7 Hacks to Improve Your Productivity

The Productive Freelancer - 7 Hacks to Boost Your Productivity.

Working as a freelancer is hard. Really hard. But there are things that you can do to make it easier. So if you struggle to stay on task, then here are 7 life-hacks that you can use to boost your productivity.

1 - Plan your day the night before.

This advice comes from Michael Hyatt and it works. At night, before you go to bed open up your calendar and plan what project you are working on tomorrow. This helps you to know exactly what project you’ll be working on. Also, make sure you write down the top 3 things you need to get done that day, and put them in order of importance. This way, if you just get those three things done you’ll feel accomplished, and your day will be a success. Anything else is a bonus.

Then, when you get to your desk start working at the first task. Don’t hesitate. Don’t wait. Just dive in. It’s hard enough to sit at a desk and start working right away, so why make it harder by wondering what to work on? Just plan your day the night before, go to sleep, and then get up and start working. When you master this habit you’ll see your productivity skyrocket.

2 - The habit of the 1st task

Back in 1687, Sir Issac Newton worked on some laws of physics which we can apply directly to freelancing. His 1st law of motion can be paraphrased to say “An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion”. This can be a powerful help or a deadly hinderance.

For instance, say your daily habit is to get at your desk, moan that you don’t want to work, and then waste an hour or two on Youtube (we’ve all done it). But you know that your boss will check your results and so you force yourself to work. All morning you’ve been at ‘rest’, and now you have to force yourself to be ‘in motion’. It’s a waste of energy and a waste of productivity.

But what if you had a habit of sitting down and getting to work? Perhaps you do a easy task to warm up, or a task that you do first thing every morning. If you do this you could say you are ‘in motion’ being in motion first thing in the morning helps you stay ‘in motion’ all day. Call it momentum, call it inertia, but regardless of what you call it it’s easier for you to stay ‘in motion’ for the rest of the day if you start your day off moving towards the right direction.

By the way, we just applied the 1st law of motion to freelancing. Which is really cool. Why? because physics is cool.

So what does this all mean? It means we can use this law to help us stay on task. All you need to do is to decide what the first thing is you’ll do every day, and over time that habit will keep you moving. What action, if you did it first thing every day, would help you to have a better day? For me it means writing as soon as I get to my desk (or on a rough day I ease into things by balancing my finances). For other people it is exercise. Regardless of what it is, if you have a habit of earning small wins every morning then they add to your momentum. And that momentum can help you to conquer the rest of your day.

3 - Be in an environment that improves your work

Back when I was in college, I found the perfect studying place.

And it was heaven.

It was the Music and Dance Library, which actually was in the main library. Though I studied Information Systems, I loved studying there. It had big tables, lots of sunshine. It even had its own dedicated librarian to answer questions or give someone a disapproving glare if they talked.

Which means it was deathly quiet.

And I loved it.

I went there often to study, and I could really crank out work. I didn’t have to worry about people talking, or chatting on their phone, or flirting with the girl nearby. It was just quiet.

And I learned that I worked best in a place of absolute quiet.

Yet some people work better in a noisy place. Some people need the chatter and background noise of a coffee shop or a coworking space. Other people (like me) would love to work in an anechoic chamber.

So find out what environment works best for you and then work there. You might need to leave your house, find a coworking space, or sublet an office. You might need to work at a coffee shop or soundproof your office. Regardless, having the right environment will help you to have the largest gains in productivity and happiness.

4 - Invest in quality headphones

Before I started programming I thought developers were eccentric for wasting money on expensive headphones. But when I became a programmer, guess what happened? I bought a pair of expensive headphones. Why? because good headphones can dull the background noise from coworkers or family. They stave off boredom, help you ignore people, and allow you to focus.

So, first let’s talk about what headphones to get. At first I didn’t want to spend much so I bought a cheap pair of Panasonic in-ear headphones (Panasonic RP-HJE120-PPK In-Ear Stereo Earphones, Black). But then the kids got older (and louder), and I needed something better. So I bought a pair of Audio-Technica ATH-M50x for $150 and they were worth every penny

Next, what should you listen to? Honestly, whatever works best for you. I pay for Spotify premium every month so I don’t get distracted by ads. And within Spotify I have a background music for programming playlist, and also have a voiceover songs playlist. Both are great for programming, but I turn to the Background Music playlist most often because there are no words in it.

