5 precious tips for those who want to put laziness aside

Laziness. It is no use denying or trying to change the subject: even the most active person in the world has had his days of pure laziness, that unwillingness to do anything, when all you want is to stay at home, in bed, looking to the ceiling.

Since everyone has their moments of laziness, we can already imagine that it is a feeling inherent in the human condition. The problem is when laziness is so much that it gets in the way of our lives, preventing us from pursuing plans that could not be canceled. The good news is that there is a way to let laziness go, and the tips Eric Baker asked for Cal Newport, who can get around doing nothing and being a successful person, can change your life. Check out:

1 - Do not make lists, create a calendar

Do you know that little list of things you need to do during the day or week? In fact, there is no point in doing this without setting the day and time for each task. According to Newport, this is what will make you see your appointments realistically, with little chance of dropping out.

“Scheduling forces you to confront reality about how much time you really have and how long things will take. Now that you see the commitment as a whole, you'll be able to extract something productive from any free time you have on your work day, ”explains Newport.

Other studies have also shown that scheduling task times considerably reduces the possibility of failure. In cases of last-minute appointments, the tip remains the same: fit them into the schedule without complaining - everyone always has a few minutes off.

The explanation for this is that scheduling appointments already means that you don't have to decide whether or not to keep them: at that time, by programming you assume that you will do what you have scheduled. What's more, there are studies that show us that scheduling tasks increases our quality of life.

2 - Plan your day backwards

Here's another way to avoid laziness and procrastination: Imagine everything you need to do, and organize tasks backwards so that they all fit into the working hours of your day and you have all the control you need.

In fact, this tactic is more effective than you might think, as it is already scientifically proven that the sensation of having a situation under control - even if it is only a sensation - is able to lower our stress levels.

Let's say you leave work at 5pm. It is then expected that by 4:30 pm you will have all the tasks completed. If you plan backwards, set times and times for each activity, you will have less pressure, stress less, and feel that you are in control of everything.

It is easy to understand why this happens if we think in the opposite direction: is it stressful or not to have a thousand things to do and have no idea what lies ahead? Sometimes the expectation of what comes next is worse than the task itself.

3 - Make a weekly plan

If we could summarize these advice all in one word, perhaps it was "organization." It may sound like paranoid people, but putting your life at the tip of a pencil can help you more than you might think. And since we're talking about organizing tasks, how about preparing your entire week?

“I know every day what I'm doing with his every hour. Every week I know what I'm doing with her every day and I know every month what I'm doing with her every week, ”summarized Newport, who never runs out of schedule.

While the idea of ​​planning an entire week seems too ambitious and difficult, the secret may lie in planning that planning. Got confused? Calmly we explain: One tip given by Newport is to set aside an hour every Monday to plan the whole week. This is the perfect time for you to think through all your appointments efficiently.

Newport explains that he writes his weekly schedule in an e-mail to himself, knowing that he sees his inbox every day several times - so it's easy to remember everything. The fact is, we tend to use our time smarter when we have it all planned - that's another scientifically proven thing. And before you say that you have an excellent memory, we are already ahead: it is no use making this list mentally. It needs to be written and visible in some way.

4 - Learn to say no

Your to-do list can even be long and intimidating, and it's absolutely normal that every once in a while you freak out about it, with that absurd feeling of not having enough time to do everything. Who never?

The bad news is that you are probably right and have to file a one-day order with six extra hours or a week with at least one extra day. The good news is that since your order will not be fulfilled, you should at least know that it is possible to resolve this crisis between tasks and available time.

No working like there's no tomorrow and losing your health over it! The way is to learn, once and for all, to accept fewer things than you realize and shorten this to-do list. No use denying: We know you commit to more than you could handle. You and the rest of the people of the world, possibly.

To solve the problem, ask yourself a few questions: "Which of these activities are really needed?" "Which one is contributing to my life getting better?" After that, eliminate what's left over. With the short list, keep in mind that you will need to do your best to put each task into practice. Successful people do this.

In fact, the feeling that we do not have enough time is caused by too many small tasks. Accepting to do everything ends up fragmenting our time so that we feel trapped. The way is to do fewer things, but do them as best you can. Quality is always a good differentiator.

5 - Less superficiality please

Newport explains that our tasks are divided into shallow and deep. In the first case are emails we need to check, quick meetings, and chores that don't exploit their talents. In the second is everything that makes you excel, uses your skills, and makes you feel that you've done something important, worthwhile.

So far, nothing hard to understand. The problem is that most people tend to focus precisely on superficial tasks. Newport explains that this is the case of those who end up taking work home. These are people who waste time answering messages, catching up on irrelevant information, and talking. “These things are very time consuming and very low in value, ” he explains.

Baker sums it up in an interesting sentence: "Superficial work keeps you from being fired, but deep work is what gets you promoted." So, can you understand the difference?

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Now tell us: Are you a slacker? What do you do to circumvent unwillingness?