How do we build good habits? Habits that help us become incredibly productive?
We all have habits that we operate from, whether we are aware of it, or not. Too often we fall into the default mode of habits that don’t serve us. When we don’t put intention behind our actions, the consequences can compound into a negative impact over time.
Today we are going to bring awareness to what habits you are currently operating from. I am then going to introduce you to 6 key habits for better productivity so you can swap the bad habits with the more productive ones.
Before we get into the bullet points… we need to take a couple of steps back into the mindset of building habits for better productivity.
If you are a personal growth and development junkie like I am, you know that this list won’t do as much for you as it will when you understand why we currently operate the way that we do.
It’s all in the mindset
I’m not the first person to talk about habits. You’ve likely heard many tips, tricks and hacks on how to build habits… yet you still Google’d your way to this article. You are all still looking for answers and still looking for the magic ingredient to the habit hack.
You are likely here because you have a hard time sticking with good habits. We all do! Good habits aren’t as easy as lazy habits.
Why don’t people stick with good habits? I’m going to give you an answer you may not have been expecting or seen before…
It’s because they are boring. Good habits become boring the more you practice them. Yes, good habits are also harder than lazy habits, but they truly aren’t that hard.
We get bored doing the same things time after time. We lose interest. We make excuses. Our system wants to spice things up and have variability.
Mindset shifts can sometimes be a hard pill to swallow. We want this article to feel good. We want the excuse that building habits are just hard and not easy.
I wouldn’t have peace of mind writing a fluff piece for you today. We are She Leads Me. The women that walk into our events, coach with us, listen to our podcast and our members of our community know that they need to hear the absolute truth (even if it’s not easy). I have made a commitment to you, to always be straightforward and help you find that future “She” that is Leading You to the next evolution of yourself and your life.
So when it comes to building habits for better productivity, the number one thing that gets in the way is boredom.
We lose interest very quickly when we do the same thing on repeat. The key is, dealing with boredom long enough to see the positive impact that those habits have on your life and transform you.
Now that we know, now that we have the awareness that boredom is at the root of failed attempts at building better habits, we can remind ourselves of that the next time we don’t want to start something or finish something. The next time we want a cheat day when we are on a health plan. The next time we want to finish at the gym early. The next time we want to randomly take an unplanned day off, because… “We deserve it! We’ve been doing the work, the exercise, the healthy eating for three days. We deserve a day off from doing something that we’ve decided to commit to.” we can remember that boredom is at work against us here, and the only way to overcome is to fall in love with being bored when it comes to building productive habits.
Good habits are the foundation of any quest of excellence.
You have to fall in love with boredom. That is the foundation of building good habits.
Good habit boredom + you = reaching your goals and dreams.
I want you to notice right now if there’s any sort of resistance to this concept. It’s something we really need to recognize in ourselves and bring it to the light. If we keep it in the shadows of our subconscious and don’t acknowledge it, it will continue to hold us back from breaking through, and you will end up back on Google, looking for motivation on how to build good habits, reading this article again.
A favorite Googled question is, “How do I stay motivated?” then “How do really successful people stay motivated?”
The truth is, really successful people feel the same lack of motivation as everyone else. The difference is that they still find a way to show up despite the feelings of boredom.
Mastery at something requires practice. The more we practice something the more boring and routine it becomes at first. If we start with something that’s challenging for us, we get the excitement and thrill of conquering that! Like hitting the gym 4 days in a row, writing a page of your new book every morning, posting on social media a couple of times in a week… Once we’ve hit the stride of consistency, we learn what to expect, and our interest starts to fade.
We feel the slightest dip in motivation. When motivation dips, we think something is broken. When something is broken, we then try to find a new way to “fix it”. You don’t need to fix it, it’s already working. YOU ARE JUST BORED.
It is because of these things that I see in the women that I work with and consult every day, that I have determined this…
Failure is not the greatest threat to Success… Boredom is.
Once we learn to fall in love with boredom, then the following 6 Habits will actually work for you.
Aren’t you ready to learn and understand how to implement these good habits into your life for good? Me too.
These habits listed below must be adhered to after they have lost convenience and excitement. If not, you’ll never never be consistent enough to achieve remarkable results. It’s time to step up into your greatness when you don’t feel like it, when it’s annoying, or painful… that is the difference between greatness and normality.
Successful people stick to good habits. Normality loves to let life and excuses get in the way.
When a habit is truly important to you, you have to be willing to stick to it no matter what mood you are in. Successful people take action, even when they don’t feel like it. Even when they don’t feel like it. They don’t enjoy it, but they do it anyway.
Now that we’ve got our mindset right, let’s dive into the 6 different GOOD habits that you should implement for better productivity. This is for productivity in any capacity, home life, career life, building businesses, getting on a better health routine… you want to be more productive? These tips are for you.
Getting rid of distractions. Put that phone on silent and in another room. Turn off email notifications on your computer, so they don’t pop up when you are trying to write. Put a note on your (home)office door that you are unavailable until a certain time. Don’t get sucked into social media until you’ve time blocked for it. Whatever distracts you, get rid of it! Be mindful and aware of what those things are getting in your way and remove them from your path to greatness!
Time Blocking. On the She Leads Me Podcast, I ask each guest what their top tips of advice would be for our female listeners on their journey. A very high majority of them answer with… time blocking. Really understand how to prioritize your time and block it out, so you get down to business, whatever it may be! Reading a book, time at the gym, cleaning the house, working on a project, responding to emails, writing your book, homeschooling your children… anything that you need to make time for, should be time blocked.
The common misconception (which may be playing in your head right now) is, “But I want more freedom and flexibility in my life! Blocking out ‘free time’ seems the opposite of that!” I promise you, time blocking gives you that freedom and flexibility!
In our upcoming Business Mastery Workshop, give you an incredible tool and time blocking resource; our Weekly Planning Framework. This tool is used to help you get into the habit and practice of time blocking in a much easier and effective way than trying to hack at it on your own.
Identify your Priorities. What are your priorities right now? These will change from day to day, week to week, month to month. Priorities always evolve. Make sure you take the time to identify what your priorities are so that your time blocking and actions align with that.
Communication. This is a BIG key to the success of your habits! Once you’ve identified your priorities, you need to communicate to those around you. Let your co-workers, friends, and family know what your priorities are so they can help keep you on track and headed in the right direction.
My kids LOVE when I include them! They love being part of the bigger picture to help keep me accountable to what I said I wanted. “Hey mom! Remember when you told us _______. Did your priorities change?” Game changer for me.
Track the time that you are actually spending. Time blocking can look pretty on paper or in your calendar, but how did you actually spend your time? Did you really wake up early and make it to the gym? Or did you rearrange your day to fit it in later? Make sure that your calendar reflects what is really going on, not just what should happen in theory. This will help you gain the skill to time block better and fit more into your day to day to accomplish what you’d like to.
Review. On a regular basis, review should be part of your habits. The habit of sticking to all of these are important. One way that we can help overcome boredom and on track with our productivity is to make sure that our true priorities are aligned. Review how things are going. Check in with yourself to see if any adjustments need to be made to the habits above.
Your habits will stay the same week to week. It is your priorities and focus will always be evolving and changing.
