13 Conscious Ways To Stay Focused and Increase Productivity

Posted on May 4, 2020 | 0 comments

Making our dreams into reality is challenging. It takes perseverance, dedication, focus and hard work, something a lot of people shy away from. But the results and benefits are oh so good and they will keep us chasing the rabbit forever!

For a while I was lost, unfocused, getting nothing accomplished, falling deeper into depression. Until I had my ah-ha moment one day and realized that I can choose to create and build my dreams, I just had to remind myself of them and get organized! Every morning is a new day filled with possibilities – I just had to choose to see it that way.

I went about goal setting for a few days. I knew it would take focus to accomplish my goals, but with just a few tweaks to my daily habits I was able to increase productivity pretty quickly and get things done! Here is how.

13 Conscious Ways To Stay Focused & Increase Productivity

Set daily goals. Each morning take a few minutes to think about the big picture and what smaller tasks can be done that day to get you where you need to be. Conscious set realistic goals for the day in writing. This will help you hold yourself accountable at the end of the day.
Prioritize. Now look at that list and organize it in order of importance. You only have so much time and energy so put the most important, challenging things at the top of the list to do first. Be sure to keep your tasks manageable. Getting the challenging things out of the way early always increases your productivity and boosts your mood to keep you going.
Set deadlines. And stick to them!! This one is important. I like to use a form of a rewards system. I set the deadline and work hard, promising myself a special bottle of wine or a massage or something to spoil myself with upon completion of the task. However you need to do it, it is important to set deadlines and hold yourself accountable for it.
Train your brain. You can train your brain to focus for longer periods of time with a few exercises and some dedication. Set aside a certain amount of time each day to focus on one important task and let your brain really get into it. Setting a time limit lets you know the change is coming yet helps your brain to really focus on the hear and now.
Try monotasking. By now most people realize multi-tasking is not as efficient as they claim… monotasking is the new way, or singletasking. You know that list we made earlier? Let’s take one thing at a time and complete it. This will give you a great sense of accomplishment as well as help you increase productivity as you check each thing off.
Be mindful. We talk all the time about our mindsets and how important it is to be aware and in the right frame of mind. Be mindful that you have a list to accomplish and aware that you want to get it done.
Get to know your body clock. We all have certain times of the day when we are super productive and on it and times when we hit our slump. Become aware of how your body feels during the day. Then schedule your most important work around those times that you are your most awake. Research is showing that we naturally work well in 90-minute cycles. Find the best time of day for you and try working in 90 minute increments with 20 minute breaks.
Take breaks. Whether you do it every 90 minutes or whenever your body needs, be aware of taking breaks so as not to burn yourself out. Even just a 5-minute change of pace can help you focus and increase productivity.
You already know this…!!! Exercise has been shown to improve our attention span and boost our memories. This is a great way to stay focused.
Use the 2 minute rule. This is a fun little motivational rule that sometimes works for me! When looking at your list, if anything will take you less than 2 minutes to do, do it!! Just get it done and cross it off the list!
Keep your workspace and home clean. Keep your work areas decluttered and organized. This will naturally help you focus as there will be less distractions in eye sight.
Don’t be afraid to switch tasks. I know we have priorities, but sometimes we have to be flexible too. If you are working on something, but just not connecting to it at that moment and really struggling, don’t be afraid to set it aside to tackle something else and come back to it with fresh eyes after accomplishing something else. It is the wise thing to do and will help you to increase productivity!
Be kind and forgiving to yourself. We are all learning and growing on our paths, doing it in our time and that is ok. Go easy on yourself as you are learning to stay focused and increase productivity. It just takes time and dedication! You got this!