What would you get done if you only had until 10:30 a.m. to work today?

Ask yourself this question and Do that first.

If you think you only have a short time to complete your work, try “the 10:30 a.m. question” and the chances are you will approach it with a much keener and focussed sense of purpose. This is particularly useful too if, like many people, you are working from home.

Look ahead and note anything that had to happen over the next two days. Change your calendar around where you can get THOSE tasks finished in your working time allowance.  Fend off distractions, spend less time checking your inbox every 5 minutes.  GET THINGS DONE.

Even when you don’t have a deadline to meet, if you plan all of your days like this, you will find that the result is extra time to do the things you want to do or complete the “less important” tasks you have been meaning to do for so long.  Moreover, you will feel a great sense of achievement and satisfaction at having DONE SOMETHING!

Beat Procrastination!

Consider these tactics from the ancient philosophers that have stood the test of time

“Power out” your procrastination

It turns out that when you tackle your must-dos with urgency, time can open up. Get in the habit of pretending the power is going to go out soon and you can conquer some serious procrastination tendencies.

Procrastinating — as most of us know well — is putting off things we know we should do. Some surveys find that about one in five people are chronic procrastinators. But everyone delays tasks from time to time, especially when the tasks seem complicated, or the deadline doesn’t feel immediate. Creating some sort of more urgent deadline can nudge action.

Hence the power outage scenario. Don’t forget to ask yourself each day: “How would I plan my workday if I knew the power was going out at 10:30?”

Reconfigure the morning

Most of us start work somewhere between 8am and 9am and we often ease into our workdays, checking email, reading headlines, and the like. We look over the day’s to-do list and tackle a few small, doable items — happily checking off these administrative tasks and to-dos. We’re working, but not on the tough stuff.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with clearing the decks like this. It’s just that this light procrastination (because that’s what it is, actually) is often inefficient. When you start work in the morning, it’s unlikely that you will be able to know everything that will land on your desk by the end of the day. Meetings can run over and new ones can land on the calendar. Client crises arise. Personal ones can, too. Even unexpected good things can blow up a schedule.  Suddenly it’s 3:30 p.m. and you’re scrambling to get through the tasks that had to get done that day — at what tends to be a low-energy time.

Create urgency

Better to-do list prioritisation can help but it’s tough to feel that sense of urgency at 8 a.m. when it appears that the whole day is still ahead. Most of the day won’t actually be available for working, but it doesn’t seem that way when that first big cup of coffee makes you feel like you can conquer the world. Also, many people have long lists of important stuff. Even with the best of intentions, it’s hard to know where to start.

The beauty of the 10:30 a.m. question is that it cuts through all that noise. If you knew you could do very little after 10:30 a.m., you’d hone in immediately on the things that were important enough to do, and urgent enough to be done now. Whatever else the day might bring, at least those things would get done.

When you do your must-do’s first, the rest of the day can feel far more relaxed, and you’re less likely to have a late night catching up with work. And that equals more time for rest and sleep and enjoying the relaxation and free time that is precious when you work so hard every day to make life great.

Adapted from: Laura Vanderkam

Medium Jan 2021