I bet you have big goals, and lots of them, for fall. There’s something about the energy of September that makes most of us want to dive into new projects. It might be kids going back to school (or our own internal clocks still set to settling into new routines). It might be a shift in the weather or just being past our summer vacations. Whatever it is, we can set our sights BIG. 

And there is nothing wrong with big goals and projects … unless they lead to burnout. 

Before you jump right in, I’m going to encourage you to do three things:

1. Make sure what you plan to do is aligned with the impact you want to have and your goals for this season. 
2. Decide what “done” looks like for each project. Without that metric, you could keep working on something forever and never feel like you accomplished something. 
3. Get real about time. How much time do you really have to work in the next 90 days (or whatever time frame you are working with)? How long will your project take? Do the two match up? If not, you’re setting yourself up for overwhelm and burnout. 

I talk a lot more about getting real about time in Focused: Reclaim Your Time, Ditch Overwhelm, and Do Less Better. If you are constantly feeling behind, getting real about time and building in buffer time can make a huge difference. 

How to Be More Productive

You can’t will yourself into being more productive. And trying to do more more more is Hustle Culture talking and a sure path to burnout. 

Productivity is the by-product of focus. What we can produce in a set amount of time is variable and difficult to measure. Sometimes tasks take longer than you expect, or you’re stuck waiting on someone else before you can proceed.

If you prioritize focus, productivity will follow. 

What if instead of trying to do all the things at the same time, you focused on ONE thing? 

It’s draining to multitask, and even if we think we are good at it, research shows that we’re not. Task-switching leads to decreased productivity, cognitive fatigue, and increased errors. It’s more efficient and effective to focus on one task at a time.

You’ve probably experienced this. You spend all day trying to get an email out or to write a landing page, because you’re distracted responding to things that seem to need your urgent attention. You’ve probably also been stunned how quickly you can get a similar task done when you turn off the distractions to have time and space to focus. 

Focus is less draining than multitasking, and it can even be energizing. Getting into a state where your work and effort seems to flow feels amazing — and we feel good about ourselves when we make progress (instead of moving the same things from one to-do list to the next). 

When you focus, you are actually less stressed and  exhausted, which can make you feel calmer and happier later. People tell us they sleep better after attending one of our Focus Sessions, and that their ability to focus improves overall when they attend multiple sessions to continue practicing their focus.

When you focus and finish a project quickly – instead of multitasking across multiple tasks – you have time for other things you want to do later. You accomplish more during your focus time, allowing you to move on to other important things in your day and in your life. 

So have the goals, choose bold projects, and get real about time. Break your projects into actionable steps and set aside time for focus. You don’t have to do more. You just need more focus.