One thing I’ve struggled with over the last couple of years as I’ve taken my business seriously is “toxic productivity.”
You know that feeling of worrying you’re not doing enough, even though you’re working 8-10 hour days?
I could have the most productive day, but if I didn’t complete all the tasks on my to-do list, I’d feel overwhelmed thinking about having even more tasks the next day.
This leads to a feeling at the start of every workday that Oliver Burkeman calls “productivity debt.”
This is a mental deficit you work all day to pay off in the hope of reaching a zero balance before the day ends, for me that meant completing my to-do list.
This feeling of being in debt would make me rush my morning routine, like going to the gym, just so I could get into the studio and start working on reducing that debt by completing tasks.
But, when I completed a task, I didn’t feel satisfaction, just relief, and then I’d move straight on to the next one.
This became a problem because on days when things didn’t go as planned and I didn’t get everything done, it would affect my mood.
Which, impacted not just my enjoyment of work, but also my personal relationships.
Sometimes I’d catch myself in this slump and get angry because on paper, I’m living younger me’s dream. Yet here I am sulking because I didn’t get all my tasks done.
The tricky part is that I’ve always been willing to put in a lot of effort because I care a lot.
However, finding a balance between caring enough and not so much that it affects my mood when things don’t go as planned has been really tricky.
So what changed?
I got rid of my to-do list and replaced it with a done list.
This is as simple as it sounds. At the start of each day, I have a blank sheet of paper, and every time I complete a task, I add it to the list.
This shifted my mindset from trying to end the day at neutral (completing all the tasks on my to-do list) to starting the day at neutral.
Every task I do throughout the day adds to my productivity balance, instead of repaying a debt.
This might sound simple, but it completely changed my perspective on work and getting things done.
I now feel more satisfied at the end of each day, and it’s making me enjoy my work much more.
Give this a go, and remember, the journey is all there is, so learn to enjoy it 😊
Let me know if this resonated with you.
Chat next week,
Abi.
P.s if you want to learn more about the done list & Oliver Burkeman, I recommend checking out this podcast.
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