10 Ways to Break Up Your Routine
I’m a sucker for a good routine. I’ve been known to stand in the same spot every day while I wait for the subway, eat the same thing for breakfast and even pick out my clothes before going to bed at night.
Goodness knows that you oftentimes need your routines to keep you on schedule. I sure do! They can help you order your life, and bring a sense of normalcy to an otherwise hectic schedule.
However, given enough power and time, they can potentially dampen your productivity. If your “routine” is starting to feel more like a rut, try boosting your creativity by shaking things up!
Here’s how to do it:
Take a different way to work: We take the same way to work every day, and for good reasons: The shortest route, the least stressful way, the commute that takes you past your favorite coffee shop. Occasionally breaking from this rut can bring a fresh perspective. After all, your mind is used to seeing the same sights for roughly the same time every single day. Changing this up could be a stimulating experience to wake you up to a new way of thinking or see a new neighbor you didn’t even know existed!
Change up your lunch: Always grab a burger? End up chatting with the same people about the same things? Change it up! Eating a salad with lots of leafy greens can be a healthy way to get the nutrition you need to focus. Picking a new spot means you might run into new people to chat with too.
Switch up your exercise: Services such as ClassPass offer a variety of classes and workouts you can try. So go give a spin class a shot, or maybe try out yoga. Read more
How to Schedule Meetings in a Snap
Sometimes it feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done, and in spite of making and maintaining a list to help us streamline our lives, some things still end up causing unneeded stress.
For me, I get a bit anxious whenever I need to schedule a meeting. It seems silly but the thought of having to look at my calendar and come up with several options stops me in my tracks. I usually end up putting off those types of emails for a while and they take up valuable space in my in-box for too long.
There are a number of online programs and apps that can alleviate stress and streamline the process of scheduling meetings:
YouCanBook.Me— With a simple setup, you can connect your Google calendar to your YCBM profile. What’s really nice is it allows you to embed your YCBM account directly on your website. This way your clients can quickly schedule an appointment without having to waste time creating an account themselves. It can be a little inflexible, but it’s worth a try.
Calendly— Calendly is another program that connects directly to Google calendar. Similarly to the other programs on this list, it is rather easy to use and takes the burden of scheduling (often through bothersome phone tag!) off your shoulders. Read more
Be More Productive with a 15-Minute Vacation
photo credit: Nicole Rouyer Guillet
BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.
The most productive people know the importance of taking a break. In fact studies show that brief diversions from a task can dramatically improve one’s ability to focus on that task for prolonged periods. This is a productivity tip I talk about in my book, Listful Living.
But what do you do with you break? Some go for a short walk, others make a cup of tea – but what about something a bit different? Today I’m going to show you how to take a 15-minute vacation and feel rejuvenated and re-energized.
Here’s how it’s done:
1. Go onto Google and choose the street view.
2. Type in your favorite city or a place you’ve always wanted to visit.
3. Use the Google navigation tools to take a stroll around and enjoy
4. Walk down the Champs-Élysées in Paris or relax on the beach in Bali!
Another great way to take a virtual vacation is to use the app Periscope. If you haven’t heard it’s a new video streaming app that I’m totally obsessed with. Download it and you can watch people live streaming from their phones all over the world. Just recently I watched someone walk along the Great Wall of China. It’s so much fun and a great way to reward yourself after some hard work!
What do you like to do on your break?
BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.