Overcoming Common Myths About Productivity

I’ve written a few articles about productivity, and I’ve read many more. I’m always struck by one particular challenge that seems to accompany these articles. Simply put: We’re all different. And different things help us to be productive. While I try to offer guidelines that are fairly adaptive, I know that most productivity hacks are only going to be right for some people. There’s usually not a one-size-fits-all approach.

As such, one of the best things you can do for your own productivity is to dispense with some of those allegedly universal productivity tricks — to acknowledge that some of the things that work well for others may not work as well for you.

Let me show you what I mean.

Common Myths About Productivity

“The really productive people are the ones who wake up at the crack of dawn and begin their days early!”

Sometimes — but sometimes not. You may find early mornings to be particularly energizing, but then again you may find them to be tiring. You may drag in the mornings, and get your best ideas in the evening. And that’s okay! Try to get your work done in the hours that are optimal for your own creative thinking. You don’t have to conform to any particular timetable.