4 Strategies for a Healthier Approach to Productivity
Are you a productivity nut like me? If so, you understand how people can totally thrive on being productive. We productivity nuts are motivated by it. Our structure comes from lovingly crafting our to-do lists, and perhaps our sense of peace even comes from crossing those items off.
I really, really love my to-do lists. 🙂 I’ve got them on sticky notes at home, on my computer, and on my phone when I’m on-the-go. I love the guidance and purpose that lists seem to bring my day. And even more so, I love completing those items on my list! But this drive to check off item after item after item can feel overwhelming, consuming, and even purposeless. We often include things on our lists and check them off without much thought of the greater picture or purpose. I want to submit that there is a different, even better, way to approach productivity in our day-to-day lives!
4 Strategies for a Healthier Approach to Productivity
1 // Start with purposeful prayer. Each morning, when you sit down to map out your day, your plans, and your list… Pray: “How can I be productive for YOU today, Lord? Use me today to bless others through what I do.” Having this watchful focus will bring purpose back into your day and your to-do list, as you find yourself looking for opportunities to accomplish tasks that will bless others.
2 // Have a hospitality-focused home. It’s one thing to clean just for the sake of cleaning. And yes, I could do that all day! 🙂 But when we really change our attitude – to creating a space that is ready to go and ready to welcome people in – that is when we truly have a purpose-filled housekeeping philosophy! (If you’re not a huge cleaning nut, check out the post I wrote on how to clean your house in just 20 minutes!)
3 // Incorporate selflessness into your to-do list. I know that many to-do lists are already others-centered, which is wonderful, but my own lists can run down the path of “things for Hannah to do for Hannah” if I’m not careful. That’s why I like to include tasks that encourage others on my lists. For example, items may include things like “Mail anniversary card to college friend,” or “Send Mom that funny article.”
4 // Recognize that even the smallest tasks can be purposeful. One of my favorite work-related Bible verses is Colossians 3:23-24, which reminds us: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men…It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” And there is even the quote: “We can do small things with great love.” So, even a task as simple and “meaningless” as folding my husband’s T-shirts or wiping off the kitchen table can actually be full of purpose if I do it with love. If I approach even these small projects with an attitude of service and excellence, then I believe God is strengthening my character and bolstering my service mindset for when those bigger tasks come along! Also, then the T-shirts get put away and the kitchen table is then clean. Win win win. 😉
How about you – do you fall into the category of a list lover? 🙂 Are you driven by the desire for productivity like me? How do you approach your lists and your tasks each day with purpose?
Whoa. I LOVE this, Hannah. It’s so much more than a stereotypical productivity post about making lists and checking them twice; I love how your point is to refocus on what matters most, and asking the Lord to direct us.
Aww, thank you so much, Daisy!! Yes – exactly! Productivity feels so meaningless if it is just focused on the daily grind of making and completing lists. I so appreciate your thoughts, and I’m glad it was meaningful to you!
WOW! What a great post on productivity, Hannah. This breathes so much life into my approach to productivity. Productivity isn’t getting things done for the sake of getting them done—it all connects to a higher purpose and that purpose it to the serve the Lord. Thank you so much for these reminders to recenter and refocus my heart and my habits on doing work for the kingdom and asking for his perspective before doing work. Such a lovely post!
Gina, thank you so much for your kind words!! I’m so glad this post was useful to you! Productivity is such an interesting concept – and it’s so hard to remember the bigger purpose instead of just crossing things off the list sometimes! Definitely something I will be continuing to work on. 🙂 So glad to have you here!
I am a fellow list lover and productivity nut!! However, I hadn’t considered a few of the tips you mentioned. I needed the reminder to be more purposeful in my prayer life and asking for wisdom and guidance in what I do in a day. It’s easy to try to brush off the small tasks that don’t seem to have a big importance, but you are so right about them being a service!
Hey Sky! Woo hoo! So fun to find another list lover! 🙂 Yes, starting the day (and the list-making) with prayer is such an important step, and something I’ve been working on lately! I think it really makes a difference in how I approach what I want to accomplish that day. I’m glad that the point about small tasks spoke to you! Our lives are so full of little tasks, but we can definitely do those with great love! 🙂
I love the idea of starting with a prayer!
Yes, Chelsea! I found it makes a difference for me! 🙂 Otherwise I just start the day already feeling overwhelmed by my lists 🙂
I love this! The idea of having a hospitality-focused home is definitely something I’m working on!
Wonderful! What a great goal to have about the home, Gemma! (I love your name, by the way!) I’m working on having that hospitality-focused home too 🙂 Inviting people into our home can be such a great way to show them love and care. I’m glad you enjoyed this post! Thank you for reading!
This is exactly what I needed to read going into the fall! I have been struggling with feeling like I complete tasks only half-heartedly because of the drive to cross them off my list, so I thought about ditching to-do lists entirely. But then the thought of living list-free gives me anxiety! So I like this balance you have struck, and the call to keep every task purposeful 🙂
Yay!! Thanks for sharing, Heather! I’m so glad this post encouraged you a bit! Yes, it is so hard to do tasks when they just feel like another thing to cross off the list. But even the little things can bring us purpose and even joy! Thanks so much for reading along!