At last, a video that provides opinion and advice for simple, everyday human. Straight to the point without any distractions and complicated systems down to seconds. Thanks.
3 levels 1. Time Blocking 0:58 - use calendars, reminder & stick with it 2. One Page Week 2:17 - stray away from digital, list down all the major task every week, 3. Set Alarms 4:44 - set an alarm for every task,
My problem with building good habits is sticking to them. I was really excited when I first started doing it. I usually lose passion before or after achieving my goals. Some of my good habits still persist, because I have to do them, even though I don't enjoy them.
I know exactly what you mean. Once you get over the initial barrier, starting out a new habit can be kinda fun but after a few weeks or a few days that’s when it becomes really difficult and you hit another barrier. Props to you for at least starting new habits, many people can’t even get started. I’ve been working on a video that I think might help you. Curious to know a few things: 1. Examples of which habits you start but can’t stick to? 2. Around how long (days/weeks) have you done the habit before you lose passion/quit?
Depending on the activity, some I can achieve my goals but I can't maintain them afterwards, and also some stop in the middle of progress. What I usually achieve is related to exercise and a healthy diet. I was even able to lose weight for several important events, such as my graduation and wedding. But it will be difficult to continue this habit after the event is over. What I usually stop in the middle of progress is related to me learning something new. When I started, I was very enthusiastic, but lost my passion in the middle of progress. This probably happened because I had difficulty learning it. I used to always have reasons to stop learning it, like thinking maybe I wasn't talented or whatever reasons. @@MilesMochizuki
Thanks for sharing. I've definitely experienced something similar before. Having some kind of deadline or event like a wedding can definitely help spark temporary motivation but it's hard to keep that up after the event. In that case I would try and reframe my mindset around the habit/goal and get a better understanding of the true benefits and remind yourself of them regularly, in my experience that helps me stay motivated long term. For example with exercise/diet, recognize that the benefits are infinite -- feeling healthy and energetic, increased focus, better mental health, better skin/appearance, stay young longer etc. -- just about any aspect of your life will be more enjoyable if your body is healthy, yes it's nice to be fit for your wedding or graduation but it'd be even better to be fit/healthy for life. As for learning something new and stopping in the middle that literally describes most of my childhood lol I would start something new but then quit when it got "hard". To push pass this I would really think about growth mindset (the fact that you can legitimately accomplish anything, you just have to put the work in. Those who are successful were no different than you at the beginning, they simply put the work in and pushed through those periods of struggle). From their it's just a matter of every week or so evaluate your progress and identify your constraint, what is the one aspect of the skill you're learning that you need to focus on improving in order to get to the next level -- usually this is the aspect that you procrastinate on the most or enjoy the least because your skill is the lowest in that aspect. It's hard to push past that stage that's for sure. I like to again revisit the overall goal with learning that new thing and frequently remind myself of why I'm doing it and how my specifically my life will be so much better once do power through, put the work in and see the results. I can't attach a picture to this comment but if you google "graph of learning something new" you'll see the progress curve and you are likely getting stuck in the valley of conscious incompetence after that initial spike of enjoyment when you first got started, I've been here many times...
@@MilesMochizuki James Clear in "Atomic Habits" showed multiple ways to break this as he calls the "valley of disappointment or plateau of Latent potential." He stated that mastery requires patience. The San Antonio Spurs have a quote in their locker room, " when nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow, it will split in two, and I know it was not that last blow that did it- but all that had gone before."
One thing I’ve employed to stay on track is setting a visible and obnoxious stopwatch. I’m a really competitive person, so seeing that number on the screen progressively grow makes me want to finish the task at hand a lot faster. Contrary to what I imagined, my work quality doesn’t decrease when I use this method. In fact, I would say I work smarter because I’m prioritizing my time. It’s kind of twisted at the beginning, I know. I also find that impending sense of failure (as in, going above a certain time threshold) to be a good kick-in-the-butt to get things done faster. Thanks for all of the great tips.
I like to do this with timers - counting down works great for me and the stopwatch either creates panic/messing up or forget/lose interest bc it can just go onward forever. same competitive energy!
1. You can have your calendar always in front of you by taking a screenshot and using it as a desktop wallpaper 2. Instead of alarms for tasks, you can use reminders app or any other task management app. 3. Great video. Loved it.
