Do you have productivity guilt?

Productivity has become a bit of a buzzword in the working world, and it’s something we all try to be. Productivity guilt, on the other hand, is what happens when you feel like you aren’t being productive enough, aren’t working hard enough, aren’t achieving enough.

Maybe you’re a small business trying to increase sales or simply get more ogranised. Any time NOT dedicated to achieving this can feel like time wasted. Imagine you’ve just logged off for the day and a work email arrives with a new task for you to complete. What do you do? You’d feel bad if you didn’t do it now.

Sounding familiar?

We’ve all probably heard Malcolm Gladwell’s claim that it takes 10,000 hours to become successful at something, but we only have 24 hours in the day. Some of these are spent working, some sleeping, some socialising. However you spend them, you can’t be productive for all of them. Whatever you do, if you’re trying to be successful at it, yes, you need to spend time on it... but productivity isn’t 24/7.

Banishing productivity guilt

The key to banishing productivity guilt is to accept that it’s impossible to be productive all day. Being ambushed by unexpected tasks is simply part of how a day goes. We all work best at different times and in different environments. I know that my most productive time is the morning, but I have a 3pm dip that only a coffee and a snack can remedy. I used to feel bad about needing that, but once you accept it, you can timetable your day to fit in with your power hours.

I’ll admit that sometimes sneaking something on to-do list of things I’ve already done. Why? Because it feels amazing to tick them off. Having a realistic plan for the day is great but it's ticking off each thing as you go that makes you feel good. You’ll realise you’re more productive than you thought!

You can’t do everything, at least not on your own. Look around you and see who you can ask for help.

Every one has a guilty secret .... If yours is productivity guilt, why not book a call with us. Maybe we work out how you could banish it for good. Book in with us here. We'd love to chat to you!