You’ll be your own boss, they said; staying motivated will be easy! Well, as you’ve likely already learned, this isn’t always the case. Sure, it’s great to do what you love, but sometimes it’s hard to get your motivation levels up and to get your productivity where it needs to be. That’s why it’s so important that, as an entrepreneur, you have a few productivity techniques in your back pocket for when your motivation is flagging. With that in mind, we’re going to share four of our favorites:
1. The Pomodoro Technique
This one is fantastic, and you’ll likely discover that you know many people who use it already. It’s based on the premise that you work best by taking frequent breaks. Simply, take a timer and then set it to 25 minutes, start it, and then begin work. When the timer goes off, take a five-minute break, then rinse and repeat. Each one of those 25-minute work periods with a five-minute break is called a pomodoro. When you’ve done four pomodoros, take an extended 20-minute break, then repeat the whole cycle again. You’ll find doing this keeps you fresh and motivated – there’s always another break right around the corner!
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2. The Seinfeld Technique
Jerry Seinfeld is universally regarded as one of the hardest working comedians out there. In interviews, he’s discussed the secret to his massive levels of productivity, and it’s incredibly simple. In his office, Jerry keeps one of those giant calendars. Every day that he accomplishes work on whatever project is at hand, he draws a line through that day. The goal? To make the line that he’s drawing as long as possible. Seeing that sustained activity as a visual keeps him motivated, if for no other reason than to avoid “breaking the chain.”
3. The Five-Minute Technique
You know the feeling. You’re sitting there, knowing that you have to get something done, but you just can’t bring yourself to start about doing it. You know that once you get going, you’re going to be stuck there, working on this one thing for hours and hours. Who has time for that? Better go get a coffee, huh? Instead of grabbing that coffee, make a promise to yourself: “I’m going to spend five minutes working on this one task. If I’m still daunted at the end of those five minutes, I’ll get up and get that coffee.” You’ll be surprised by how often that coffee stays right where it is.
4. Slay the Dragon
Most people say that you should stoke your motivation by starting with the quickest, easiest tasks. That works great sometimes, but other times you should do the exact opposite. You know the feeling you get when you’ve got a big task looming over your day. Instead of letting it linger in your head, start your day by “slaying the dragon,” which means getting the hardest, most time-consuming task off your plate. Once it’s done, you’ll be surprised by how easy everything else seems.
What’s Your Favorite Productivity Technique?
These four are our favorites, but there are so many others. Maybe you’ve got one that works exceptionally well for you! If so, share it with everyone else down in the comments.
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