Minimalism can be applied to any area of your life, not only to material possessions. For me, minimalism and productivity are connected in a few ways. Here are 3 ways minimalism will make you more productive in your daily life.
1. Having fewer priorities gives you a better focus
“Clarity about what matters provides clarity about what does not.”
― Cal Newport
Probably an obvious one when it comes to minimalism and productivity, to-do lists. Minimizing your to-do list is one of the many methods to implement minimalism in your life.
Think about what is really important to you and focus on that.
A lot of times we care about other people’s expectations and forget about what we really want. I encourage you to ask yourself what your priorities are. Imagine your ideal day/week and how would you spend it. Would you still be doing all the things you’re doing now?
Don’t be afraid to change the way you spend your time. If something you’re doing is not aligning with your priorities in life, don’t be afraid to change it. There is always a solution to every situation. We just have to open ourselves to look at things from a different perspective.
Minimalism is all about bringing value into your life, so while writing your to-do’s think about what is important to you and stick to it. If you think something ”could” be a good idea, but you’re not excited about it, you can probably skip it.
The thing is, we give a lot of our energy to making a decision, whether that is regarding the clothes we are going to wear or how we’re going to spend our time. What I love about minimalism is that it clears up your space equally as your mind.
You decide what your priorities are, so moving forward to the life you want becomes easier and more enjoyable.
2. Minimalism and productivity vs. distractions
“If you don’t pay appropriate attention to what has your attention, it will take more of your attention than it deserves.”
― David Allen
Social media is always the first thing that pops into my head when I hear someone talking about distractions.
Here’s what you can do to apply minimalism and productivity to your distractions:
Unfollow people on social media that don’t give you any positive emotions when you see their posts. Is following 300 people really necessary? Do you really enjoy all 300 of them? If you do, keep all of them.
Unsubscribe from Youtube channels you don’t enjoy/e-mail lists you don’t care about.
Facebook – unfriend/unlike/unfollow/whatever you’re into.
Also, turning off notifications is a great thing. You get notified when someone sends you a message, but other than that, there aren’t any unnecessary pop-ups and buzzing.
But it’s not just social media. Think about what distracts you when you want to be productive and minimize it or remove it completely.
Related:
6 Ways to Stop Wasting Your Time and Improve Time Management
3 Ways to Stay Committed to Your Goals and Stick to New Habits
3. Multitasking vs. quality focus
“Focus on being productive instead of busy.”
― Tim Ferriss
Invest your time in things that are important to you – one by one. Be present and mindful about what you’re doing and give your full attention to the task.
I realized that when I turn off the autopilot mode, I become more engaged in what I’m doing and I start enjoying it more. Maybe it’s because in a way you tell your brain ”okay, we’re going to focus on this now” and your brain accepts it and stops thinking about all the other things you could be doing.
When I was in college, in a few hours I would switch between translating/writing seminars/studying/reading so fast and all the work I was doing felt kind of rushed. I knew I could do it so much better, but when you’re multitasking you’re not giving your full attention to anything so the results aren’t as good as you would expect them to be.
More posts on minimalism:
9 Ways Minimalism Changed My Life for the Better
6 Top Things to Declutter for a More Organized Life // Minimalist Tips
10 Things I Stopped Buying // Minimalist Tips to Save Money
Until the next time,
Ivana
minimalism minimalism lifestyle motivation productivity time management
Great tips for productivity! I totally agree that useless social media notifications are interrupting. It’s better to minimalize them and focus on what is useful. Also, multitasking can be harmful to your mental health and your work too. Thanks for sharing this valuable reminder with us!