The 15 Habits of Highly Productive People

No onewantsto procrastinate. No onewantsto feel stressed. No onewants每天面对分心。

Yet we do. Myself included.

But what about the most successful people in the world?

How do they stay sane? Surely, theymust每天都面对分心。使他们专注的习惯是什么？这是我们要发现的确切问题。

The Habits of Highly Productive People

Diving deep into the minds of highly-successful people, we wanted to find out:

• 他们如何保持专注并克服生产力杀手？
• 它们如何在不过分依赖咖啡因的情况下全天最大化的能量量？
• 他们如何避免拖延困难，精神挑战的任务？

经过几个小时的研究，我们发现了15种迷人的趋势。

Habit 1: They take work breaks throughout the day.

Research validates (这里和这里) that brief breaks from a task dramatically improves one’s focus and productivity. Why?

好吧，我们的生物钟有两种形式：

• Circadian Rhythms
• Ultradian Rhythms

Our Circadian Rhythms -- which run in 24-hour periods -- are our body’s natural release of melatonin, dictating when we’re energized or exhausted. Here’s what it looks like:

Our Ultradian Rhythms, which run in 90-minute periods, are the ebbs and flows of energy throughout the day.

例如，我们可以“在区域” 90分钟，但是之后，我们会感到有些疲倦，需要重新充电。那就是我们身体的天然超轻度节奏，看起来像这样：

高度生产的人知道，管理自己的能量与管理时间一样重要。

“ pomodoro技术”是一种开始付诸实践的有效方法...

习惯2：他们从未来倒退。

史蒂夫·乔布斯曾经说过：

如果too many days passed by with the answer being “no,” he’d adjust his lifestyle until he hit a consistent yes (which eventually created a company worth $702 billion). This forced Steve to define long-term goals and stay motivated.

Highly-productive people think about the end of their lives. They define how they want to be remembered. What legacy they want to leave. Or what people will say about them at their funerals.

然后他们工作backwardsto achieve those goals.

This touches on the psychological theories and models of motivation. If we’re driven by a purpose, we’re more likely to work extra hard. As award-winning author, Simon Sinek, says:

Thus, it all starts with defining our purpose. What is yours?

习惯3：他们在前一天晚上创建了待办事项列表。

例如，假设最重要的任务是最终确定10片的演示甲板。一个高产的人会在前一天晚上为该任务创建子登陆线，这看起来像这样：

• 9:00 - 10:00 am: Outline the presentation
• 10:00 - 11:30 am: Write copy for the presentation
• 11:30 - 12:30 pm: Create all images for the presentation
• 下午12:30：带玫瑰的午餐

Creating sub-deadlines forces the person to abide byParkinson’s Law。从本质上讲，这意味着如果最后一分钟到期，只需一分钟即可。

习惯4：他们利用工具来防止内部干扰。

Sure, it’s easy to plan our days, but distractions happen. And they come in two forms:

1. 分心我们自己
2. 分心别人

Oftentimes the biggest distractions come from within. We think of something, then Google it. We check Facebook, Twitter, or some other website. Or we start flipping through other addicting smartphone apps.

All four of these tips will drastically reduce distractions. But what about distractions from others?

习惯5：他们保持separate每日分心的待办事项清单。

How do highly-productive people stay focused in the midst of emails, phone calls, chat messages, text messages, and request from others?

他们保留单独的待办事项清单，以进行日常干扰。

For example, if a coworker asks them to review their sales presentation slides, they’d respond with something like:

十分之九的回应将是”Sure, no problem!"

然后，此请求已记录在单独的待办事项列表中，该列表已完成afterthe day’s most important task:

Dwight Eisenhower has a beautiful quote on this:

What's important is not always urgent. And what's urgent is not always important.

Highly-productive people don't let daily distractions pull them from their long-term goals.

A helpful tool for defining these distractions is the Eisenhower Matrix, which helps clarify important versus urgent tasks. Here are a few examples:

要定义您的Eisenhower矩阵，首先要确定哪些任务对您很重要？哪个不是？什么是经常分心？记下来：

1. The tasks that have the greatest impact on my career are ______________.
2. The tasks I do often, but I don't really benefit long-term career growth are _________.
3. My most common day-to-day distractions are _____________.

然后弄清楚如何外包或委派影响最小的任务。

Habit 6: They use email tools / systems to optimize their inbox.

