How To Get More Done Without Burnout
Is it all early mornings, late nights, and long, long to do lists that never seem to end? If so, you might think you’re being productive, when in fact, you’re not at all - you could even be going backwards when it comes to reaching your goals. You might actually be heading towards burnout, and that shouldn’t ever be the price of success, no matter how much you want to achieve in life - running yourself into the ground isn’t the same as being productive, after all.
So if you want to get more done and don’t want to sacrifice your health and wellbeing to do it, the good news is there are some ways to achieve that - keep reading to find out more.
Prioritize Before Anything Else
Some tasks you think you have to do move you forward and others just keep you busy but stuck in the same place (even if it’s hard to spot that it’s happening at first). So that means you need to work out what matters and focus on that over and above anything else.
When you start each day, ask yourself what three things would make the biggest impact if they got done today - those are the things to tackle first, no matter how hard or unpleasant they might seem. Everything else on the list can wait or be delegated - or perhaps even eliminated altogether if you look at them objectively. Are they actually needed? Because when you stop trying to do everything and start doing what’s most important, you’ll get a lot more done and be a lot less stressed.
Take Breaks
This can be a hard thing to get your head around, but it’s important - pushing through exhaustion doesn’t mean you’re being productive, it just means you’re treading water and potentially getting worse results at the things you’re doing. Since studies show that taking breaks makes you more productive because it boosts your creativity and focus, that’s what you need to bear in mind and add some rest time into your day.
If you’re not sure where to start, the Pomodoro technique is a good place - you work for 20 to 25 minutes at a time, then take a five to 10 minute break. And we mean really take a break - stand up, stretch, walk around, don’t look at your screen… when you get back to work, you’ll be a lot more focused and refreshed.
Give Your Brain What It Needs
If you don’t give your brain what it needs to work well, you’re just setting yourself up for failure and burnout, so make sure you’re taking care of yourself if you want to get more done without running the risk of burning out along the way.
Things you can do to make sure this happens include prioritising protein-rich meals, healthy fats, and lots and lots of water through the day, for example. And some people like using brain enhancers like 9-me-bc powder which has been shown to have some potential when it comes to boosting motivation and productivity. Whatever you do, as long as it’s going to help your brain function at its best, it’s always going to be worthwhile.