Productivity

Discover the best articles, videos, and resources on productivity from around the web, from productivity hacks to productivity tools. Follow along on Refind to get the most relevant new links picked for you.
9 Best Articles in 2021
Harvard Business Review
Want to Be More Productive? Try Doing Less.Harvard Business Review
4 min read · 2020-05-21 · A step-by-step guide to pare down your to-do list.
productivity
todo
harvard business review
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When you stop doing the things that make you feel busy but aren’t getting you results, then you end up with more than enough time for what matters.
Write down the tasks you do in that area on one side of a piece of paper, and on the other, list successes you’ve had in that area. Then, identify which tasks directly contributed to those successes.
On the left-hand side, list the tasks or activities you do in that area of your work or life.
The New York Times
Stop Trying to Be ProductiveThe New York Times
7 min read · 2020-04-01 · The internet wants you to believe you aren’t doing enough with all that “extra time” you have now. But staying inside and attending to basic needs is plenty.
productivity
mental health
better living
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“I’m trying to be more OK with just being.”
This urge to overachieve, even in times of global crisis, is reflective of America’s always-on work culture.
“this mind-set is the natural endpoint of America’s hustle culture — the idea that every nanosecond of our lives must be commodified and pointed toward profit and self-improvement.”
Fast Company
How to transform your to-do list into a productivity power toolFast Company
3 min read · 2020-03-09 · It will likely require shifting your mindset in a few key ways.
productivity
todo list
to-do
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Neustadt says we really only have the bandwidth to have two or three priorities. “Otherwise we’re not living authentically, and are scattered and unfulfilled, filling time with stuff that doesn’t matter to us.”
Once you know your priorities, everything on your to-do list should serve them.
Score tasks from $10 per hour for administrative tasks all the way up to $10,000 per hour for high-level strategy and sales-related tasks. This approach gives instant clarity into how you are investing your time into your business.
Dan Shipper
Surgical Reading: How to Read 12 Books at OnceDan Shipper
~13 min read · 2020-06-23 · How to efficiently get what you need out of reading, multiple books at a time
productivity
books
reading
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Reading shouldn’t be about checking titles off of a todo list, it should be an exploration of what fascinates you. 
when I’m reading a non-fiction book, I focus on locating and removing the most valuable pieces of information from it quickly as possible
My goal is to quickly locate valuable knowledge and use the information I acquire in the real world to solve problems.
blog.todoist.com
The Ultimate Guide to Personal Productivity Methodsblog.todoist.com
~20 min read · From 2015 · We’ve gathered all the most powerful productivity methods  in one place. Find the framework that fits best for your personality and projects.
productivity
time management
gtd
Scott Young
The Nine Habits to Increase Your EnergyScott Young
5 min read · 2019-12-14 · Your energy levels are the basis of your success and happiness. Here are nine habits you can start today to feel more energetic in work and at home.
productivity
self
work
The New York Times
What Google Learned From Its Quest to Build the Perfect TeamThe New York Times
20+ min read · From 2017 · New research reveals surprising truths about why some work groups thrive and others falter.
google
teams
leadership
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If a company wants to outstrip its competitors, it needs to influence not only how people work but also how they work together.
The researchers eventually concluded that what distinguished the ‘‘good’’ teams from the dysfunctional groups was how teammates treated one another.
Psychological safety is ‘‘a sense of confidence that the team will not embarrass, reject or punish someone for speaking up,
Harvard Business Review
Productivity Skills to Help You Gain Time BackHarvard Business Review
6 min read · 2020-04-07 · Time is your most valuable resource. Spend it carefully.
productivity
automation
apps
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You have to spend time to make time, but like compound interest, in the long-term, you will save exponentially more time than you invest.
Most decisions are reversible and should be made quickly.
Most of us are incredibly careful about how we spend our money. But when it comes to our time, we hardly give it a second thought.
Lifehack
10 Simple Ways To Refocus a Wandering MindLifehack
6 min read · Apr 13th · Do you want to reach your goals and avoid distractions? Here are 10 simple ways to refocus your wandering mind and achieve success.
productivity
better living
focus
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Parkinson’s Law holds that “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion,”, which is why setting time limits can deflate a ballooning task.
If you have your schedule set and know you only have an hour to get a particular task done, it will be significantly easier to avoid procrastinating.
I don’t always succeed, but I try to focus my time and energy where it matters, and I know that busyness is not synonymous with productivity.
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Listen to Music All Day, Get More Done
calendar.com
An ex-Googler is giving Gmail a brilliantly productive feature—on his own
Fast Company
How to Think: The Skill You've Never Been Taught
Farnam Street
Which Works Better: Habits or Projects?
Scott Young
Learn Letter: Tips from neuroscience to keep you focused on hard tasks, audiocourses with the spotify of…
Eva Keiffenheim
How I’m Adjusting My Productivity System for the Distraction Age
Darius Foroux
Decision anxiety: how to make decisions when feeling anxious
Ness Labs
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Zapier
Exactly how to arrange your to-do list, calendar, and workspace for maximum productivityZapier