电子邮件很烂。

感觉就像是西西弗斯的希腊故事。尽管我们要确定零收件箱，但总会有一些新的东西。

Project management softwarecan integrate with email software such as Outlook and Gmail and help centralize your communication and workflows to create a unified workspace. Integrated email communication can make siloed email threads visible to anyone you work with, cutting down unnecessary time spent syncing with your team.

电子邮件批处理，全天在某些块中检查电子邮件的系统方法有助于控制电子邮件。但是，如果真的很疯狂，并且您每天收到数百封电子邮件。

SaneBoxis used by highly-successful people in a variety of industries, such as Hiten Shah (CEO of KissMetrics), Tony Robins (media personality), and Amy Hubbard (casting director ofThe Hobbit).

HubSpot销售是一个other email productivity tool. It shows when someone opens an important email, allows scheduling of emails for later, and viewing contact profiles inside an inbox.

Unroll.me是一个other fantastic tool. It lets you unsubscribe to multiple email lists at once:

CleanEmail是一个other great email unsubscribe tool. Aside from getting rid of newsletters and promotional messages you no longer need, CleanEmail organizes all emails into easy-to-review bundles such as Finance emails, Travel emails, Emails from "dead ends", etc. Moreover, its automation features allow you to apply any action to new incoming emails without any manual work.

Finally, learning email shortcuts can save up to 60 hours per year. There are email shortcuts forGmail,外表， 和Apple Mail。

Habit 7: They build exercise and healthy eating into their daily routines to increase mental energy.

Brian Balfour, a successful entrepreneur and investor, views his brain as a muscle:

“Think of your brain as a muscle. Just like your arms or legs, your brain needs fuel to do work, exercise to get stronger, and rest to recover. Overall physical fitness is the foundation to mental energy. If you are eating terribly, overweight, and generally not fit, how do you expect your brain to be fit? Regarding our diet, there are certain foods that are healthy fuels, and certain foods that will make you feel cloudy and lethargic.”

研究证明锻炼使我们的大脑机敏，专心，并能够更好地集中精力。就像我们吃的东西一样，这是我们大脑的燃料。例如，比较这两个午餐：

Eat the BBQ pulled pork and you’re in a post-lunch food coma. Eat the salad and you’re loading your body with rich nutrients, providing more energy than before.

Unhealthy lunches (ex. BBQ sandwich and french fries) spike our blood sugar, which triggers an insulin spike, which triggers that groggy feeling.

And as we all know, it’s impossible to focus through a food coma.

Habit 8: They optimize their computer skills for speed.

Highly-productive people are lightning-fast on their computers. Here are a few ways they do it:

1. They increase the speed of the mouse.We use our mouse every day, so why not make navigating our computers even faster?
2. They learn keyboard shortcuts。Google Chrome，Evernote，电子邮件，Google Docs，Mac导航，Windows导航的键盘快捷键快捷键，列表还在不断。他们是一个巨大的节省时间。
3. Using tools to find apps quickly。A favorite of entrepreneur诺亚·卡根（Noah Kagan）is a free tool calledAlfred（对于Mac）。它有助于快速找到我们需要打开的程序。
4. Increasing our type speed。打字速度意味着更快地完成工作。如果you’re slower than 80 WPM (在这里免费打字测试), the average for computer-related workers, focus on increasing your speed.
5. 使用双重监视器。这种设置可以提高您的生产率高达50％。任务和文档之间不再切换。

这些只是提高计算机日常生活速度的几种简单方法。

Habit 9: They view failure as learning opportunities.

According to PhD psychologist, Carol Dweck, we have two possible mindsets:

1. Fixed mindset
2. Growth mindset

固定的心态假定我们的技能，素质和性格被给予。

It’s what causes people to say,“哦，我只是一个人。”Or,“I’ve never been a good test taker.”They accept defeat, viewing their skills and abilities as some sort of unchangeable, predetermined skill-set granted to them. They seek approval from others and view failure as failure.

A growth mindset, on the other hand, believes all skills and qualities may be learned.

如果you suck at writing, you can learn to become a better writer. If you are terrible at sales, you can learn to be better. They thrive on challenges and view failure as a learning opportunity.

Here’s a beautiful illustration from奈杰尔·福尔摩斯关于固定和成长心态之间的差异：

Take a few moments to think about people in your life with these two mindsets. Who gives up easily, admitting defeat? Who is always striving to learn something new?

但最重要的是，您是哪一个？

习惯10：他们将无意识的任务外包。

疯狂的生产力集中只要他们专注于…然后外包the rest.

Need to do anything of the following?