But if you put your calendar as desktop wallpaper then it’s not really always in front of you since it’ll be covered once you open a window right? Yeah reminders can work of course but for me I sometimes need that extra push from an obnoxious alarm lol. Glad you enjoyed the video!
I really liked how refreshingly honest this video was and I liked your ideas. Time blocking isn't my thing but I like the other two ideas and I'm going to try them - thanks!
1. Time Blocking 0:56 - do only that thing which you assigned at that time 2. One Page Week 2:16 - use pen & Paper 3. Also Make To-Do for every single day 4. Set Alarm for every task 4:42 All the Best to all of you 👍
Hi! I loved this video I would also like to suggest maybe condensing your calendar, I used to time block every hour as well until I ran into a similar problem of just constantly seeing notifications and feeling obligated to act on them. Eventually my calendar overwhelmed me and became apart of my resistance planning it every week too. Perhaps try for a little while only time blocking your daily routines and tasks that will take your discipline and attention. Leaving the rest clear. For me personally I noticed that my brain now treats what's on my calendar as more of an event. I definitely want to add using alarm clocks to alert me when to start as well. I also started planning the day before instead of the full week. I'll generally get the idea of what I want to do on what days of the week then everyday I plan for the day ahead because I generally have a better idea of how my time will go also based on how im feeling. Afterwards I put in an amount of time (generally 30 minutes) everyday to plan for the next day. To each their own though! I hope something in here can help the way your video helped me!
Glad you liked the video. That's a great point and something I'll definitely try out -- so basically being more minimalist with your planning approach and only putting the major key tasks/blocks instead of micromanaging smaller tasks? That way calendar notifications aren't popping up all the time and it's only for major things
So relatable! Thanks for sharing! I guess we need to try out many ways to find out the one that suits us. Yours is great for reference, will try out. Your video popped in my feed and is just what i need. Subscribed!
These are great. The only thing I’d add is how useful the pomodoro technique is for easing in, especially to deeper work. It also helps start things if you set the timer for 5 mins and just dip your toe in. I’ve found it to be very powerful
I'm a huge fan of time blocking but the blocks must not be too small and specific, otherwise it becomes too inflexible. I also recommend installing a calendar extension in your web browser to always see the remaining time.
I don't know why but the people like u aren't that popular but the quality of the content is more high than the popular one's. Your video really motivated me and I will try to make routine. Thanks For Your Quality Content.
I found the alarm technique quite helpful so i'll stick to it but in terms of planning stuff out on a weekly basis it makes me more anxious so i tend to plan it by days throughout the month or for a set deadline which feels like i have more time on things and i can concentrate better.
Did i hear well that you have wake up alarm for 6 am and get up alarm for 9 am? This is a whole new level 😂😂😂 My wake up and get up alarms are only 15 minutes apart.
Thanks for the helpful video. I was hunting for options on how to start and end tasks on time. I really struggle with the hard cutoff times. Either I am in a flow state and do not want to stop or it takes longer then expected to wrap up the task so I can move on to the next one. Alarms sound good but I am still bad at saying just 5 more minutes and ignoring them. Trying to figure out how to get better at saying times up summary next steps when you return to this task and move on to the next scheduled activity.
What I do : - I use time blocking only for my main task of the day (studying for example). Let's say I put it from 7-10 and from 13-15. - The rest is free on my calendar but I have a list of tasks (made the day prior) that I could do if I want to (exercising, cleaning, going for a walk, take a shower...). It's supposed to keep my momentum going by being active BUT still resting mentally to be ready to tackle my main task. -No phone at all (use a alarm clock in the morning) until 2/3 of the day. When you have to chose between being bored and being active, you'll chose being active most of the time. Basically : time blocking my main task to create momentum and use the breaks between to do active tasks but choosing freely from them. It helps being consistent without being bored because you still choose what to do on your "rest" time
I actually have been doing the things you talked about in this video, but still struggling. Even the phone alarms. Everyone is different. But I guess for me it takes falling off the wagon many times but I get up and get back on it. Little by little I start falling off less and less.
I’d love to stick to blocks but I just get so many interruptions that I’m just not able to ignore. Colleagues asking for advice and guidance. If I scheduled them for another time the effort in scheduling and doing so would take up a lot of time. Then sometimes I wonder how many excuses I’m making for myself. ADHD does make it so hard not to gravitate to the most recent thing that screams out.
