Productivity 101

Hello, everyone! Happy summer!

I just finished my school for this year, and I am so happy! I’m going to have a lot more time on my hands now! I feel so free!!

Alright, moving on. I don’t want to bore you guys with my excitement!

Today, I’m going to share my summer goals with you guys, and give you some tips on how to be productive.

Step 1: Planning

The first step in being productive is to plan. Specifically, plan out what areas you want to become more productive in.

Here is my list:

• Studying for my driver’s test
• Spending less time on screens
• Reading more books
• Taking more time to write
• Doing more blog posts
• Doing more art
• Doing more exercise

Your list can even just be one word ideas. That’s how mine was at first, but I formed it into phrases so you guys would understand.

Step 2: Forming Goals

The second step is to form goals. Basically, you just want to take your ideas and form them into reachable plans.

An important thing to note in this step is that THESE GOALS NEED TO BE REASONABLE. If you make them too hard or complicated, it’ll be too hard and you’ll probably just end up giving up.

Here is my goal list:

1. Take driver’s test before fall.
2. Do a blog post each week.
3. Write two hours or more each week.
4. Read for at least thirty minutes each day.
5. Use art as a substitute for screen time.
6. Exercise at least three times a week.

Once you’ve formed your list, write it down. You can even decorate the page! Below is my page I created in my bullet journal:

Step 3: Idea List

Next, you should create a list of ideas of how to form these goals.

Here is mine:

1. Take driver’s test before fall.
   • Study every day (if possible).
   • Schedule appointment.
   • Take test.
2. Do a blog post each week.
   • Start working on post several days before the day you want to post it.
   • Post on the same day each week.
3. Write two hours or more each week.
   • Have a goal of writing time for each day.
   • Record when you write.
4. Read for at least thirty minutes a day.
   • Read instead of picking up a screen 🙂
   • Make a list of books I want to read.
5. Use art as a substitute for screen time.
   • Do art while watching tv.
   • Do art instead of watching tv.
   • Learn how to paint.
6. Exercise at least three times a week.
   • Go for walks with my family.
   • Go for runs.
   • Watch exercise videos.

Step 4: Tracking Your Goals

Next you need to come up with a way to track your goals.

I highly recommend trying a bullet journal. If you would like more information on what that is, check out this post. You can have a separate page to track your goals, or you can track them in your habit tracker.

Step 5: Do it!

Next is the hardest part: actually doing it. You may not feel very motivated at first, but after you start seeing results, you’ll become excited and motivated.

Be Nice To Yourself

An important thing to remember while trying to fulfill these goals, is that you need to be nice to yourself while you’re getting started.

Don’t push yourself too hard. For example, I want to start exercising more. On day one, I’m not going to go run a marathon; that would be ridiculous. I’m going to start slow, like maybe taking a brisk walk or going for a run.

Don’t expect to be a superstar after the first few days. I know I’m not going to be super fit after I’ve done my first two runs. It’s going to take time.

If you miss a day on something, that’s okay. I know I will have a few days where I’ll be too busy to study for my driver’s test. I’ll just study as much as I can in the future.

Until Next Time . . .

That’s it for this post! I hope this information was helpful for you! Let me know in the comments if it was!

Next, time I’ll be giving you a look at my new bullet journal. Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading! Happy writing!

For I hold you by your right hand – I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, “Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.” (Isaiah 41:13 NLT)