5 Simple Strategies I Use to Be More Productive After Work · Primer

Improve not only your performance at work, but also your life.

You are not your work.

I know that, but like many men, you don’t treat yourself that way. When you spend your best waking hours at work and come home tired, you have no energy or time left to work on yourself.

I don’t criticize this. It’s something that society encourages and normalizes.

But if you’re honest with yourself, you’ll find that if you spend just a fraction of your time and energy trying to be more productive after work:

You’ll look in the mirror again and be proud of how healthy you are
you can achieve your long-held dreams
You could be a better father or husband

But when I get home, I’m tired and don’t have time. After a long and busy day you just want to relax.

“Don’t be so busy making a living that you forget to make a living.” – Dolly Parton

In fact, things don’t change on their own. You need to find another way to make time for self-improvement.

Here are five of them.

Use this powerful physics principle to your advantage

Physics teaches us a lot about life.

For example, the energy required to move an object is much higher than the energy required to keep it moving.

This also applies to life. It often takes great effort to overcome the initial friction.

get up from the couch to go to the gym
Turn off the TV and pick up a book
Put aside your ego and learn what you’re still not good at.

There is a huge mountain in our hearts that needs to be moved. We often feel like we have to. a lot Something, it’s not worth it.

You can reduce this initial friction by doing the following: Just 5 minutes.

I’ve been training regularly for over 10 years, but there are still days when I don’t feel like going to the gym. In such cases, I work on just one practice. Allow them to leave later if they wish.

By the time I complete it, I’m already warmed up, excited, and in the flow of weightlifting. Paradoxically, it is more difficult to stop than it is to continue. This is another physical principle known as . Newton’s first law:

“An object in motion will continue to move unless acted upon by an external force.”

All you need is the first push. Make the perceived challenge small enough that it’s easy to get started. Then just keep rolling.

5 minutes is enough.

don’t lose momentum

Laziness is a luxury.

There is a saying that “If you want something done for you, ask someone who is busy.” That’s true. When I didn’t have much to do in life, I could feel overwhelmed by the simplest tasks.

I just wasn’t in the mood to do anything.

But when I worked full time, had a side hustle, and went to the gym six days a week, time seemed to magically appear out of thin air. Looking back now, I think it was because I didn’t make time to be lazy.

After work, I went straight to the gym instead of going home. After I finished my meal, instead of plunging onto the couch, I heated up the meal. Instead of leaving her dishes in the sink, I quickly cleaned them up.

This doesn’t mean you should cram your schedule and burn out.

Don’t lose momentum – do what you have to do while it’s still there “Doing mode” From work. It looks difficult, but it gets easier.

Once you’re done with your work, indulge in some relaxation.

work side by side

Have you ever heard of shoulder-to-shoulder activities?

It’s when you’re doing something alone, like going hiking with a friend or going to the gym with a training partner, but when you’re doing something with each other.

Psychologist Paul Wright has observed that men tend to be more comfortable with such shoulder-to-shoulder activities than women.

I noticed this myself. Doing something with others adds a level of responsibility, commitment, and fun. Even if you have a slow day, your partner will pick you up and vice versa.

So instead of tackling everything as a solo mission, ask someone to do it with you.

Read a book on the couch with your partner
Watch a self-help course with a friend
Do housework and garden work with children

In many cases, the other person doesn’t even have to do much.

I’m very happy when my partner sits next to me and reads a book while I work. Just having them there provides enough motivation, accountability, and support to keep me going.

Walking down the street can be difficult, especially when you’re tired, so ask someone to walk with you.

Use these approaches to tackle every small task

I love German because it has so many famous sayings and sayings.

One of my s?

“Small animals are shit too.” (There’s a reason we call ourselves a nation of poets and thinkers. This sentence is exactly that.)

The English equivalent is: “Even a little bit can make a mikuru.”

Small things are often overlooked. small. But if you collect enough of them, they pile up and become a difficult mountain to climb. After a long night of drinking with the elves, you find yourself with a to-do list longer than Santa Claus’ beard.

Good news?

If you tackle these tasks properly, you’ll get them done quickly and feel good when you accomplish a lot.

My techniques are:

Batch processing
Group similar tasks together. For example, group everything related to exercise, such as finding a gym, planning meals, and watching videos with proper form. It’s much easier to do everything because you’re already in the right mode.
2 minute rule
If you can do something in less than two minutes, do it now. This allows you to win quickly without wasting your mental bandwidth by keeping it in your head.

Even small things can add up. Make good use of it.

Hacking the motivation and friction equation

All human behavior follows the same equation.

Motivation > Friction = You do it.

Friction > Motivation = Don’t do it.

Friction occurs when you’re tired, have a big job you don’t like, and don’t know where to start. When you have energy, do something you enjoy, and enjoy the results, you are motivated. If your desire to do something is greater than the resistance involved, you will do it, it’s that simple.

This is also why it’s so hard to do anything after work. You have little energy, willpower, or drive. your motivation is Apple bottom jeans and fur boots With a Flo Rida song.

I currently live in Colombia and decided to take Spanish classes, but it was a pain to take them after long work hours.

I found an educational website with interesting documentaries and fun videos by native speakers explaining in Spanish why penguin poop is pink, for different language levels.

My motivation skyrocketed and learning became much easier. I looked forward to the videos every day.

If you make a task fun, you’re much more likely to do it.

play music while doing housework
Let’s make it a game to see how much you can do in 20 minutes.
Combine it with something you enjoy (for example, watching your show while doing some cardio, or drinking a nice cup of tea while reading).
Set a challenge (for example, read 20 pages) and immediately reward yourself (like a delicious drink or your music)

The more motivated you are, the more friction you can overcome.

How to stay productive after work and focus on self-improvement

There are other important things to do on weekdays besides work.

The last thing you want to do is spend all your energy at the office, survive the rest of your waking hours until it’s time to sleep, and start the whole cycle anew.

Use these five strategies to invest as much energy in yourself as you do in your day-to-day work.