We as humans have been created in this universe with a purpose by the creator and have been titled as the noblest of all creatures. There is a lot of difference between the life of non-human and human creatures owing to the manner and style of their creation. As a human everybody tries to live a fully productive as well as purposeful life. In this technological and modern era, everyone feels disturbed and distracted and struggles to get rid of the intricacies and complications of the fast life. There are certain principles that need to be followed to live a meaningful and purposeful life. These principles are:
1. STAY FOCUSED
Elimination is a key strategy. We accumulate so much unnecessary baggage throughout the years that we consistently need to eliminate. Like ideas, projects, work, objects and so on. Thinking about past successes and happiness keeps you stay focussed. Alex Korb states, “All you need to do is remember positive events that have happened in your life. This simple act increases serotonin production in the anterior cortex, which is a region just behind the prefrontal cortex that controls attention.” So focus on your life and think about what matters to you. Then, do those things and don’t get distracted_ stay on the path. Disconnecting from the internet improves your focus. “To be everywhere is to be nowhere.” Seneca. You are always connected to the internet. Inside your home and outside of it. With your smartphone, you have the world at your fingertips. But, unintentionally and unconsciously you waste countless hours every single week. Your attention is all over the place. We know that too much of anything is a bad thing. Even good things. We know that too much exercise makes you over-trained. Too much work leaves you burnout. Too much food makes you fat and too much of water leaves you dead. “Always connected, isn’t a good thing for your focus and productivity. It is the same as going to the gym or having dinner. You do them for thirty minutes, an hour, etc. Too many of those things are simply not effective.
2. MANAGE YOUR ATTENTION (NOT TIME)
Time can’t be managed. The only thing you control is your attention. Focus determines the quality of your life. No focus means no control of your attention and no control means frustration. So start managing your attention, not your time.
3. BEAT PROCRASTINATION
Abraham Lincoln states, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. “Research shows that when you procrastinate, you might feel better in the short term, but you will suffer in the long term. Everybody fears stepping outside of their comfort zone. It takes courage to make a bold move. The truth is Procrastination has nothing to do with what you are trying to do. It can’t wait until later. Ramit Sethi, the author of ‘I will teach you to be rich’ says that work and passion go both ways. He says that when we get really good at our job, we often become passionate about it. The best solution for procrastination is doing meaningful work.
4. DO IT TODAY
Exercise your mental toughness every day. Exercise your body every day. Set daily habits to be in control of your life. Have a list of small important tasks and complete them. Study and practice the science of persuasion.
5. CHANGE YOUR SMARTPHONE BEHAVIOUR
Researchers asked participants to perform a concentration test under four different circumstances; with their smartphone in their pocket, at their desk, locked in a drawer and removed from their room completely. The results were significant. Test results were lowest when the smartphone was on the desk, but with every additional layer of distance between participants and their smartphones, test performance increased.
So in order to achieve more in life, turn off all notifications except important ones, remove from all WhatsApp groups except for one that is related to your business, remove all news apps and try to use the phone only for calls, texts and to take notes, photos and videos.
6. STOP TRYING TO BECOME A PERFECTIONIST
A perfectionist always waits for the right moment, never makes mistakes and always needs more time. But at the end of the day, life and work are all about outcomes. Result matters. And if you are a perfectionist, you might get the outcomes someday. But the question is when? And at what cost? Research shows that perfectionism is closely related to depression and low esteem. When you constantly worry about making mistakes, doubt creeps into your mind. And that causes indecision. So you need not become a perfectionist rather keep in mind that failure is a part of life and failures are the pillars of success.
7. TAKE A BREAK
It boosts your productivity and reduces stress. We know that rest reduces stress and improves productivity and creativity. Scientific research shows that vacation decreases perceived job stress and burnout. Take a 5- minute break after every 30 minutes of work. This taking breaks will also increase the quality of your work.
8. TIME OFF WORK
Time off work actually improves your work and time. People who never take off time to do anything are short-term focused. But as always, short-term thinking harms your long-term development and growth. Dale Carnegie, author of “How to stop worrying and start living” said, “So, to prevent fatigue and worry, the first rule is: “Rest often. Rest before you get tired.” So, we should take time off work strategically throughout the year.
9. ACCEPT THE UNCERTAINTY
Eleanor Roosevelt said, “If life were predictive it would cease to be life, and be without flavour.” Uncertainty is the beauty of life and you should wholeheartedly accept it and be prepared for it.
10. KNOW YOUR DIRECTION NOT YOUR DESTINATION
“Your first priority is to identify what you want and then make sure you take the path that’s going to give you that. There is nothing sadder than seeing someone get to be seventy-five Or eighty years old and look back regrettably because they pursued the wrong target. ” We need to know where we are roughly going. It is not important to know exactly what you want to do with your life. People change. Economies change. So, it is not even realistic to boldly claim, “I know what I want!” The only thing every person needs is a sense of direction. A vision of where you would like to go.
11. LEAVE THE OFFICE ON TIME AND DON’T TAKE YOUR WORK HOME
There is a large body of research that proves that working long hours is counterproductive. Working too much and the stress that goes along with it can lead to depression, sleep problems, impaired memory and even heart disease. It is said that too much of a good thing becomes bad. Work is about achieving results. If you can’t do that in 6-8 hours a day, you are not effective. So instead of working overtime, read a book on personal effectiveness Or get productivity training. We know that money, success, and fame recognition, don’t make us happy. And yet, we work too much to obtain those things that didn’t even make us happy in the first place. All you know is that too much work has a negative impact on the quality of your life and work. That is why the first rule of work is that you leave the office on time. The second rule is that you don’t take your work home.
12. CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY AND IN CONSISTENCY IS THE ENEMY OF YOUR RESULTS
If you want to be productive, the most important thing is consistency. If you want to achieve things in life, it is about aiming for daily progress. You should not want ups and downs because that hurts progress. Instead want to progress by 0.1% every day of the year. And that is a very realistic goal.
13. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
Belief is a practical instrument that you can use to shape reality. You can achieve anything as long as you believe in it. Not believing in yourself is useless.
14. DON’T COMPETE! CREATE
Wallace D. Wattles said, “You get rid of the thoughts of competition. You are to create, not to compete for what is already created. You do not have to take anything away from any one.” There is enough opportunity for everyone in the world. The problem is that people don’t use the opportunities. If you want to have a specific career, go out there and create it.
15. REPEAT THE BASICS
According to Steven Pressfield, “We must begin to build our internal strengths. It isn’t just like computer technology. It is the old-fashioned basics of self-reliance, self-motivation, self-reinforcement, self-discipline, and self-command.” One thing you have to remind yourself is that the people who think they know everything are the biggest losers in life. Mohammad Ali once said, “It is the repetition of affirmatives that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen. When you repeat the basics, you don’t only become great, you will stay great.”
The author can be reached at hu*************@***il.com
Mantra Of A Productive And Purposeful Life