What have been working for me is making a schedule one day at the time at night i plan what i am going to do every hour of the next day i also add thw money that i have use the amount of water intake to do list reflexions of the day i don't do everything yet but i can see the progress and is flexible enough for me
I do a 4x6 card, daily plan on one side and my weekly on the other. New card each day and I rewrite my weekly list on the back. Fold in half and it fits in my pocket
That sounds like a great system. Honestly really been considering shifting to a hard copy, super basic system like that and just focusing more on actually doing the work
@@MilesMochizuki I put the folded card in the same pocket as my phone, so I feel the card when I reach for my phone. I still use TickTock/Google Calendar to store my ToDos and use my phone to add to the inbox, but the notecard just feels better to check if that makes sense.
I am exactly the same and have tried all of the methods you have explained and still nothing has worked. Procrastination wins and time wasted in the end 😔 But really like how you have given out of the box ideas compared to other productivity videos. Keep up the amazing work!
Thank you. Please let me know more details about your struggles with procrastination, I'd like to make a video about overcoming procrastination at some point! -- It's something I still struggle with too.
@@MilesMochizuki Not sure what you would like to hear specifically but I dont mind sharing and answering any of your questions 😄. How do you usually overcome yours? And that would be a fantastic idea! For me I usually write down the task for the week and say that the point is to finish said task in the week since when I schedule it in a specific day I just keep putting it off and never do it. So time blocking doesn't work and when said week comes to an end, say its already Sunday and the week starts on Monday so only one day left for the task. I end up saying that I will work on the task in 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 30 minutes, ect and this keeps going until Monday arrives and task is just there . I would do it eventually sometimes the week after, a month, two months after. This of course is terrible when it comes to high stakes task like studying for an exam that will be in a week. Even that I put it off until the night before the exam and try to cram as much information as possible and than go take the exam. The problem is, I am most "motivated" by deadlines and am highest level of productivity than. But self made deadlines don't work on me, have tried it a couple of times but they aren't as anxiety inducing nor motivating because they lack real stakes. For the exam the stake was failing the subject/year and repeating. Unfortunately as much as this method of mine works, it's slightly unhealthy at this point of my life where there is far too much to do in only 24 hours and it ends up stressing me out not only in that last 24 hours but also the entire weeks/months that task has popped up in my brain. And add that it's not just one task but 10-20 it becomes overwhelming. The reason I have clicked on this video in the beginning was try and stick to a plan where perhaps it would lessen the overwhelming feeling but rigid scheduling and routines don't really work for me personally, I get bored very easily of the monotonous and it doesn't become enjoyable and I might stick to it for a week maybe 2 and after I just stop and repeat the cycle of procrastination. A way for me to combat this was to make a similar thing you use, make a running task list of things that needed to be done this week, try to finish 3 of them in a day. Ask myself why I completed those tasks or didn't. What stopped me, was it just a busy day, did an emergency happen, was it bad timing ect. And most of the time mine would fall in the No motivation/energy and something popped up that I didn't have time to do the task. And the task that was left in the day gets set up for the next day and so on. Maybe this way of doing things might help you as well especially since you already follow a schedule. Try to understand why you procrastinat and finding a solution can truly help you. Though the solution bit is a lot tricker than it sounds. Since from just the glance in the video about your schedule your procrastination might stem from the need of taking a break of Just taking a chill day to relax. This is simply my own opinion and I know nothing about your personal life and style and cant even beginning to say that I do. This is a simple observation I noticed from the video. Simply wanted to share my own method that I discoved through the years trying to figure out my procrastination and if it might be helpful for someone else. Have a good day! And cant wait for your next video! And I apologise for this very long comment.
Thank you for sharing all of this! It didn't notify me of your comment so unfortunately i'm reading it late. yesterday I actually just filmed a video on how I overcome procrastination, should be coming out in the next week or two. I wish i had read your comment first so I could've addressed some of the specific struggles you mentioned but I'm hoping that what I talked about will help you (i talk less about rigid scheduling and more about changing your emotions surrounding the tasks you need to do so you actually want to do them) -- If not then I can always make a part two or reply to your comment specifically. Thanks again for sharing your struggles
@@MilesMochizuki Its completely fine, and will definitely check it out when the video is up. I see, that would certainly change things a bit. Though how does one change their emotions regarding a task. I do get if it was just feeling that the task was a chore or boring is to make it execiting/enjoyable. Though for stronger or more complex emotions that trick wouldn't work, an example would be dread, exhaustion, or the task it self is too difficult. Most say to break the task down but unfortunately that doesn't work for everything and you end up with ten tasks when it was one. Getting the mental and physical energy to do ten small tasks it's far too much work and thus that method is useless. It's alright, I understand and will definitely check the video out. Thank you very much.
