Stop counting your daily tasks.

One problem you will face if you measure your productivity by the number of tasks you do is that you will be disappointed and frustrated. You’re prone to differing energy levels and emotions.

This means that even with the most enthusiasm, there will be days when you don’t feel like doing much work.

Instead, consider setting a few non-negotiables. These are the tasks you commit to, regardless of your energy levels, giving you a sense of control and reassurance.

That could be your morning routines, communications, or a specific aspect of your work. You may make five calls per day; that becomes your non-negotiable minimum.

Now, you’re measuring whether or not you did your minimums. Not the number of tasks you complete.

I consider myself reasonably productive. Yet, on far too many days, I begin the day with a list of fifteen or twenty things and end the day rescheduling five or six of them.

And that’s fine. It’s okay because I did my minimums. I spent at least thirty minutes responding to my actionable emails, created some content — even if it was just a paragraph or two — did my morning routines, and took Louis for a walk.

Job done. Things got moved forward.

You won’t be able to do everything in one day anyway. If you get your non-negotiables right, you’ll always move the critical things forward and prevent backlogs from growing.

That’s a productive day.

Of course, if you don’t know your non-negotiables, the only thing you’ve left to measure is the number of things you did and didn’t do. That’s exhausting. It’s also mentally draining and leaves you feeling horrible — not a great way to feel when your family wants you to be with them.

Figuring out your minimums changes everything. You give yourself a baseline to work towards, and anything you do over that line is a bonus. It’s well worth a big pat on your back.

Homework.

If you don’t know your minimums, give yourself twenty minutes or so this weekend to work them out. I can promise you that you will thank yourself for it.

Further help.

This blog post will help you establish some non-negotiables.

And this video discusses creating personal rules that ensure the right things are done each day.

Enrol in the Time And Life Mastery course for step-by-step help developing a trusted system that will support you for many years to come.

(Use discount code codisgreat and get 50% off this week)

There are still some places left in September’s Ultimate Productivity Workshop. These are going fast.

This workshop will introduce you to the critical principles of time management and productivity, show you how to apply them to your daily life, and help you end the year with a time management and productivity system to prevent backlogs and overwhelm.