Things You Should Avoid On A Daily Basis Part 2

TWT Newsletter #9

A continuation to Things You Should Avoid On A Daily Basis Part 1.

4. Leaving loops open

This is one of my favorite topics to talk about as well as one of the most destructive things that will kill your productivity. The fundamentals of loops are tasks or thoughts that are in your mind that are unfinished. A simple example is reading an email or text message and not responding to it. Another example would not be doing the dishes and trash, but then seeing them and thinking you should do them when you have more time. Over the course of the day, these unfinished tasks or open loops will take up and occupy your brain; consuming your mental energy.

These loops will continue to occupy your mind, being added to some kind of queue waiting to be processed for completion. Just waiting for you to remove it from your plate. If you leave the loop open, your brain will have constant random reminders that will steal your thoughts and energy.

By completing the task as soon as possible, you can eliminate your open loops and remove it from your plate. It frees up your queue for the next task. In order to protect your time, energy, and thoughts - close your loops as much as possible. This will also allow you to achieve more throughout the day.

Another thing you might ask is - What if you can’t close this loop by doing the task or commit to the thought at the present moment? What can you do?

Well if you cannot do it, then the process I take to “close a loop” is to write it down or offload it by putting it in my system to process and do later. This is through adding it to my Asana boards or leveraging my Virtual assistant to take this off my hands. My Asana workflow or Virtual assistant will take this loop and do whatever is necessary to close or hold this loop. By doing so, the loop is “closed” for me today. This allows me to free my space and mind, allowing my mental energy to be focused on the important things throughout the day.

5. Too much screen time

The average person spends over seven hours per day looking at a screen. On average 2-3 hours of the 7 hours are spent looking at your phone. That's about a third of your life looking at screens!

It’s not surprising that reducing screen time is just as important as eating more vegetables, drinking more water and exercising. Sitting at a desk or watching television for long periods of time can lead to serious health conditions. In today’s world, most jobs (and even hobbies) require significant amounts of screen time. Also, we all like to unwind after a long day with some entertainment. Therefore, it’s important to recognize that reducing screen time will help you be healthier and more productive.

Less screen time will make you more productive by:

• Avoiding Burnout – Evidence shows that too much screen time can increase feelings of anxiety and depression. Scrolling creates a constant need to compare yourself to others on social media. The more you look at your phone, the more likely you are to be in open loops as mentioned above, and obligated to close them by responding to messages. Spending time away from your devices will reduce stress, making it easier for you to avoid burnout.

   

• Positive Physical impact - Reducing screen time prevents straining your back, eye, and thumbs due to prolonged sitting. Furthermore, eating in front of a screen has been associated with overeating.

• Better Efficiency and Focus – Restricting the time spent engaging with devices can increase overall efficiency and the ability to control distractions. More screen time is often due to instant gratification and can make focusing difficult and challenging. I do two things to decrease my screen time: use the iPhone's default screen time app-limits and block apps when I hit my time limit on them. And using the DND and focus time feature has increased my productivity.

One of my productivity tips is a game I play with my phone. I wake up and try to see how long I can go without using my phone. The reason is because I want to achieve all the things I do for myself such as meditation, reading, exercising before everything else. I know I will be distracted by cheap stimulants and/or urgent tasks as soon as I look at my phone screen. It’s like being sucked into the matrix the moment you look at your phone. Your day starts and you go to your default programming - autopilot - as you enter the hustle and bustle of your busy day. So be cognizant of your screen time and know to become more productive you should reduce your screen time.

6. Sitting around

Stop spending your time sitting around all day. You can get stiff joints and tight hip flexors from sitting for hours at a time, even if you are reasonably active. Stretch your muscles after long periods of sitting. Incorporate more activity into your day. For example, every 20-30 minutes, set a timer to remind you to move around. You should take your phone calls standing up. Consider an adjustable standing desk for your computer (which is what I do). If you want to watch TV while sitting on a stability ball, use your muscles instead of a chair. You want a balance of 50/50 throughout the day of sitting and standing up if you can. Standing desks allow me to maintain this ratio as well as move as much as possible when working.

It's imperative to consider how we spend our time and the implications of our actions. In our daily routines, leaving our loops open can result in unnecessary stress and lost productivity. Screen time can also negatively impact our mental and physical health, so taking breaks and engage in other activities. Lastly, avoid sitting for long periods of time because it can cause a variety of health problems. Get up and move around. By being aware and addressing these issues, we can live a healthier life while pursuing our purpose and wealth.

That’s a wrap on things to avoid on a daily basis:

• Leaving loops open

• Too much screen time

• Sitting around

Thanks for reading this two-part series. Hope you learned and enjoyed my newsletter!

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- William Thing