1 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:09,400 --> 00:00:14,000 Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. 3 00:00:14,600 --> 00:00:20,800 Speaker 1: Today's tip is to accomplish tasks, don't just work on them. 4 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:23,840 Speaker 1: Because I write about productivity, I've seen many people to 5 00:00:23,880 --> 00:00:27,680 Speaker 1: do lists. Creating a to do list is wise, but 6 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,320 Speaker 1: I've noticed a common flaw. The lists will often contain 7 00:00:31,400 --> 00:00:35,680 Speaker 1: items such as work on proposal, or work on lesson plan, 8 00:00:36,200 --> 00:00:40,320 Speaker 1: or work on novel. It matters how we frame our tasks. 9 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:44,440 Speaker 1: These goals to work on things are nebulous. I mean, 10 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:47,279 Speaker 1: what exactly does it mean to work on your taxes 11 00:00:47,720 --> 00:00:51,240 Speaker 1: or to work on a blog post. This uncertainty is 12 00:00:51,280 --> 00:00:55,520 Speaker 1: the enemy of productivity. We're better off framing our plans 13 00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:59,040 Speaker 1: in terms of accomplishments, not what projects we plan to 14 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:03,360 Speaker 1: work on. Without specific benchmarks, you can picture how this 15 00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:06,640 Speaker 1: fuzziness plays out in the course of a day. When 16 00:01:06,680 --> 00:01:09,000 Speaker 1: you plan to spend the time before your next appointment 17 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:12,280 Speaker 1: working on your blog, well, what does that mean? You 18 00:01:12,319 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 1: may do some reading on the topic you're planning to 19 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:16,720 Speaker 1: write a ballot, or you may write and rewrite the 20 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:20,119 Speaker 1: headline and the opening paragraph until they're perfect, and then 21 00:01:20,160 --> 00:01:22,600 Speaker 1: your time is up. You don't have much to show 22 00:01:22,640 --> 00:01:25,760 Speaker 1: for yourself. But suppose you sit down at your computer 23 00:01:26,280 --> 00:01:30,360 Speaker 1: with a specific intention of drafting two blog posts before 24 00:01:30,400 --> 00:01:35,120 Speaker 1: your next appointment. You have a discreet, achievable goal. With 25 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:38,040 Speaker 1: that clear goal, you pace yourself to get the work 26 00:01:38,080 --> 00:01:41,480 Speaker 1: done on schedule. When it's time for that appointment, you'll 27 00:01:41,480 --> 00:01:44,720 Speaker 1: know whether you've achieved this goal or not. If you 28 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,840 Speaker 1: have great. If you haven't written both posts, well, you'll 29 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:50,680 Speaker 1: need to figure out a time to finish them later, 30 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:53,880 Speaker 1: and maybe that's not optimal. But you will remain aware 31 00:01:53,880 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 1: of your progress and can make adjustments to stay on schedule. 32 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:00,800 Speaker 1: So how do you shift your perspective and attend to 33 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:03,560 Speaker 1: what you plan to accomplish rather than what you plan 34 00:02:03,680 --> 00:02:08,720 Speaker 1: to work on? First, and most importantly, build a smarter 35 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:12,600 Speaker 1: to do list with clear deliverables. To do lists with 36 00:02:12,680 --> 00:02:18,280 Speaker 1: nebulous items like closet or new program recruiting rarely lead 37 00:02:18,320 --> 00:02:22,360 Speaker 1: to progress that's rapid and significant. Aim for to do 38 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:26,720 Speaker 1: list entries like this, write two blog posts, box up, 39 00:02:26,760 --> 00:02:30,040 Speaker 1: winter close and put them in the attic. Identify five 40 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:33,840 Speaker 1: organizations that can help recruit people for our new program. 41 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:37,040 Speaker 1: These are tasks that you either did or didn't do 42 00:02:37,080 --> 00:02:39,640 Speaker 1: you know when you're finished, and if you don't finish, 43 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:43,080 Speaker 1: you know how much is left. Of course, even clear 44 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: deliverables can be problematic if they're not realistic. Write two 45 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:50,160 Speaker 1: chapters in my book is clear, But if you've only 46 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 1: got two hours allocated for this, you'll still feel overwhelmed. However, 47 00:02:54,680 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: the good news is that clear deliverables can help you 48 00:02:57,400 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: see quickly if you're being realistic or not. Try listing 49 00:03:01,919 --> 00:03:05,079 Speaker 1: all the specific steps involved in cleaning out your garage 50 00:03:05,320 --> 00:03:09,320 Speaker 1: and you'll see what I mean nebulous tasks. Just let 51 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:13,040 Speaker 1: us lie to ourselves. If you've been guilty of making 52 00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:15,519 Speaker 1: nebulous to do lists, it can be hard to change 53 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:18,520 Speaker 1: your habits, but I do think it's possible to change 54 00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:22,320 Speaker 1: your mindset over time. Try using this language of clear 55 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:26,880 Speaker 1: doable tasks rather than what you're working on when you're 56 00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:30,360 Speaker 1: narrating your actions to yourself or anyone else. If someone 57 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:33,359 Speaker 1: asks over lunch what you did that morning, you can say, 58 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:35,800 Speaker 1: I posted the listing of a new house for sale, 59 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:39,400 Speaker 1: or I wrote the agenda for June's staff retreat. If 60 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:42,240 Speaker 1: you have no idea what you did, well, it happens 61 00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:44,840 Speaker 1: to all of us. But let that be a nudge 62 00:03:44,880 --> 00:03:49,560 Speaker 1: to set clear, doable intentions in the future. Don't just 63 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:53,760 Speaker 1: plan to work on things because that's sneaky little phrase 64 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 1: can just tank our productivity in the meantime, This is Laura. 65 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:01,680 Speaker 1: Thanks for list name and here's to making the most 66 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:11,640 Speaker 1: of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you. 67 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:14,520 Speaker 1: You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else. 68 00:04:15,280 --> 00:04:18,880 Speaker 1: Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at 69 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:24,400 Speaker 1: Before Breakfast pod that's B the number four, then Breakfast 70 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:27,560 Speaker 1: p o D. You can also shoot me an email 71 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:31,440 Speaker 1: at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com 72 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:34,000 Speaker 1: that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters. 73 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:36,680 Speaker 1: Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch. 74 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:45,600 Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For 75 00:04:45,720 --> 00:04:48,760 Speaker 1: more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the i heart 76 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:52,200 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 77 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:52,920 Speaker 1: favorite shows.