The three C’s to efficiency

We start out our week out with good intentions. We have a long list of items to complete, and we feel confident about getting everything done. But then, life happens, and by Friday evening you may be stressed because you didn’t get half of your to-dos done. First, cut yourself a break. There’s a simple formula for becoming more productive that involves the three C’s: compassion, concentration and consistency.

Compassion

It’s human nature to be hardest on ourselves than anyone else. Start your morning differently. Give gratitude for what you have and who you are. Take a step outside yourself and treat yourself the way you’d treat a loved one. If your loved one wasn’t feeling well, you might make them tea or soup and give them encouraging words. If they have a big meeting, you’d give them encouragement and treat them well.

We need to start doing this for ourselves too. Rather than being our own drill sergeants, take a look at your schedule and see what you can omit. Treat yourself to something that makes you happy before you get started in your day – perhaps reading and coffee, yoga or meditation, or a walk outside – and give yourself the space to simply be before you dive into your to-dos. And when you can’t finish your list for the week, give yourself a break and let yourself off the hook, rather than beating yourself up.

Concentration

Your reticular brain helps you focus on a particular thing because it has been primed to hone in on something. For example, if you are on the hunt for a new apartment or house, you will begin to notice signs in front of houses and will talk to more people about what you’re looking for. Get this process started when it comes to your work and goals by sending an email congratulating yourself for completing the tasks you want to complete. This will set your reticular brain in motion.

The Law of Attraction also applies here. There’s a saying that when you believe you already have something, you will attract it. On the Oprah Winfrey Show, Jim Carrey, who is an avid believer in the Law of Attraction, said that he wrote himself a $10 million dollar check when he had nothing, and a year later after the filming of Dumb and Dumber, he received that money. Rather than having an ‘I hope to accomplish this” attitude, say that you’ve already accomplished it and it will happen.

Consistency

After you’ve primed and set yourself up for success, then do the work and record what you’ve done. At the end of each week, send yourself a list of everything you’ve accomplished. Rather than noticing holes in your list, be proud and give gratitude that you accomplished what you did. Sometimes it’s more about the quality of the work rather than the quantity. Life happens, and we get busy. But as long as you accomplished your main goal for the week, or you’re on your way to getting there, that’s the key.

Stay positive throughout the process and give yourself compassion and love from beginning to end. Journal about your week and track your progress. Over time, you’ll be amazed at how far you’ve come.