Lead your way to a better Life Work Balance - Habits on improving Strategy & Planning and Productivity Mastery

As a quick recap on the first article in this mini-series, Daryl Woodhouse presented some key insights and his personal story and connection to burnout. Based on his personal experiences, today Daryl focuses his work heavily on burnout prevention, productivity and life work balance.

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From the lows of his burnout to the later highs of achieving more and living happier without overworking, Daryl developed his own methodology and scalable tools to help transfer the learnings to others.

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In this second article of our mini-series on burnout prevention and life work balance, Daryl will focus on the first two pillars of his "Life Work Effect?' methodology: Strategy and Planning, and Productivity Mastery. For both of these pillars we have highlighted a select pick of habits for your to try during your own journey toward a better life-work balance. Enjoy!

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Strategy and Planning

Welcome to the first of 4 equally epic pillars towards your smarter future of hybrid life work success: Strategy and Planning.

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There are multiple facets to this pillar from goal setting and strategic thinking through to planning and turning those plans into action. I like to summarise it as strategic thinking and strategic doing.

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For many people the ability to make the right plans and to implement them is very simple and easy. However, from personally working with many leaders in different sectors across large companies and smaller ones, I can tell you that the evidence of fully effective strategic thinking and consistent strategic doing is too often few and far between. I have witnessed this even in some of the world’s most profitable and well reputed companies with very smart, ambitious and dedicated people.

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I like to summarise why this unfulfilled potential occurs by explaining it is easy to ‘talk’ about great ideas and intentions, however it is hard to turn that talk into action because of various factors such as distraction, over-worker brain fog, lack of resources and unrealistic employer expectations (to name just a few!). With that said, it is even harder to take the RIGHT action efficiently and consistently, usually because even the best need a helping hand, and we have often not been set up with the culture, environment and resources to breed optimal long term success results.

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Habit #1

Begin with the END (Smarter goal setting)

Whatever type of plan you are creating, whether it is long term or short term, business or personal, always start with the end result that you want to accomplish. You cannot expect yourself to fully execute a plan if you don’t know exactly what you're working towards.

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Specific time bound goals enable us to research and plot a clear path forwards with minimal risk and maximum success. They give you long term vision and short-term motivation. Once you are set on a clear goal you want to achieve, it makes everything else easier with a higher chance of optimal success results.

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Habit #3

Lessons from long distance runners

Whether you love a good marathon running challenge, or if you prefer to be a spectator, you will recall the importance of checkpoints to help runners track how far they have come towards the goal of crossing the finish line within a new personal best time.

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Checkpoints are also great to monitor pacing, stock up on valuable supplies such as good old water, and maybe even a mini milestone treat such as a Jaffa Cake!

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Whether it's a business or personal goal you are working towards, or maybe both, it helps to add journey checkpoint reviews with mini rewards to appreciate and draw continued motivation from as you strive towards the bigger goal. Book the reviews into your diary in advance in case your memory falls short.

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Habit #5

Plan your day the night before?

It has been proven that planning your day in advance the day before is highly beneficial in all aspects of not only your own work life, but also the work life of your co-workers.

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Start by setting 3 priority tasks or goals that you want to accomplish for the next day. It will help your peace of mind, sleep quality and energy to wake up with a more focused purpose, better decision making and greater productivity.

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Need some accountability and challenge for this habit? Consider getting yourself a co-worker buddy or mentor to share priorities with in reciprocity. Think of this as to why many of us achieve far greater fitness training results when we have a personal trainer cheering us on whilst monitoring our goals and ensuring regular progress towards achieving or exceeding them.

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Habit #6

Continually evaluate your strengths and weaknesses

When planning ahead it is very important to understand your strengths and weaknesses in the now, but also how they can change in the future.

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How often have you paused to consider that today’s strength can become tomorrow’s weakness? For example, if a business competitor invests heavily to develop superior strength to yours. Or, what if your employer hires a new, more efficient colleague who can instantly leapfrog you in the running for that promotion you are striving for?

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You can assess your strengths and weaknesses in different ways. You can set time limits for your tasks and evaluate how long it took you to complete them and to what quality. Or, you could work with an executive coach to use their experience to evaluate you. Alternatively you can create surveys for your colleagues to share their perspective of your performance and areas for improvement.

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Habit #7

Perfectly imperfect is often more than enough

In many aspects of life and work, perfection is impossible to achieve. Despite common recognition of the above, many of us still too often try too hard to reach perfection. I am guilty of this myself. You cannot complete every task perfectly, and the desire for perfectionism can paralyze you and make tasks take even longer. Trying to do it perfectly will end up wasting your valuable time and energy.

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A great way to save a lot of time and resource wastage is reminding ourselves that imperfection, or rather, getting reasonably close to perfection is often more than enough. Finding balance is again key here.

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Consider what tasks will suffice at 70-80% of perfection, get them completed to that standard and then if you have time later you can review and improve later. Learn to trust your abilities to get tasks completed to a high standard without it being perfect.

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Habit #9

Strengths are strengths for a reason – how well are you leveraging yours?

It is a very traditional business approach that we focus on weaknesses a lot. I witnessed this in my earlier corporate career and many times since even amongst very successful leaders, teams and world renowned brands. It baffled me somewhat.

