One of my dissertation clients wanted greater daily productivity as she wrote toward a deadline. To achieve greater productivity, she knew she had some tightening to do.
I asked her on a scale of 1 to 10, how would she rate her current productivity. 7.0, she said.
When I asked what changes would raise the bar to 7.5, she immediately said that she would pay closer attention to the time she spent on breaks.
As we talked about what her daily schedule could look like, a plan emerged.
Here is the plan she put in place:
1. Maximize the morning by writing early.
2. Watch the length of breaks. She was aware that she was not being vigilant at controlling the length of her breaks. At times, she was letting them stretch toward an hour long. She was determined to make a change. Her plan was to carefully regulate the start and stop time of her breaks.
3. Go to the gym at the end of each day. She wanted something to look forward to, and she also wanted exercise to be a marker of the boundary between the regular work day and the evening when she would plan her next day of writing.
4. Journal and plan the next day. In the evening, she would journal about what she had done that day, and then she would plot her course for the next day, writing down the daily goals and schedule.
At week’s end, she had met her goal. She was pleased at what she had accomplished.
She said that she stuck to her plan, “got into a good groove,” and built momentum.
And she had gained at least an hour of work time each day by more carefully monitoring her breaks.
But there was an added bonus.
Stay tuned, and I’ll tell you next time what surprised her.
In the meantime, here’s a bonus for you. As a bonus for signing up for my Smart Tips e-newsletter, I will give you 30 minutes of my time for us to talk about your productivity. Go to my website (www.nwcoaching.com) and sign up for my Smart Tips e-newsletter.
Until next time,
Nancy
Your Dissertation Coach
nancy @ nancywhichard.com
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