Increase your productivity by completing these two simple, but profound, exercises. These exercises will lay the foundation for a more productive and fulfilling life, and help you step your productivity up a notch (or two).
Alright,
we are going to talk about how to increase your productivity. These two exercises will help clear your mind of any mental clutter and get the cobwebs out.
Once you've gotten those cobwebs out you will be well on your way to living a more productive, and therefore more fulfilling life.
So, lets move on to the exercises...
The first exercise is "Finding Your Open Loops".
For this first exercise you are going to allot 10-15 minutes to write down, reflect on and identify the areas in your life that are incomplete. That area in life, or loop, has been left open and isn't closed or completed.
These 'open loops' could be anything that you haven't finished or that have been left undone. For example, you didn't complete a training course you bought, you haven't gotten any closure with an ex-girlfriend or boyfriend, or you bought an item on eBay and you've never received it even though you paid for it, etc. etc.
You probably get the idea... It doesn't matter what areas of life these are in; it could be business, relationships, health, wealth, etc. If there is something unfinished write it down.
After you've written down all the areas that are incomplete, go back through the list and either: 1) Complete the item/task/issue, or 2) Consciously let go of it.
If you choose to complete the task, you are committing to doing anything it takes to get it resolved and you must follow through on it. If you choose to consciously let go of it, you are committing to letting go of it and, again, you must follow through on it.
The idea is not for this to become something you dwell on. The idea of is to de-clutter your life and get things resolved, not create more issues.
Finally, prioritize the list and start working on the highest impact areas first.
The next exercise is "Defining The Blur".
The intent of this exercise is to identify and recognize the areas in your life that are 'blurry'. These are the areas in your life where you aren't giving your full, undivided attention.
An example of this is, when you are at work you are thinking about spending more time with your family. And conversely, when you are with your family you are thinking about work. In both instances your attention is divided and you can't give 100% of your focus, energy, and productivity to that task or situation.
The example above is an area in your life that's 'blurry' and doesn't have any defined edges. Once you've identified the areas in your life that are 'blurry' you then have areas to work on to increase your productivity.
So, the exercise is to spend 10-15 minutes creating a list of all the areas in your life where you're concentration is divided, where you aren't committing 100% of your focus and energy, and where your life is a bit 'blurry'.
Once you've created that list, go back through it and prioritize the areas where you want more focus and attention.
Now that you've identified a few areas in your life that need more definition, and areas in your life that need some closure and completion, you are well on your way to creating a more productive and fulfilling life.
Allowing yourself to become aware of these areas of improvement will pay huge dividends down the road.
