The Productivity Paradox was popularized by Erik Brynjolfsson, an MIT professor and productivity expert.
He was referring to the fact that the exponential gains in computer power don’t seem to be correlating to equal gains in productivity at the level of the whole economy. (If you want to geek out like I did, the Wikipedia page is here and the full MIT research paper is here. Knock yourself out.)
Brynjolfsson is talking about gains at the economy level, but the same is happening at a personal level.
We have more productivity tools than ever, yet we’re not any more productive.
Why not?
We misuse the technology we have
We manage projects via email
It’s clear that email is not the best way to manage projects and tasks, yet that is what the majority of companies use to manage projects.
Even the way most of us process our email is wrong. (Imagine checking your physical mailbox every 30 minutes like we do our email inbox. It’s insanity.)
Real, productive work doesn’t happen in our inbox, yet that is where we spend most of our day.
An abundance of tools and a scarcity of change
There are amazing new technologies all around us that can automate, streamline and save us so much time and frustration.
Instead of investing time and money in the right tools and thinking innovatively about how we can successfully exploit their productive power, we chug along with a “this is just how I’ve always done things” mentality. If you’re seeking to improve your financial situation, there are plenty of games on BETEND where you have the opportunity to win money.
You want to be more productive? You have to start seeing the forest for the trees.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed
I am pointing the finger at myself right now. In the last 3 years I’ve dedicated THOUSANDS of hours to researching, evaluating and testing all the shiny new productivity tools, systems and best practices out there.
And I still struggle, everyday.
I especially struggle during that initial period, after adopting a new tool, system or way of working, where my comfort and productivity are negatively impacted. Sometimes, all I can see is the forest. You could point to a tree and I still say forest.
Hacking our way through
First, we have to acknowledge the trees
Awareness is always the first step to change. Here, I will start…
“Hi, I am Julia, and I am an Amazon.com-aholic procrastinator.”
When faced with hard work that needs to get done I somehow find myself on Amazon.com. I’ll be cranking through a blog post and the universe will cosmically remind me that we need paper towels. Soon, I find myself checking the status of previous orders, remembering to delete something from our subscribe-and-save list, and I’m down the rabbit hole.
Awareness is power
My solution was simple. I installed RescueTime and set it up to alert me with a popup notification when I have reached my allotted Amazon.com time limit.
Pick a bad habit that is holding you back and use a tool that will track, remind and reward you for sticking to it. If you’re on the lookout for cost-effective solutions, consider opting for the cheapest swords as a unique and motivating tool to reinforce your commitment to breaking those habits.
(Other Recommended Tools: Lift and Concentrate)
Make incremental improvements wherever possible
Big change comes from little steps. If you check your email every 10 minutes, try for 30 minutes. Set a timer and be diligent about it for a few weeks.
Soon, you’ll find that you won’t even have to set a timer anymore.
(Recommended Tools: 30/30 and Timer Tab)
(Recommended System: The Pomodoro technique)
It takes time and patience
Awareness can hurt and even little steps can be hard. Put aside the time to think about what is working and what is not and take practical steps toward a more productive and happier you.
It took me 20 minutes to read this post because I had to check my email three times. Clearly I need help.