I've Tried Almost Every Productivity Hack Out There So You Don't Have To

From a biomedical engineering bs/ms student, content creator, and business owner

As a biomedical engineering bs/ms student, content creator, and business owner, I definitely have tried (almost) every productivity tip out there. I’m going to give you some of my favorites–some created by others, many evidence-based, and all of them used by me on a daily basis. I hope this straight-to-the-point list will save you some time as you try to be your highest performing self.

Pomodoro Technique

“The Pomodoro Technique is a time-management method that involves breaking work down into 25-minute intervals, known as "pomodoros," separated by short breaks. It aims to reduce the impact of interruptions, improve focus, and increase productivity.”

I thought it would be only fair to start out with one of the most popular techniques, usually in the context of students but can certainly be applied to other work as well. Here are my thoughts. Do I believe in general the concept is effective? Absolutely. Was it effective for me? Not particularly. And I’ll tell you why. 

The 25 minutes was not enough for me to get into a good flow state. Especially considering some of the more complex concepts in my studies, it required me closer to 45 minutes to catch an effective rhythm. Now what the Pomodoro Technique did do effectively for me was make the tasks a lot less daunting as it was much easier to commit to the idea of studying for 25 minutes at a time than studying for four hours straight. This helped me a ton to “just get started” and reduce procrastination.

This leads us to our next technique that has helped me with my procrastination issues even more than the Pomodoro Technique.

5 Minute Rule

“The 5-minute rule is a productivity technique that involves committing to work on a task for at least 5 minutes before deciding whether to continue or move on.”

This has been one of the MOST EFFECTIVE ways to reduce procrastination for me as it utilizes a similar concept as the Pomodoro Technique in terms of making tasks less daunting and reduces the time all the way down to five 5 minutes.

I’ve found in my experience that 9/10 times if I start for 5 minutes, I will continue with the task at hand and then I can find the time required to initiate the flow state naturally afterwards. For me personally, it’s much more difficult to start a task than to complete it so the 5 minute rule has been exceptional for me. I’m serious, bring a timer around with you and try this.

Delegation

“The delegation technique is a time-management method that involves assigning tasks to other people more capable in terms of expertise or bandwidth in order to increase overall productivity.”

Shoutout to my friend Liam for helping me understand the importance of this. 

If you’ve never tried this before, I would highly recommend figuring out how much one hour of your time costs. The saying “time is money” really applies in this context as delegating tasks to others allows you to focus on high-priority tasks or tasks that require your specific skills, which can lead to increased efficiency and productivity.

Try asking yourself this the next time you have a big task: “is there anyone that can complete this task for me that has more expertise or bandwidth that I can afford to pay at a rate that’s less than the cost of my own time?”.

Batching

“The batching technique is a time-management method that involves grouping similar tasks together and completing them in a specific period of time, rather than switching between different tasks throughout the day.”

There is something called “context switching” which refers to the act of shifting your focus from one task or activity to another, often in a rapid or frequent manner. It occurs when you interrupt your current task to start working on something else, and then switch back to the original task later on.

Context switching can be a major productivity killer, as it requires time and mental effort to get back into the flow of the original task after switching to something else. This can lead to a loss of focus, reduced efficiency, and increased stress and frustration.

AVOID context switching.

Instead of responding to emails all throughout the day, batch all your email responses in one part of your day.

Instead of running your errands across multiple days, delegate time on one day to run all of them.

Instead of cleaning sporadically throughout the week, delegate the time on one day to clean your whole house.

You get it, right? 

Time Blocking

“Time blocking is a time management technique that involves scheduling your day into blocks of time for specific tasks or activities. The idea is to create a schedule that allows you to focus on one task or activity at a time, without interruptions or distractions.”

10/10. A must. If you want to have a productive lifestyle as you juggle multiple responsibilities like hobbies, jobs, relationships, etc. you need to start scheduling using a calendar (there are so many apps out there too now so you can do this either digitally or manually).

You can do this as monthly, weekly, or daily revisions but to be honest, probably the most efficient method would be to utilize all three in the following way:

• Start with a general monthly outline of recurring tasks such as classes. 

• Then schedule weekly tasks if you have commitments that extend across multiple days.

• Lastly, do daily revisions as needed if new tasks are introduced or you need more time, etc.

I could probably make an entire post on how to schedule (you know what i’ll probably do this haha) but some key things to remember:

• Schedule NOT ONLY work, but also rest and play times. 

• Do your very best to do daily revisions the night before

  • We make thousands of decisions per day and it’s many times in those decision making processes that we have second thoughts, hesitations, etc. that delay us even further so do your best to prevent those unnecessary delays by making the revisions the night prior. This way during the day, you can just focus on accomplishing what’s on your schedule without thinking too much.

• TIME YOURSELF when doing tasks. Too many times we block out three hours to finish a paper only to do the paper and realize it’ll take you a total of 12 hours and now your entire week’s schedule is messed up. You need to get in the habit of timing your tasks so that as you continue making these schedules over time, you get better at allocating the appropriate time for each task.

Removing (Almost) All Notifications

There is nothing more distracting than your phone buzzing or lighting up. Whether you know it or not, that second your attention goes to your phone and takes you away from your work can destroy HOURS of work. Prevent this from happening by not only going on do not disturb mode, but removing all types of notifications so that you don’t have the temptation to swipe down to see any banners.

Of course, this does not include important communication channels for your family, spouse, or your team. 

NIGHT Alarm Clock

I know we all have morning alarms and those benefits are obvious, but something few people do (to my surprise) is night alarms. These alarms are meant to alert you to wrap up work, deep late night convos, movies, etc. and head to bed. 

We’ve all experienced situations in which we lose track of time at night and before we know it it’s 3 am. Then you can’t wake up in time the next morning because you’re too tired and you ruin any positive momentum you had building. A night alarm is a great way to prevent all of that.

In general, sleep is so imperative for neuroplasticity (AKA how you learn), physical and mental health, and performance. We have studied countless experiments in our neuroengineering classes, and the scientific proof of the benefits is undeniable. A night alarm clock in combination with a morning one ensures that you reap all those benefits.

Stacking Micro Wins

Break down your big goals into smaller micro-goals. Make those micro-goals REALLY small to the point you will actually do them and they don’t seem so daunting. Perhaps even break them down to the point you think they are easy. 

Do this and you won’t have any problems successfully accomplishing those micro-goals. This will do two things for you:

• Build positive momentum making it easier to tackle on the subsequent goal

• Build confidence because you know you are capable of achieving something that you said you would do

Keep your head down and continue stacking these micro-wins, and one day you will look up and see that you are closer to those massive goals than ever before.

Finding Your “Why?”

Leaving the best for last. None of these prior techniques or tips will carry you to the dream life you’ve always wanted if you don’t take the time to find clarity in your purpose. Even if you can somehow stumble your way to that life, you most likely won’t be able to sustain it. The reason is simply because life is too hard and it won’t let you.

The one thing anyone can guarantee in life is that something will be thrown your way eventually that will be seemingly too overwhelming to overcome. It’s just how life goes, but it’s in those moments that champions are truly made because those are the individuals that can dig deep into their souls and remind themselves of their purpose which serves something greater than just themselves. 

It’s that purpose that enables you to be resilient, find direction, and ultimately be fulfilled.

- Jun Yuh