Archive for June, 2017

I subscribe to James Clear’s emails, which are full of productivity tips. The latest article that I read described the scientific reason why our lives become chaotic without continuous effort to maintain order.

I was already well aware of this phenomenon as it relates to managing a household. Think of how quickly laundry piles up, stacks of unopened mail spread across countertops, and dust becomes visible on the dining room table. If I don’t stay on top of these chores, the house looks completely cluttered.

Housework never ends.

Reading James Clear’s article made me think about how our jobs can become overwhelming and disordered if we don’t pay attention to regular tasks that provide structure and organization.

Email never ends, either.

I’m most effective at work when I stick to established habits. For example, as soon as I’ve sent or responded to an email, I either delete it or file it in my Outlook folder system. It prevents my mailbox from being clogged with messages I don’t need and lets me quickly locate the ones that I need to refer to later.  

I have similar routines for managing paperwork and accounting tasks, but the habit that made the biggest difference in my work was making a point to write every day. Whether it was just a sentence or two, or revising paragraphs I’d already written, the daily effort kept my writing projects moving forward and trained my brain to get into “writing mode” more quickly. Even creative tasks benefit from habits that provide structure and predictability.

The more established our habits are, the easier it is to stay in control of our work.