Also, you might want some background noise, and for that I used to use simplynoise.com, but now I use https://www.noisli.com/. Finally, if I’m particularly stressed, and can’t walk away from my desk, then I’ll turn on calm.com.

So if you need to focus you can drown out the chatter of the outside world. Good headphones help with this, and they are a great investment.

5 - Work in Sprints (The Pomodoro Method)

I wouldn’t get anything done without the Pomodoro method. There are some days when I don’t use it, but when that happens I’m left feeling a frantic and wondering what I worked on. In contrast, when I use the Pomodoro method I can crank out an impressive amount of work, and I feel accomplished about my day. Part of that reason is that consistent, uninterrupted sessions helps me focus. They allow my brain to give more resources to one task, and they protect me from burnout.

For those of you that don’t know, the Pomodoro method is where you set a timer, and you work on just one type of task for the length of the timer. No phone calls or distractions are allowed (unless you are doing a Pomodoro of phone calls). You can’t break your focus and check email, or Facebook, or Twitter, or Youtube. You simply stay on task, and get stuff done. Then when the timer is over, stand up, walk away, and take a break.

And this method is ideal for creative or other intense work. It allows you to do your best work every day. It allows you to get into ‘flow’ in your work, and to stay on task.

For me, I used to do 25 minute pomodoros, but then found that those were too short. So I switched to 45 minute Pomodoro sessions and it fits me better. Then, when the timer is done I’ll get up, walk around, meditate, get a snack, or do some exercise.

Have you ever tried doing this? I have a friend named James who started doing this and he said “It’s crazy how much more work I got done.” So try it. At first it will be hard for you to stay on task, as you’ll have to train your brain. You’ll need to teach yourself to work without distraction. But when you get used to it you’ll find your productivity soar and you’ll get stuff done.

6 - Work on just one project for the whole day

Too often we freelancers will work on multiple projects on one day. We’ll work on an app for client A, and website for client B, and then some bug testing for Client C.

But each time you switch from project to project, you’ll lose a measure of productivity. Your brain needs time to ramp up. For me, when I switch projects I often think “Okay, now what am I working on?”. And there is an official term for this. It’s called “context switching”. Context switching is a waste of time, and it slows you down.

The solution is to work on just one client project a day (or per week). Better yet, you can use this as motivation to start charging by the day or by the week.

And I rarely work on multiple projects in a day. Sure, I might have some cleanup tasks for two projects that need to be done on the same day, but most of the time I work on one project for one client on one day. And my brain is happy as a result.

7 - Play

This last topic is the most important. Too many people think that to get better at work you need to do more work. And in lots of ways it’s true. Doing the same task again and again helps you to gain mastery of that task. But if you keep working at it and you never take a break then you’ll hit burnout. That’s why there are times where you need to do the opposite of work: play.

Play is a necessity of life. And there is a reason why we call play ‘recreation’. It’s because through play we “re-create” who we are. We rebuild, redesign, and repurpose ourselves into something better.

And you need to take breaks or you will burn out. We aren’t designed to work each and every moment of the day. So play. Go for a walk. Get outside. Move. And if you work from home go wrestle with your kids (which is fun), or… go wrestle with your spouse (which is more fun).

But regardless of what you do, you need to play and play often. If you do this you’ll be happier, more satisfied, and feel more whole. Best of all you’ll do better at work. You’ll be able approach your problems with a new outlook, all while feeling rejuvenated.

In Closing

We talked about planning your day the night before, and the power of the 1st task. We also talked about working in a good environment and investing in quality headphones. We also covered working in sprints and working on just one project a day. And at last, we reminded you about the power of play.

And if you do even just a few of these you’ll get large boost to your productivity. You’ll get more done, have more focus, and have more control over your life.

So pick one of these and get started. It might take you some time to gain mastery of it, but the investment will be well worth it.

P.S You deserve to have better clients, higher-paying clients, and better projects. And I can help you get there. Join over 1000 people in my freelancing community, and learn how to make $10,000 a month through freelancing. -Stephen Godfrey

About

Stephen is a fulltime consultant who builds websites for Banks, Lending Firms, and FinTech companies. He specializes in building ultra-secure websites which are ADA accessible, lightning-fast, and that help bring in more users. You can learn more about what he does at mountainfreshmedia.com.

Stephen Godfrey lecturing at BRAID in Provo in the Startup Building

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