In today’s world we are expected to be busy. “How are you?” “Yeah good, busy!” It’s an automatic answer for so many. But is ‘busy’ really a good thing? The Realistic Approach To Productivity & Why It’s Important, it’s time to slow down the hustle.
I feel the pressure to keep moving…
Hustle!
Keep on looking ahead – keep creating, come up with ideas, put ideas into motion, finish the projects, market them – then onto the next!
It’s exhausting, especially as a creative. We need quiet moments to be creative, to let the ideas come into fruitition.
Rushing to create
Currently my creativity lies in writing – I’m writing a fiction book, editing a finished novel, writing blog posts and creating quotes and content for all my social platforms – it’s all fabulous and I love it, but it all feels slow. I dart from job to job, but still it takes a long time to get anywhere – as you know, a book takes months…years to write!
But still that doesn’t stop me from trying to do more. If you saw my diary, or even had an insight into my mind – you’d see the list of items I plan to get done everyday…and never complete them! It’s like I’m on a treadmill, going going going – afraid to stop…because what happens when you stop? You’ll never get back on that treadmill!
But that’s not true – if I stop, I might not get back on the same treadmill but maybe a treadmill that’s at a better pace… OK enough of the gym metaphors! What I mean is, if I stop then I can reassess what’s important and follow that thread, instead of trying to be ‘productive’ for ‘busy’ sake!
I know this now, through experience. I’ve had burnout and many knocks in life that made me see I can’t keep pushing. Sometimes you need to give in, slow down. And that’s OK.
You cannot be productive all the time. It’s unattainable and unrealistic to think that way. Creating things comes from imagination. You need some time for self care, and allow space to open your mind and let in the inspirations of the world.
It’s not about creating creating creating! If you keep on that road, it can lead to burnout.
Factors that affect productivity
As a woman, your period can affect your performance and concentration too. Oestrogen and progesterone levels are at their lowest during menstruation, which causes a dip in energy…
Yay! I hear you say? Another great thing about being a woman!
But perhaps if instead of fighting against your body, you go with the flow…so to speak…and use the low energy days to do as little as you can. Plan your days/weeks so when those slow periods come, you’re prepared and then when you have more energy, it’s those days you can embrace.
Apart from our bodies telling us to slow down, there’s also emotional factors that affect our productivity. Whether it’s a bereavement, family illness, personal medical issues, these huge factors can drain your emotions and affect how you work – even making you incapable of work.
When these times arise, alot of people, especially creatives feel like they need to keep moving, keep working, keep creating. But the act of pushing can make the process of productivity and creativity unlikely to happen.
Tips to help you realise it’s not all ‘go’:
The Realistic Approach To Productivity & Why It’s Important:
Stop The Pushing
What is the worst thing to happen from you not being productive?
Will people be disappointed that your newsletter didn’t come out at its usual time? Your blog post is still showing as the previous week and you’re worried your readers will forget about you?
Just pause, take time out. I suggest sit by yourself for a short time with a notebook and write down anything that comes up.
You can’t control everything
Life has its ups and downs, and it’s impossible to be 100% productive the whole time.
We go through a series of peaks and troughs, where being productive and getting so much done can be effortless, but then you can find you lack any motivation or energy to keep going when you reach that trough.
Accept that sometimes you just can’t control everything, let that grip loosen..
Make life simpler
If possible, during those productive seasons, why not plan for a rainy day? If you’re a blogger, you could type up some more blog posts so you don’t have to write and publish consistently, and when you can’t manage to write, theres blog posts ready and waiting to be posted..
Batching social media posts and newsletters posts is a good idea too – keeping things planned for the future, with a little extra that you can use when you need to!
After Thought
Being productive is seen as a good thing for society. If you arent productive, you’re lazy! Those messages certainly filter through, especially if you’re like me! I feel bad reading a book during the day! But creativity can’t be pushed day in day out. The Realistic Approach To Productivity is that it comes in waves, and just as much as you get productive periods, you also get unproductive periods. That is the nature of things.
So stop being so hard on yourself – you are doing the best you can!
You got this.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
Do you struggle with being productive? Do you find that you put pressure on yourself to over-achieve?
If you enjoyed this, have a look at my previous posts such as How to begin self improvement – when you don’t think it’s for you
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