{"id":1451,"date":"2017-02-02T16:23:35","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T16:23:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.naimahassert.com\/?p=1451"},"modified":"2020-08-03T19:09:06","modified_gmt":"2020-08-03T19:09:06","slug":"jai-passe-la-semaine-lire-des-articles-sur-la-productivite-voici-ce-que-jai-appris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prochainelecture.com\/en\/jai-passe-la-semaine-lire-des-articles-sur-la-productivite-voici-ce-que-jai-appris\/","title":{"rendered":"I spent the week reading about productivity. Here's what I learned."},"content":{"rendered":"

Since I have a Pocket<\/a>\u00a0account integrated to my Kobo<\/a>e-reader, my life has changed. I read articles all the time: at night when I come home from school, on the bus, to breathe a little between my assignments. It has become a kind of drug.<\/p>\n

And what am I reading about?<\/p>\n

About productivity. I'm obsessed with it.<\/p>\n

I have my reasons. Every day I have to juggle 3 daily assignments and university classes. Two of these three assignments are mentally demanding and require at least 4 hours of concentration without a break. My classes are three to four hours long each. Add to that the homework: that's a lot.<\/p>\n

It's a good thing: productivity is very fashionable these days. I'm not the only one who is trying to achieve fulfillment through work, be physically fit and have a high level of morale.<\/p>\n

So this week I devoured dozens of articles on morning and evening rituals, diet and exercise, all in an effort to make myself happier, more energetic, and thus more able to get through my days with flying colors.<\/p>\n

Here's what I took away:<\/p>\n

Start the day with a mantra<\/h2>\n

Or, in other words,\u00a0vizualize.\u00a0<\/em>Positive thinking has had its moment of glory, and after several articles that have destroyed it, it seems that no one takes its advice literally anymore. Still, we agree that there are some benefits to positive thinking. In the morning, it puts us in the right frame of mind. If we tell ourselves that the day is going to be beautiful, the most beautiful of our life (and ideally that we try to believe ourselves), we will tend to make it so. And whether that's true or not, at least the chances of having a crappy day are a little less.<\/p>\n

Take time for yourself<\/h2>\n

Before starting the craziness of the work day etc. etc., we take time to indulge ourselves and to refocus. I have a cup of matcha (pure delight) while listening to the radio (love of my life). I confess, I was influenced by this article<\/a>, that promotes matcha so well, and by David's Tea's infallible marketing strategy. It's my morning coffee.<\/p>\n

Make a calendar for the day (not a to-do list)<\/h2>\n

This Forbes article destroys the to-do list pretty convincingly.<\/p>\n

Items on a to-do list can sit there forever, constantly getting bumped by things that seem urgent in the moment. And having this list of things that still need to get done is a root cause of underlying stress.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

How I recognized myself in this. I used to list a bunch of tasks I wanted to accomplish during the day, without evaluating their order of importance or the time each task should take. As a result, I would do the tasks I wanted to do, and the others would be put off until the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day. Planning a space in your day to do each thing requires more thought, and this way, you make sure that each task will actually be done.<\/p>\n

Note: we never talk about people who are simply undisciplined. They assume that a different tool will fix the problem, which is obviously not the case. Unfortunately, at the moment, I haven't found a remedy on the net.<\/p>\n

Eat a high protein breakfast<\/h2>\n

In his quoted and requoted book\u00a0The 4-Hour Workweek<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>Tim Ferris recommends eating 30 grams of protein 30 minutes after getting up. And everyone is aware of the wave of love for protein that keeps growing across the web. It quells hunger, has almost no calories, and is good for your muscles. I don't know why the number 30 would be magical, but I know I feel better if I have quinoa with a little fat than a bowl of granola with fruit. Sugar is bad.<\/a><\/p>\n

Doing demanding or unpleasant work<\/h2>\n

“Eat the frog<\/a>\", as they say. Apparently, the time when you are most in control of yourself is in the morning, and as the day goes on, that ability to control yourself diminishes. In my case, this is true. Exercising in the evening after work is much harder for me than doing it in the morning when I get up. The same goes for demanding work: I'm more able to get my neurons working in the morning when I've had a good 8 hours or more of sleep than in the evening when I've had it up to here and just want to watch a Loft Story.<\/p>\n

Exercise<\/h2>\n

If you don't already have a workout routine because you tell yourself you don't need one, or if you don't feel at least a little guilty about not having one, you must be living in a very deep cave. We're so urged by everyone to exercise that it gives us a headache. But it's probably the best habit you'll ever have. To name just a few of the benefits, exercise :<\/p>\n