What if you really aren't bad at time management? You just suck at prioritizing.

5 tips on how to use your time to create a happier life.

Before we get into this week’s post, read this section if you are a procrastinator, overthinker, or love the idea of planners (but never finish them)!

My viral Top 3 Notebook is back in production (with a new & improved design!) and will be available this Fall, just in time for the holidays and new year! Thousands of you are already on the waitlist and we have limited inventory.

Sign up for the waitlist so you’re first to know when they are back in stock! It will be the hunger games, trust me.

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Stop beating yourself up about not being productive enough.

Being productive.

Honestly, what does that even mean?

Getting a bunch of stuff done in one day?

Getting one main thing done a day?

Resting?

Working on work stuff?

Working on yourself?

It’s kinda like… which one is it? Or is it all of ‘em?

For so long, I struggled with commitment.

I couldn’t finish a book.

I couldn’t stick to a hobby.

I couldn’t consistently use a planner.

I couldn’t even start writing a paper if it wasn’t due within 12 hours.

Long story short, I guess I enjoyed stressing myself out.

I had a habit of not completing things, or putting them off until the last possible second. And I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m still like this, to an extent. HA!

Crazy thing is that I’ve always excelled at school and work — not because I knew how to manage my time, but because I knew how to not. I’m more driven to complete something when I’m under a great dose of pressure.

If anything, all those years taught me how important it is to know how to finesse — a skill I think is drastically underrated.

But once I realized I was working harder due to my lack of preparation, I knew something had to give.

I’ve never been tested for anything like ADD or ADHD, though I would probably pass with flying colors lol. I like to think that my scattered brain is a part of my creativity.

I realized my tendency to procrastinate was due to my lack of commitment. I didn’t know what I was being productive for. I couldn’t see the big picture. And I didn’t trust that I could see things through.

Once I committed to YouTube, that was the first time I’d stuck to something for one full year. And once I started experiencing the results of my stick-to-it-ness, I wanted to keep experiencing them.

So, here are a few things I’ve learned about productivity.

1. Prioritization is more important than productivity.

Failing to properly prioritize causes you to expense productive energy on the wrong tasks. We are most resistant to the thing(s) we need to get done the most urgently. It’s odd, but it’s true. Especially if it’s a tasks that’s not routine.

Imagine needing to update your website with your new products, but instead you choose to focus on lesser priority tasks like cleaning the house and finishing up laundry.

It gives you a sense of productivity, yet leaves you feeling like you didn’t get enough done. That’s because you still have a high-priority task hanging over your head.

Always work on the highest priority tasks first, that way they’re out the way. Use your peak energy for tasks that are most crucial to complete now.

2. You have to define productivity for yourself.

The meaning of productivity needs to be decided by you. Determine your ideal standard of life, and then figure out how to achieve that on a micro and macro level: Micro, meaning how can you apply this standard to your daily life, and macro, meaning how can your daily actions compound to get you to the life you ultimately want.

No one can tell you what being productive actually is because it’s different for everyone. A productive day for a stay-at-home-mom is no less efficient than an athlete who’s training for the Olympics. They’re just different.

3. Get into a state of flow.

According to Headspace.com, flow state is a sense of fluidity between your body and mind, where you are totally absorbed by and deeply focused on something, beyond the point of distraction.

I like to carve out these blocks in my schedule as Power Hours. This is a full hour of focused time. No phone. No Slack. No emails. In fact, I set my phone on a tripod and record a time-lapse of myself working, just to make sure I don’t get distracted.

This is a time I work on bigger tasks like editing a video, writing a newsletter, planning content or just creative brainstorming. But, obvs you can structure them however you see fit. It’s a time for you to get into a deep zone!

4. Stop obsessing over every minute of your day.

There can be an unhealthy pressure to make sure every minute of your day is dedicated to doing something. Girl, bye.

We still have to listen to our bodies. Plus, beyond that, life be lifing. Things come up. Monkey wrenches get thrown. And part of being a productive person is knowing how to handle unforeseen circumstances without losing your marbles.

I tried time blocking my entire day for a few weeks and all it did was stress me out even more than the tasks I needed to complete. It was too much to think about, and when something fell into a window of time it wasn’t blocked for, I was extra stressed.

Using your time intentionally is the goal. Life is intended to be lived!

5. Simplify your system so you actually use it.

Your productivity system is probably too complicated if one of these sounds like you:

• You take more than 2-3 minutes to plan your day.

• You buy planners but fall off after a couple of weeks.

• You write things down but don’t actually follow it. (Okay, this might just be a you problem, but you’re not alone! LOL)

Once I simplified my system, my life changed. And I’m not being dramatic. I stopped writing long to-do lists, time blocking every second of my day, and using planners that insisted I write my dinner plans and weekly budget.

Instead, I started focusing on three tasks a day. JUST THREE. But not just any three things: three needle-movers. Three things that are urgent and/or important to fulfilling my big-picture goals. I don’t move on to additional tasks until I complete my Top 3. Get them done, then celebrate.

**Celebrate your (small) wins.

Rewards help create momentum. Celebrating my daily wins has really become a mindset at this point. And trust me, it doesn’t have to be anything big — It can be going out for ice cream, watching your favorite show, or strolling around Target (IYKYK).

This will help you associate completing a task with something positive (even though checking something off your Top 3 is already the best feeling ever)!

So, now what?

Start small. Try out the Top 3 Method! It takes the overwhelm out of productivity. You can start off by writing your daily 3 tasks in a notebook, whiteboard, or even a sticky note. Do this for a week straight and see how much you get done! And if it’s your vibe, you can get on the waitlist for the new & improved Top 3 Notebook, relaunching this Fall.

Simply put, it’s time for you to put these tips to practice. Stop beating yourself up about what you haven’t done, and focus on what you can do now. We are heading into Q4 and this your time to build momentum. You got this!

In love & creativity,

Erin xx