Big Autumn Energy: Calling in Productivity
It’s wild that the one season that makes us want to throw on our cozy loungewear, brew a cup of tea, and curl up to watch a spooky movie also happens to be the season where we’re going back to school, diving into the final business quarter of the year, or jumping into projects + deadlines before the holiday season can begin.
How are we supposed to tap into our masculine—get shit done—energy when everything surrounding us is pushing us into our feminine—meditative and reflective—energy? To be transparent, even as I’m writing this my ego is screaming “Let’s go on a walk! Let’s make some pumpkin spice pancakes! Let’s go to a cafe! Why are we sitting here with this laptop? I wanna go play.”
Can you relate right now? It’s totally normal to feel a bit of an imbalance between your productive side and your relaxation side during a seasonal shift, especially because we know autumn and winter are periods of indoor rest + playful events + sweet and warm treats that make us kind of sleepy.
As we transition into fall, I decided to take a look at how productivity hacks can help keep us on track for completing our 2020 goals—it’s the last quarter of the year, fam! We can still make the most of 2020 despite the first 9 months of perceived setbacks. Or maybe 2020 was still a successful year for you, because you’ve been working on redefining your own metrics for success—a topic I dove into on the blog a few weeks back.
No matter how 2020 has played out for you so far, know that you’re a badass for making it this far, and anything you wished to achieve this year is still possible for you, a lot can happen in 4 months. But again, it’s a comfy season ahead. How do we fire up the productive gears, and keep ourselves motivated to show up and accomplish something new every day?
I researched some tips + tricks on daily productivity and compiled a list of 5 hacks to keep you on track + fuel that masculine energy you may be lacking this fall. Let’s get into it!
#1 Check Yourself
Before you go blaming the chilly weather for your lagging motivation, try checking in on yourself instead. There is nothing worse for productivity than pushing yourself to work when your body is not capable of performing in the first place.
-Have you been getting 7-8 hours of sleep?
-Have you been eating nourishing + energizing meals?
-Are you hydrating and moving your body every day?
-Have you been indulging in a lot of crash-inducing foods—sugary + caffeinated?
If you’re lacking in any of these areas, it’s important not to punish yourself by forcing productivity into your routine. I suggest addressing these issues for at least a week, and return to your goals + action items with a healthier body, which influences a healthy and productive mindset.
#2 Clean up your space
Do you find it hard to focus on your to-do list when you’re tripping over that pile of unfolded laundry, or keep making eye contact with the stack of mail you’ve been meaning to sort through? Yeah, that’s not a very motivating environment. Our environment heavily influences our mindset, so don’t you want your space to be a place where you can thrive?
Before you dive into that next task, go ahead and spend an hour doing a quick clean-up. And I do literally mean an hour, just set a timer and begin organizing + clearing the space you work in. I can guarantee that the energy will shift, especially by lighting a candle at the end of the hour, and you’ll be ready to tackle anything you set out to achieve that day.
#3 Clean up your mind
I keep mentioning your to-do list, but do you actually have one? A major component of valuable productivity is your ability to focus on a singular task, which is hard to do if your mind is cluttered with the other 20 things you want to get done that day, week, month, etc. You’ll definitely feel a bit lighter in the brain if you take the time to make a to-do list.
You can use any notepad, planner, online app or calendar to do so—it’s totally up to you! Not a planner person? Don’t buy a planner—just fill a notebook instead. The idea here is just to get all the noise out of your brain and onto paper so you’re able to digest goals in bite-sized pieces.
Break down each goal into actionable steps, then assign those steps to specific days + weeks ahead. You’ll feel better at the end of each day about what you’ve accomplished because you didn’t set out to conquer the world, you had a manageable list of items that you were able to check off. Also, don’t fret if you have one of those days where you didn’t achieve the entire list.
Sometimes our dreams of being productive are actually much larger than what we can achieve in a day. If this happens, simply adjust your expectations for what you can get done on any given day, and be sure to celebrate what is checked off. No item or win is too small to be celebrated! You’ll be stoked to show up tomorrow for the work if you give yourself permission to celebrate what you’ve accomplished.
#4 Try out some “productive procrastination”
Wait? Are you saying that procrastination can be productive? Yeah, sort of. Let me explain: you may find yourself procrastinating on starting a task because you’re / unmotivated / scared you’ll do it wrong / feeling down on yourself / feeling tired / etc. Here’s a tip for when you catch yourself procrastinating: let it happen—but be productive about it.
I don’t encourage mindlessly scrolling through instagram or flipping on Netflix when you’re looking to procrastinate on your to-do list. Instead, put off the to-do’s in exchange for a less pressing, but still productive task. Set a 10 minute timer and do some quick cleaning. Head to your kitchen and knock out the dishes. Make that phone call you’ve been putting off for a few days. Take your dog for a walk or go get a car wash. Catch my drift?
The beauty of a to-do list is that it gives you specific tasks to achieve that day...but if you wind up not wanting to do those things, it’s more worthwhile to knock out “lesser” tasks in place of vegging out on the couch and feeling worse about the procrastination. You didn’t do what was on your to-do list, but hey! You did this other awesome thing instead. And maybe there’s a chance that doing a few other tasks will motivate you to jump on your “assigned” tasks for the day.
The truth about motivation is that you won’t always feel it, and the even scarier truth is that motivation doesn’t inspire action….action inspires the motivation.
#5 Take a breather
Honestly, you might be feeling unproductive or lethargic because you’re burnt out. Have you been pushing yourself day after day to “get shit done” and ignoring the urge to rest? Have you been demonizing the idea of rest because you need to be productive to feel worthy? Have you been denying yourself the pleasure of having fun or relaxing because you think it’s a waste of time? If the answer is yes to any of those questions, the best way to keep yourself motivated is to actually take a freaking break.
Take an afternoon, a day, a whole weekend to recharge. I promise you, you’ll regain the energy to show up and smash your to-do list after a well-deserved breather. If an entire day or weekend is not an option in your schedule….I first ask if maybe your schedule needs to shift to include more time for rest...but there’s still an option to reset your energy. Take a long, quiet walk. Grab a glass of water and sit in the sunshine. Set a 5 minute timer and meditate.
Do anything that you can to shift your energy and change your state. We are not machines, and we are not meant to go, go, go constantly without rest. Give yourself permission to rest, honor your body by going back to tip #1, and show back up with the energy you need to knock out that to-do list.
I hope these 5 tips help keep you energized and motivated as the seasons begin to change. But remember, autumn is a magical time to indulge in what you love, connect with those you love, and go inward as well. Don’t stress yourself out too much thinking every hour of every “work” day needs to be perfect.
Everyday magic is encouraged and allowed, especially during this season. Make sure you’re scheduling time to play, time to do your favorite fall activities, and time to rest. You deserve to accomplish everything you desire, but you also deserve to live a balanced and fulfilling life—productive, playful, and relaxing.
Drop me a DM or comment below about which tips you’ll be using most this fall, and if you have any tips of your own you want to share with the tribe! I’m all about hacking productivity in order to achieve more by doing less, and still having time to indulge in rest + play.
Have a wonderfully productive + inspiring week, fam! You’re gonna kill it!