Why understanding how to be productive is simple, but actually being productive is hard.
The productivity we write about here is getting the right stuff done well without wasting time. Or, as Jocko puts it, write what you need to do, wake up early, and do it.
This kind of productivity is simple, not easy. After all, who in their right mind would want to work on things that don’t matter, do a lousy job, and waste their time? Yet, we often end up doing that. Evidently, this concept is simple to grasp but hard to implement.
I can think of at least three factors that make being productive hard:
- Our schedules are mostly out of our hands
- We don’t always know what the best thing is
- Knowing what’s the best thing makes doing it only marginally easier
Systems and frameworks can go a long way toward gaining control over one’s schedule and developing clarity of action. Time-block planning helps visualize the portion of the schedule you have control over and allocate tasks strategically. The focusing question is an excellent tool to identify the most promising item to focus on. You can think in terms of little bets to explore different options before committing to one.
But once you have your carefully crafted plan written down, the hurdle of actually doing the work remains.
I know exercise is good for me. And I know I’ll enjoy doing it. But getting started remains hard.
“Being productive” is as much a matter of knowing the tools and techniques as it is about being disciplined in consistently deploying them. Discipline, after all, is doing what needs doing even when you don’t feel like doing it. And that, unfortunately, doesn’t get any easier.