Folks, you know today’s guest author, Gretchen Rubin, from her best-selling books on happiness, habits, and human nature, her inspirational talks, and her popular daily blog GretchenRubin.com. Gretchen also gives practical, actionable advice on her podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin. We’re excited to have Gretchen join Drift Kings Media today to give us her top tips on how good habits can help you stay healthy and on track when your workspace is also your home.
If you’re a blogger and working from home, it can be difficult to stay productive and creative. You can always leave the housework behind – or take a nap on the sofa!
5 ways I use habits to stay creative and productive while working from home
In Better than beforeIn my book, How to Master Habits, I identify the 21 strategies we can use to develop or break our habits. I use many of these strategies on myself to stay on track as a blogger.
1. I use the strategy of hedging to avoid temptation.
To do the serious work of original writing—my most demanding kind of work—I take my laptop to a library a block from my apartment, and I don’t have access to the Internet there. It’s physically easier to avoid the lure of my three monitors than to exercise self-control. Many people achieve the same thing by using software to turn off the Internet for specific periods of time each day. Look for stumbling blocks, plan for failure!
2. I use the scheduling strategy to complete specific tasks at specific times.
It turns out that Work is one of the most dangerous forms of procrastination. So when I tell myself, “At 10:00 a.m. I’m going to write this blog post,” I don’t allow myself to think at 10:00 a.m. that I can also clean up my desk while I’m writing. Check your email, post on Twitter, go through my calendar or treat yourself to my personal favorite, do some research. At the specified time I complete the task I identified or I stare at the ceiling. Even when I don’t feel like working, I quickly end it out of sheer boredom.
3. I use the foundation strategy to make sure I get plenty of exercise during the day.
Some days I go to the gym, take a yoga class, or do a strength training session. Since we also just got a new puppy, I’ll be taking a lot of short walks during the day. Research shows that exercise helps me stay energized and focused—and it also helps me keep my back in my chair when I work. otherwise I will become very restless. And as Nietzsche wrote: “All really great thoughts come from walking.” When I go for a walk, I often gain great insight or make an important connection.
4. I use the monitoring strategy to track how much I post.
How many posts do I have? Really do every week? We do a better job at almost everything (exercise, diet, spending, etc.) when we keep a close eye on what we’re doing.
Strangely enough, I discovered It’s almost easier to post something everyone day than to post some days. I usually post 5-6 times a week, so it’s part of my daily routine. I don’t torture myself: “Should I write something?” I wrote yesterday and the day before yesterday, shouldn’t I have today off? I have a good idea for tomorrow, so should I take today off? “I didn’t sleep well last night, I’ll write better tomorrow,” etc. But if I posted, say, three times a week, I’d go through this every time, I’m sure.
As it is, I just have to post. If you need a daily time log to monitor how you spend your time every day, download it Here.
5. I use the treats strategy to give myself enough time to read.
The treats strategy is the best Fun We should load up on healthy treats because if we give We can do more for ourselves questions more of ourselves. Reading is my favorite activity, and when I make time to read for fun, I feel energized and cared for. My reading also provides me with new ideas, illustrations and insights, so it makes blogging easier too. But I spend a lot of time each week reading exactly what I want to read, rather than what I think I “should” read.
BONUS
Here’s a strategy that I don’t need, but that a lot of people do: the accountability strategy. In Better than beforeI divide people into four categories: Supporters, questioners, committers and rebels. (Take the quiz Here.) For people who “debtor” (which is the largest category, by the way), is the strategy of accountability decisive. Key. Essential!
If you’re really good at meeting other people’s expectations but have a hard time meeting your expectations of yourself, You have to be accountable to the outside world. Start an accountability group (starter kit). Hereif you want to start one) where people hold each other accountable. Work with a coach. Find a customer. Check in with a buddy. Do whatever it takes – because for many people, writing on a blog regularly is simply not possible, no matter how much they want to do it, if there is no external accountability. Know yourself and plan accordingly!
If you want to read more about how you can use habits to make your life happier, healthier, and more productive, check out my book. Better than before. Turns out it’s not all that hard to change your habits –if you know what to do.