Hey, I was in the exact same boat as you! I recently heard of the 4 tendencies personality framework. It really helped me to identify what motivates me. Similar to you self-imposed deadlines do not work. But if I have to be accountable to someone or be somewhere I smash it out the park and get things done. I came out as “Obliger” matching the accountability experiences. Therefore, if I really want to do something I find accountability somewhere. This is as simple as sharing with my partner that I’ll clean the bathroom once per week on the weekend. Or back in the day it was meeting with a friend to revise and saying what I’ll do. For work I schedule dates to show my work to my boss to get their early feedback (sort of a self imposed deadline), I am also thinking about “flow club” to do more personal projects. For exercise I do group things like team sports and meeting people for a walk. Or do yoga with my partner because it’s even more fun. It’s not perfect because I can’t always have accountability. I’m terrible at waking up if I have no where to be or not a looming deadline approaching, even if set out tasks and schedule for the next day. Hence watching this video and the procrastination one, which were great and insightful! But I do get the minimum stuff done that’s important. Be kind to yourself even super productive people fall of the wagon at some point. Anyhoo this has been a ramble! Hope it helps a little. If want to know further, here is the four tendencies framework and quiz if interested, I think it may help you understand what motivates you to complete a task: gretchenrubin.com/four-tendencies/ gretchenrubin.com/quiz/the-four-tendencies-quiz/
thank you! I use Final Cut Pro. I learned initially from watching Ali Abdaal’s skillshare course on editing. that’ll get you started then you just gotta edit lots of videos and try to improve something every time
I'm completely absorbed in this. I had the privilege of reading something similar, and I was completely absorbed. "Dominating Your Clock: Strategies for Professional and Personal Success" by Anthony Rivers
External reminder never worked with me, i realise that i need internal intent to follow a schedule, motivated for some sort of understanding about why am i looking to improve it in the first place
yeah that's the first step for sure, aligning your intentions and making sure you actually want to accomplish the things you're trying to do. I like to imagine the best case scenarios if I do the thing to help motivate me. Also what can be more powerful is if you imagine the worst case scenarios if you don't stick to your plan at all
Great video, I have a completely different question though… how did you sync your Apple Calendar with your Google calendar? I’ve been trying to do that but couldn’t figure out an easy way and google wasn’t a great help either… Thanks and keep going with the great work🙏
Glad you liked the video, the way I do it is to add my google calendar account to my apple calendar. So I think if you go into apple calendar settings > accounts > then sign in with google it should add a new Google calendar to your apple calendar. Hopefully that makes sense
Hello, I am Saif, I am Teacher and Graphic Designer. I teaches physics and Mathematics to students, And I run a agency designersaif from last 1 year, I wake up and start work for my agency from 06:30 am to 01:00 pm and Then from 03:15 pm to 09:30 pm - I teach on my tuition center, 3 batches a day And, Now I am struggling and exhausted with this life style, Can you give me some suggestions?
adjust the blocks on your calendar or move things to the next day as needed. I like to start the day with the things that are the most difficult/impactful and move on to the next most important thing from there. That way if things take longer than anticipated, it's the tasks of lower importance that might get pushed to the next day
@@MilesMochizuki well, I have my purpose in life, I understand the why of everything in my life, I know what I need to do and why and what would happen if I don't do it and how bad I would feel if that happens. I have a three year plan, a yearly plan, a monthly plan, a weekly plan, a daily plan. Everything is connected. I learned also to not be overwhelmed o about the whole plan, even thou I have a big plan I just need to focus in this week o day. I changed my health habits and I know why I needed to change. But every time I see my daily tasks I get scared of them, even thou I cut them into the smallests they can be (by hour), I just get scared and just don't follow the schedule
@@eugemaifa I see, thanks for sharing your struggles, I'm sure a lot of people can relate. This is gonna sound like a plug (which it kinda is lol) but I genuinely want to help you with your specific situation. I just started a free online community for the very purpose of being able to connect with viewers like you on a more personal level. It's hard to follow up and give personalized advice in the RU-vid comment section. Join my free community here and we can chat more and hopefully come to a solution: www.skool.com/miles-ahead-7196
