workout today or distracted more often than usual. Don't blame yourself. Toxic emotions will only make you feel worse and, ironically, even more distracted to deal with the negativity.

How to overcome

Show yourself more compassion. Everyone has problems in order to hold attention for a long time and not be distracted by trifles. It is important to take responsibility for your actions without toxic feelings of shame.

self-compassion makes us more resilient in the face of unfulfilled expectations, because it reduces the stress that often accompanies failure. If you find yourself starting to listen to your inner critic again, don't believe it or argue with it. Instead, remind yourself that obstacles are part of the path to success.

Talk to yourself the same way you talk to a friend. This will allow you to look at the situation from the outside and see it for what it really is. Cheer yourself up. For example, like this: "You are at the very beginning of the path." Or like this: “You are already changing for the better.”

Feelings of shame and guilt are another reason why timeboxing is better than a to-do list. Lists perpetuate harmful stereotypes about ourselves and serve as a constant reminder of what we did not do today, although we promised.