7 Productivity Hacks Which Will Save You TIME + Energy

One thing I have learned is that we have two forms of currency:  time and energy.  And while we can not create more TIME, we can use our time as efficiently as possible AND generate more energy. 

For now, we are going to focus on the former... using our time as efficiently as possible which is vital as a mom entrepreneur.  Am I right?  

Here are my top practices which I seriously try to implement every single week in order to get the most out of my 2-3 hour work day.  

Yes, I have a thriving business as a head coach for Team Wedmore's Business By Design community, the founder of Biohacker Babe Academy's membership and as a biz coach for women entrepreneurs... all while working 2-3 hours, five days a week so I can be fully present as a homeschooling twin mom.

And here's my secrets, are you ready? Lean in.  Wait.  Don't lean in, that looks weird... it's a computer screen.  Just read on.

MY WORKDAY PRODUCTIVITY HACKS FOR YOU!

01// REFLECT ON THE WEEK BEFORE + VISUALIZE THE WEEK AHEAD

This may seem a wee bit counter-productive as you are taking time to actually reflect when all you want to do is work work work... however, by spending time reviewing what tasks you completed and the obstacles you have overcome, it's not only a confidence booster BUT you can actually see how the needle is moving forward in your business.

When you visualize the week ahead, it's about seeing what tasks you should prioritize FIRST:  do you need to take the kids to the dentist?  do you have the puppy's vaccinations due this week?  or did you volunteer to bake goodies for the church's function?  

Write it ALL down to see what blocks of time YOU have for yourself, your family and your business. 

02// PRIORITIZE YOUR LIST OF TASKS TO ACCOMPLISH THIS WEEK... IF LIFE DOESN'T KICK YOU IN THE LADY BITS

Sometimes, we have the absolute best intentions for the day and the work we will accomplish, yet life kicks you in the lady bits and NOTHING gets done.  

I'm here to say to you, "this is okay."  In fact, it's 100% natural and you aren't alone in this.  

The real kicker is IF you are going to allow this one kick in the pants going to hinder you OR propel you forward.  Be the latter. 

We tend to over schedule our days and yet amazed when we feel defeated at night time.  Here's my hack.  

List ALL the tasks YOU would like to get done in a week.  Whether it's create an opt-in page with a thank you page and an email sequence to follow OR schedule all your social media content for the month OR host your webinar to serve your audience.  

Write it all down... giving yourself at least 10 items to do that week!  JUST TEN! 

If you need help with this, you can snag my complimentary TA DA guide which breaks this down a wee bit more for you! 

03//  BREAK DOWN YOUR TASKS INTO BITE-SiZE ACTIONABLE STEPS

Now that you got your list of 10 items, the goal isn't to do ALL 10 but to realize what are the top tasks to do and prioritize them.  You have your top THREE... is there a way to break these tasks further into bite-size actionable steps. 

For instance, you want to create an opt-in.  By breaking it down further you could have:  create graphics, write copy, create landing page, write copy for confirmation email, and so on.  

Can you see how ONE task is actually several little tasks rolled into one?  Choose your TOP task and break it down as much as possible! 

04// CHOOSE GOAL FOR THE WEEK (WITH YOUR TASKS) + ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS

When I was working as a podcast growth manager for a pretty remarkable team, our team meetings were quite efficient... and short.  We each went around and addressed our intentions for the week PLUS answered three questions... which is something I began implementing in my own business. 

It goes something like this... set the intentions (or your goal) for the week along with the TOP three tasks you are going to do.  Once you had that, you answered this: 

- What are your intentions (or goal) for the week? 

- What are the TOP three tasks you will accomplish? 

- What obstacles do you think might get in your way? And what ways can you problem-shoot this? 

This is something I do every single evening in my business, visualize what TASK I will be working towards the next day (broken down into bite-size pieces)... is it geared towards the main goal? and what ways can I problem shoot ANY obstacles? 

By doing this, you are staying ahead of ANY issues with your goal in mind. 

05// BLOCK YOUR TIME, LOVE TO WORK - PLAY - SLEEP 

You have visualized your work week, wrote out your top three tasks and broken them down into bite-size pieces PLUS spent a few minutes problem shooting any obstacles which might get into your way... now, it's time to SCHEDULE time to be in your creative zone of genius. 

For me, as a mama bear who works from home + homeschools... working after 4pm, my brain cells are not fully functioning to the best of their abilities ;)  So, it's best for me to work before noon if possible... and even better to work before my kiddos, the Gillies, wake up.  THIS works for me... YOU find the time which works best for you + own it.  

Yet don't forget to schedule time to play and more importantly, sleep.  So many times, I hear coaches or mentors talk about hustling and skimping out on sleep to get more work into their day.  And I feel like that actually HINDERS you from showing up as your best self... for you, your family and those you serve. 

Instead, don't skimp on sleep... don't skimp on play... just work on the time YOU block for "work" and check those tasks off your list one at a time.  

06//  DON'T GET INTO AN AMBER TRANCE, TAKE BREAKS

When I was in my residency for veterinary emergency/critical care, I would go into an Amber trance which would look like reading oodles of journals at a desk for hours at a time without moving an inch or coming up for air. 

It wasn't until two years later at a Brendon Burchard conference where I learned it's actually hindering your mental capacity to NOT take breaks every 45 minutes.  We can get scientific about this, but for now, here's the hack:  take breaks. 

Set an alarm for every 45 minutes and when it goes off, get up + move your body and refill your water bottle.   Even when I have coaching calls or host masterclasses, I have breaks to stretch legs and where I'll turn off my screen to do kettle bell swings, jump squats, etc. 

You want to get the blood flowing and oxygen to the brain... however, that looks like for you!  This will help you stay in your creative zone of genius which is what you want, no? 

BONUS HACK:   SNAG SOMEONE TO HOLD YOU ACCOUNTABLE

This hack is one I had to learn the hard way... find a person, community or coach to hold you accountable.  But here's the kicker - this person can not be your best friend and probably not your spouse.

See, best friends and spouses tend to let you slide when life gets hard.  They are in the thick of things with you... and they want to be supportive, yet their support could mean letting you slack on your goals... your vision.

Find someone whether it's a fellow digital CEO in the trenches with you, a community of like-minded entrepreneurs or a coach to help you pull yourself up by the bootstraps when life gets hard. 

Find them.  Do your research... and here's another two tips: 

- Choose someone who has a life similar to yours. Now, I realize not EVERYONE is going to have the same life or even be 80% similar to yours... but if you are choosing a coach who is a man that isn't married + doesn't have kids, well, he isn't going to be able to relate when your kid has a fever and needs snuggles 24/7 + you aren't able to get to your work list that day!  Capeesh?

- Choose wisely... which may be a slow process.  Good it should be.  Select slowly yet be QUICK to release them if they are not a good fit for YOU!   Again, I learned this the hard way.  

If this is super helpful to you OR you have something to add to this list, then buttercup, fill me in by dropping me a message here! 

And if you are looking for a place of like-minded entrepreneurs then maybe our One Percent Community is for you... check it out, but be slow to say YES! Remember, choose what is right for you. 

Anywho, hope these productivity hacks make you feel recharged + ready to tackle the week ahead!  Just do your best and know it's not about doing ALL the things, but just 1% more each and every day.  

You got this!

Grit + Gumption, 

Langley 

Biohacker Babe