6 min read · Nov 5th · One of Zapier’s senior managers points out that since she can’t wait for technology to create more hours in a day, using time more intentionally is a great jumping-off point for creating an effective…
productivity
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I’ve been on a 10-year quest to find the perfect way to organize myself and my teams. Sure, it’s been a crooked path, dotted with wrong turns and missteps, but over the last three years at Zapier I’ve developed a system that works well for me—and taught me a lot about what doesn’t work
If you’re at the start of your own productivity quest (or even somewhere in the middle), I recommend focusing efforts in three broad categories: calendar management, tasks and projects, and work-life balance.
Lifehack
16 Productivity Hacks For LeadersLifehack
~19 min read · Nov 3rd · Turn efficiency into effectiveness and create a less busy life for yourself.
productivity
growth
priorities
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Either you learn to prioritize like it’s nobody’s business, or you are doomed. The essential activities that will move your business forward should always be tackled first, even if they are the hardest to crack.
Here’s an excellent tip from a Pentagon general: “First I make a list of priorities: one, two, three, and so on. Then I cross out everything from three down.”
Learn to refuse the invitations; you will never have time to focus on what’s truly important while trying to chase some possible opportunities out there, even if they seem fun, useful, or interesting.
Ness Labs
Decision anxiety: how to make decisions when feeling anxiousNess Labs
5 min read · Nov 17th · Have you noticed that sometimes you can make decisions in an instant, but at other times the choice feels overwhelming? Anxiety can reduce your willingness to take risks, leading to a phenomenon known…
decision making
productivity
mental health
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Take control of the decision making by exploring your options rationally without the distraction of any unhelpful fears.
Start journaling your ideas, and document your fears, hopes or expectations so that you have a clear idea of where you are now, and where you want to get to.
By recognising that a bad outcome could be managed, you reduce the impact of your internalised fears. 
Oliver Reichenstein
End ProcrastinationOliver Reichenstein
5 min read · Nov 13th · The most influential companies in the world put all their energy into getting us to click, react, and consume. If you work on a computer, procrastination awaits you everywhere, all the time. How do…
productivity
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Procrastinating means you’re “delaying” (until tomorrow).
Split your work into reasonable chunks. Get started choosing the least painful, then choose the next. Finish task by task
Most often, you find inspiration when you are already at work. Literally, “in-spiration” means “breathing in.” To get inspired, take a breath and start.
Neuroscience News
Researchers Discover Best Way to Avoid ProcrastinationNeuroscience News
2 min read · Nov 15th · If you want to curb procrastination, don't set yourself a deadline, or set as short a deadline as you can, researchers say.
productivity
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New research from the University of Otago has found that if you want someone to help you out with something, it is best not to set a deadline at all. But if you do set a deadline, make it short.
tested the effect of deadline length on task completion
the results are applicable to any situation where someone asks another person for help
Every
Cultivating FlowEvery
6 min read · Nov 10th · Remembering Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, discoverer of Flow
brain
productivity
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Csikszentmihalyi believed that flow is available to everyone regardless of socioeconomic background or status.
A person in flow is blissfully immersed in a goldilocks activity—something not too hard but not too easy.
one’s skills are adequate to cope with the challenges at hand, in a goal-directed, rule-bound action system that provides clear clues as to how well one is performing. Self-consciousness disappears, and the sense of time becomes distorted.
Austin Kleon
A state of flowAustin Kleon
2 min read · Oct 23rd · A couple of quotes from the late psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
career
productivity
brain
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Creative people have a great deal of physical energy, but they’re also often quiet and at rest.
Creative people are humble and proud at the same time.
5. Creative people trend to be both extroverted and introverted.
Farnam Street
How to Think: The Skill You've Never Been TaughtFarnam Street
4 min read · Nov 14th · No skill is more valuable than the ability to think. But how can we learn to think better? How can we avoid thinking poorly. Let's explore.
brain
productivity
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Thinking means concentrating on one thing long enough to develop an idea about it. Not learning other people’s ideas, or memorizing a body of information, however much those may sometimes be useful.
Good decisions create time, bad ones consume it. Good initial decisions pay dividends for years, allowing abundant free time and low stress. Poor decisions, on the other hand, consume time, increase anxiety, and drain us of energy.
Good decisions create time, bad ones consume it. Good initial decisions pay dividends for years, allowing abundant free time and low stress. Poor decisions, on the other hand, consume time, increase a
Darius Foroux
How I’m Adjusting My Productivity System for the Distraction AgeDarius Foroux
4 min read · Nov 18th · Ever since the early 2010s, people have been warning of the “age of distraction.” It is no longer a warning. We’re in the Distraction Age.
productivity
Scott Young
Which Works Better: Habits or Projects?Scott Young
5 min read · Nov 7th · Daily habits or intense, one-off projects? In this article I explain why both are necessary to do great things.
productivity
habits
learning
Productivity

9 Best Articles in 2021

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