{"id":6582,"date":"2011-06-28T23:30:05","date_gmt":"2011-06-29T07:30:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/?p=6582"},"modified":"2013-09-11T08:15:28","modified_gmt":"2013-09-11T16:15:28","slug":"are-you-taking-productivity-too-far","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/","title":{"rendered":"Are You Taking Productivity Too Far?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Screen-shot-2011-06-29-at-12.28.21-AM.png\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Since you\u2019re reading Pick the Brain, I expect that you\u2019ll agree with me when I say that <strong>productivity is a good thing<em>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Being productive generally means:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You\u2019re living up to your full potential (instead of daydreaming about what might be &#8230; and never actually doing it)<\/li>\n<li>You\u2019re being proactive rather than reactive, taking control of your own life<\/li>\n<li>You feel good about yourself and your life: each day, you have a sense of accomplishment<\/li>\n<li>You\u2019ve got clear goals, and you\u2019re on track to reach them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Pretty great, huh? It sounds like a recipe for a happy life.<\/p>\n<p>Except&#8230;<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;can you end up being <em>too <\/em>productive?<\/p>\n<h2>The Darker Side of Productivity<\/h2>\n<p>Like I say, I\u2019m all for productivity. I like to do useful, fulfilling work, and I get bored easily if I\u2019m wasting time or procrastinating.<\/p>\n<p>But &#8230; I know that sometimes I take it a little too far. And I\u2019ve often read blog posts or comments from other productive people who are definitely edging towards <em>too much<\/em> productivity.<\/p>\n<p>Yes, getting things done (or if you\u2019re a David Allan fan, Getting Things Done) is good. But it\u2019s not the be-all and end-all of life.<\/p>\n<p>When you get overly focused on being productive:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Your relationships suffer.<\/strong> Hanging out with your friends might seem \u201cunproductive\u201d whereas staying an extra couple of hours at work is \u201cproductive\u201d. But what\u2019s really more important to you in the long-run?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Your health might be at risk.<\/strong> Sure, maybe your gym routine counts as \u201cproductive\u201d \u2013 but what about a long, leisurely walk, or a healthy meal eaten away from your desk?<\/li>\n<li><strong>You get stressed.<\/strong> You feel a constant pressure to keep doing more, and more, and more&#8230;<\/li>\n<li><strong>You lose perspective.<\/strong> <a href=\"..\/why-efficiency-is-overrated-{54c12dad2cc2b53ae830e39915b1a3e70288dbcbbeb8bbf8395437c5dc3c512c}E2{54c12dad2cc2b53ae830e39915b1a3e70288dbcbbeb8bbf8395437c5dc3c512c}80{54c12dad2cc2b53ae830e39915b1a3e70288dbcbbeb8bbf8395437c5dc3c512c}93-and-what-to-do-about-it\/\">Instead of trying to be <em>effective<\/em> you end up just being <em>efficient<\/em>.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Do you need to take your foot off the pedal?<\/p>\n<p>Is your focus on productivity starting to make you feel miserable or stressed out?<\/p>\n<h2>Taking a Break From Productivity<\/h2>\n<p>If this post is striking an uncomfortable chord with you, then it\u2019s time to take a step back and learn to breathe again.<\/p>\n<p>You could:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Re-examine your definition of productivity.<\/strong> Spending two hours reading a great book in a coffee shop could well be more productive than spending two hours staring at your computer screen. Taking care of your kids could be one of the most productive things you\u2019ll do in your whole life.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Plan some down-time<\/strong>. Take an afternoon off \u2013 or a whole weekend. If you plan ahead, you\u2019ll have it to look forward to (and you\u2019re more likely to actually hold yourself to it).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Find leisure activities that you really enjoy.<\/strong> Sometimes, we get caught up in productivity \u2013 whether that\u2019s at work or in the home \u2013 because we don\u2019t really have anything else to do. Join a club, take up a new hobby, or plan a date night with your partner.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Get away from it all. <\/strong>It can be hard to \u201cswitch off\u201d from work at times. By getting physically away \u2013 to a different city or even a different country \u2013 you create a real break from your regular life.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Life is about so much more than simply checking off everything on your to-do list \u2013 and being less than 100{54c12dad2cc2b53ae830e39915b1a3e70288dbcbbeb8bbf8395437c5dc3c512c} productive is no crime. In fact, it\u2019ll probably make you happier (and easier to live with!)<\/p>\n<p>So &#8230; a challenge for you! If you think you\u2019re overdoing things, how can you get comfortable with being <em>less<\/em> productive? Let us know in the comments&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>Don&#8217;t Forget To Follow PickTheBrain on <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/pickthebrain\">Twitter<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Related Articles:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"..\/4-musts-to-stay-committed-to-your-diet\/\">4 Musts to Staying Committed To Your Diet<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"..\/the-massive-benefits-of-a-healthy-diet-and-how-to-make-yours-stick\/\">The Massive Benefits of a Healthy Diet and How To Make Yours Stick<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Like I say, I\u2019m all for productivity. I like to do useful, fulfilling work, and I get bored easily if I\u2019m wasting time or procrastinating.<\/p>\n<p>But &#8230; I know that sometimes I take it a little too far. And I\u2019ve often read blog posts or comments from other productive people who are definitely edging towards too much productivity. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12163,"featured_media":6583,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[17,6],"tags":[259,66,4639,4629],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v19.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Are You Taking Productivity Too Far? - Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Like I say, I\u2019m all for productivity. 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I like to do useful, fulfilling work, and I get bored easily if I\u2019m wasting time or procrastinating.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pickthebrain\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-06-29T07:30:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2013-09-11T16:15:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Screen-shot-2011-06-29-at-12.28.21-AM.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"604\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"459\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@pickthebrain\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@pickthebrain\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erin Falconer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Screen-shot-2011-06-29-at-12.28.21-AM.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Screen-shot-2011-06-29-at-12.28.21-AM.png\",\"width\":\"604\",\"height\":\"459\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/\",\"name\":\"Are You Taking Productivity Too Far? - Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/are-you-taking-productivity-too-far\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-06-29T07:30:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2013-09-11T16:15:28+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2da8ae162c097bdb749ab098472b4cc5\"},\"description\":\"Like I say, I\u2019m all for productivity. 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