• Mindlessly input data into a spreadsheet.Get a virtual assistant for $5-$10/hr from上班要么FancyHandsto help you.
• Do your laundry, clean your bedroom, and scrub the bathroom floor.使用诸如便利to outsource your housework.
• 从商店拿起杂货。UseInstacart要把杂货送到您家门口。

Highly productive people don’t think,“但这太贵了！我宁愿省钱，自己做。”

Rather, they consider their salary on a per-hour basis. For example, if someone makes $40/hr and they needed to complete 6 hours worth of chores, they could:

• Do it themselves for $240 ($40/hr x 6 hours).
• Pay someone else for $90. ($15/hr x 6 hours).

现在将这些杂务外包给了6个小时，通过工作而不是清洁来赚取$ 40/小时。

In that period, the person can earn $240. Subtract the $90 from outsourcing it and this person saved $150 instead of doing the task herself.

Considering tasks on a per-hour basis doesn’t only save time … it saves money.

Habit 11: They meditate.

Some of the most respected people in the world practice mediation. This list includes:

• Mark Benioff, CEO of Salesforce
• 阿诺德·施瓦辛格（Arnold Schwarzenegger），演员兼政治家
• Tim Ferriss, entrepreneur and author
• Martin Scorsese, film director
• 对冲基金经理Ray Dalio

Using fMRI scans, scientists can visualize the difference in our brains before and after meditation. Without getting too technical, meditation lets our brains slow down and stop processing information so quickly:

It calms our frontal lobe (or prefrontal cortex), which is where logic and creativity come from. This gives us better focus, less anxiety, more creativity, more compassion, better memory, and less stress.

冥想的优势是无穷无尽的，这就是为什么如此多的成功人士发誓的原因。

Habit 12: They say no (nicely).

We’re psychologically hardwired to help people. There’s even a part in our brains, called the Right Supramarginal Gyrus, that triggers empathetic responses:

因此，说“不”非常困难。

We need a "to-don't" list of things that won't add to our careers. To make it easier to say no, try "no templates." They were developed by Silicon Valley venture capitalist and angel investor, Mark Suster, which look like this:

我们想提供帮助。但是要提高生产力，我们必须学习何时拒绝并专注于我们的原始目标。

This is especially important when it comes tomeetings。根据Atlassian的说法，普通人每月在会议上花费31个小时，但只有50％的时间效率。仅仅因为您被邀请参加会议并不意味着您有义务参加 - 要求议程，考虑您提供和获得的价值，然后打电话。

Habit 13: They count their blessings and practice gratitude.

最后一个高生产力的人们的习惯是贝ng grateful for what they have. Gratitude is proven to increase productivity by these prestigious universities:

• Yalestudies saya gratitude journal will result in higher alertness, enthusiasm, determination, attentiveness, and energy.
• Harvardstudies indicategratitude improves health and strengthens relationships.
• UC-Berkeleyresearch indicates感恩杂志改善睡眠并减少疾病。
• 哥伦比亚大学research says感激可改善免疫系统，同时减轻焦虑和/或抑郁症。

研究证明gratitude increases happiness; and happiness increases productivity. Thus, gratitude improves productivity:

Being grateful for what we have is one of the fastest way to not only increase productivity, but overall quality of life.

Habit 14: They avoid decision fatigue.

From Zuckerberg to Jobs, leaders avoid decision fatigue by removing trivial choices, like wearing the same hoodie or black turtleneck every day. Steve Jobs often ate one type of food for weeks -- once eating so many carrots his skin turned orange.

President Obama was known for "Decision Memos" in which three checkboxes were attached at the bottom of documents needing his attention. He would check "Agree," "Disagree," or "Let's Discuss" to let his staff know how to proceed.

习惯15：他们喜欢生产力黑客。

Have a new way to shave .5 seconds off a task? Insanely-productive people want to know your secret. Here are a few productivity hacks you can try out in your workflow:

• Make your lunch in batches at the start of the week
• 在其他人面前的日历上阻止时间
• Don't use the one-hour default on your calendar
• Take a 30-minute nap and boost performance 34%
• Turn off phone notifications
• 听环境声音而不是流行音乐
• Sit by a window
• Set the thermostat for 70-77 degrees
• 在咖啡店和公园等各种环境中工作
• Mute your Gmail with Inbox Pause
• Black out background browser tabs/notifications
• Try a dictation app
• Sort tasks by "Must, Should, Want" every day
• 如果不到两分钟，请立即做
• 仅5分钟就完成一项艰巨的任务

They might seem like small gains seperately, but if you add a few of these to your workflow each week, you might be surprised at the effect they have on your speed and efficiency.