If you are not being productive in life, then you have some bad habits for productivity. The fact is that your habits are what create your life, so bad habits for productivity will create poor productivity. If you see yourself in any of the following bad habits, and you want to be more productive, make an effort to stop them now.
5 Big, Bad Habits That You Should Eliminate Now
1. Making Crappy To-Do Lists
You want to feel productive, so you create a list full of stuff that is easy and not really relevant to your goals. Because this list is not really that important to you, the chances of finishing everything on it is poor. And, when you don’t finish all your tasks, you end up feeling crappy instead of productive at the end of the day.
Even if you do finish the stuff on the list, you didn’t actually tackle anything that helps you move towards your goals and dreams, and you can feel that sad truth somewhere in your body as you go to sleep at night.
Creating a daily to-do list with tasks that have meaning will help you be more productive in your day and help you feel more productive.
These should be tasks that help you move towards happiness, goals, and dreams.
They should feel as though they have a real purpose in your life.
And they should make you feel proud of yourself when you complete them.
2. Only Being Productive A Few Days Here And There
When I was in college, I was in the habit of doing nothing until a day or two before something important was really due. In essence, after a few weeks of not being productive, I sat down and did an extreme amount of work.
Yes, it got done. But, I was stressed out of my mind during that time, and I know that I didn’t produce the kind of work that I could have if I had spent each day studying and practicing – not just cramming in the information, but absorbing the information and actually becoming smarter in the subject.
As I got older, this bad habit continued, and I was lazy most of my days at work and in my personal life. I spent a few days knocking things I needed to do off my list, but for the most part, unless I felt some real urgency, I accomplished nothing.
Once I overcame this bad habit, life changed. I got more done because I spent more time doing things! I learned more, tried more, and had more success.
Spend each day doing things that matter, not just a few days here and there.
Think about it this way: If you only spend 5 days per month doing something that matters and moves you forward in life, then you only spend 60 out of 365 days doing something productive. What a waste of days! Why not reach for 365 out of 365?
3. Eating Food That Makes You Tired
You have a ton of things you want to do, and you know those fries are going to make you want to sit on the couch, but you eat them anyway because you love them.
If this happens over and over again, then you’ve gotten into the habit of choosing food that ruins your productivity. And, it’s one of those bad habits you need to eliminate. Foods that make you tired, cause you to lose concentration, and kill your motivation are not doing your productivity any favors.
Foods that can lower your energy include:
- Processed foods, including processed grains. They can spike blood sugar levels and drain your energy.
- Foods that contain additives and high-fructose corn syrups. Again, these can spike blood sugar levels and cause your energy to crash.
- Foods and drinks loaded with sugar. Same reason.
- Foods that contain refined carbs, such as potato chips, muffins, crackers, bread, and many more – see a large list here. Same reason.
- Dairy. If you find yourself tired after dairy, there is probably a good reason for it. When I was eating dairy, I was constantly tired, but once I went vegan, I was amazed at how much more energy I had.
One of the best ways I’ve found to keep my energy high is to eat a vegan diet and as close to raw as possible.
If you are interested in this subject, Yuri Elkaim is really a good resource. You can find his All-Day Energy Diet book on Amazon.
4. Defaulting To Comfortable Activities
If something needs to be done that feels uncomfortable, it is much easier to resort to a comfortable activity than it is to push yourself to do what needs to be done. For instance, some people will clean instead of doing things that need to get done. Others will cook, watch YouTube, or go shopping instead of getting things done.
This is a really bad habit for productivity! You don’t want to get into the habit of pushing off tasks outside of your comfort zone, because tasks outside of your comfort zone are what help you produce change, learn, and grow.
The reason you don’t want to do it is that it feels painful to do it. It requires you to push yourself and feel uncomfortable.
Therefore, it’s important to recognize that uncomfortable feeling and give it a positive label instead of a negative one and make it more pleasurable.
For instance, you may want to tell yourself that the feeling of being uncomfortable is a signal that this task is important and could push you forward in life. When you view it as a positive thing, it will feel much less painful and you will be more willing to do it.
5. Making Excuses
When it comes to bad habits for productivity, I haven’t met many people who haven’t had this one. Me included!
When I was young, I worked as a housekeeper in the hospital, and I cringe at how many excuses I used to make to get out of being productive in my day.
I used to say things like:
- That’s not my job.
- I’m tired.
- Nobody else works, so why should I?
- I don’t get paid enough to do this.
- I don’t get any thanks, so what’s the point?
On and on they went, and because of them, I did the bare minimum at work.
On the rare days that I recognized how important my job was and how it was helping the patients and staff, despite their gratitude, I worked hard. I was productive because I didn’t make any excuses, I did as much work as possible with the belief I was doing something good. But, I was in the habit of making excuses, so those days were few and far between.
Working for yourself doesn’t eliminate excuses. I can think of a thousand excuses not to do what I need to do. But when I remind myself of my ideal life, it trumps any excuse I can come up with and motivates me to do what I need to do.
If you haven’t thought much about your life and what you want, I recommend taking this free Mindvalley Masterclass on How To Turn Your Life Into A Living Masterpiece. I’ve taken the course that Jon Butcher offers, and it really helps you think about what’s most important to you and get rid of the excuses holding you back.