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I wholeheartedly agree that weaknesses can be a serious threat to our livelihood and business/career success, so there should be a focus on them. However, I have found too many individuals and companies to be hyper focused on weaknesses and insufficiently focused on leveraging strengths.

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In many cases, strengths tend to come naturally to us, or we are professionally trained/qualified in them. Therefore, surely it would be easier to improve performance results by focusing on leveraging our strengths more than trying to fix weaknesses?

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Like with many life and work decisions that lie before us today and long into our future, the best approach to our challenges and opportunities come with some form of middle ground or balance. What I am saying is absolutely those weaknesses need great attention, yet so do those strengths.

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One easy but significant way you can get better at leveraging those strengths is to ensure you regularly and proactively undertake activities to get better at those strengths.

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Much like many of those incredible Olympic champions who do not settle for winning their first medal or breaking a world record for the first time. They go away and work hard for another 4 years to get fitter, faster and stronger to do it over and over. They would not achieve that just by focusing on weaknesses…

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Habit #12

Change mindset

What is stopping you from becoming an even greater business leader?

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One of the things you might be missing is a positive change mindset due to fear of failure. A balanced approach to managing risk and jumping on opportunity is really good and it is ok knowing you might fail. In many cases, failure has been proven to be essential to analyse what went wrong to help identify the right way forward.

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Practise overcoming discomfort. Every period of growth will include some discomfort, so rather than avoid it entirely, prepare for it. The more you avoid discomfort, the more you will limit your growth.

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The larger the risk the larger the reward, so within reason, consider pushing into unchartered territories to take danger and risk head-on to succeed. Going out of your comfort zone and embracing frustration or fear is a known character trait of many past and present successful people being prepared to learn from possible failure. Sometimes you need to take a step back to leap forward.

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Productivity Mastery?

This is possibly my favourite pillar. Why? Firstly, productivity is a topic I have not had much formal training on yet it tends to come naturally to me. Secondly, most people I have met in my life and career have had very little training on it too, yet it does not come naturally to them.

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In other words, it is the subject where I seem to more easily create the most transformational impact for my clients. I hope you’ve got plenty of fresh paper and a full cartridge of ink in that pen... Enjoy this chapter and for your own good do your best to learn and subsequently take better action from this day onwards. You deserve it.

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Habit #13

Know where your time goes

Do you feel like you don't have much time to be productive? You are not the only one and it is common for people to feel this way, so how do you make room for more productive time?

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Making time to keep a ‘time spent per task’ tracker can be exceptionally helpful. 10 minutes a day for 2-3 weeks can be more than sufficient to create some incredible insight to your productivity levels.

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Take a look at the times when you feel the most productive and make a note of when that is. You might find a pattern. Then look at the gaps where you don't feel productive, why don’t you feel productive? What is it that is distracting you or lowering your energy?

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Once you identify what the distractions are, you can manage and in many cases eliminate them. If it is your phone that distracts you, you could manage when and how long you can spend on it. Make sure you regularly keep track of how you are managing your distractions so you can work out what is effective and what isn’t.

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Habit #16

Schedule time to eat with others

Businesses that schedule time for colleagues to eat together are more likely to see a boost in productivity.

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At least once a day try and make some time to eat with others, this could be breakfast, lunch or dinner with family, friends or colleagues. Maybe even all of the above! The dining table is a perfect opportunity for storytelling, reconnecting and conversation.

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Further, people generally tend to eat healthier including more fruit and veg into their meal when they know they will be eating with others, and this can absolutely work over video conferencing or a group phone call if you are on a remote work day.

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Aside from the benefits of social interaction, a pause from frequently ‘intensive work’ is a great way to give your mind a break and de-stress. Do not forget that happy people are more than 13% more productive..

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Habit #17

Improve your self-discipline?

There are many so-called ‘secrets to success’ out there, however a real underestimated difference-maker in achieving your goals is self discipline. Numerous studies have shown that self discipline increases performance, physical and mental health as well as overall happiness.

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Habit #18

Visualise success

This is comparable to athletes who have publicly shared how they visualise being the first to cross the finish line as a method of drawing focus and motivation.

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Focus on how you will feel and who you’ll be when you reach your goals. Describe how it will feel in as much detail as possible.

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Pause, meditate and feel those emotions.

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Note down what that person in the future is doing differently to what you’re doing today, and be sure to include any key actions in your planned activities to make the visualisation a reality.

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Habit #20

Proactively limit distractions

70% of workers admit that they feel distracted with 16% stating they are almost always distracted. Distractions lower your productivity and energy so it's important you know how to manage them.

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If your pitfall is getting distracted by your phone every time you work then try moving it out of reach, putting it on silent or setting strict time frames with when and how long you are allowed to spend on it.

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The same can be applied to email or notifications on your other devices such as PCs or laptops. Consider turning those notifications off as it is so much better for optimising productivity by focusing on one task at a time through to completion (as long as you build in sufficient breaks).

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If you get physical interruptions at your desk when in the middle of a key task, then why not communicate what you are doing to your household or office colleagues and provide a time slot for when you will be available to them later?

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Habit #23

Be more efficient with your communication

Teams who communicate effectively can increase productivity by as much as 25%.

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I have seen many teams rely too heavily on communicating in limited ways. Too much time writing to others, or too much time having inefficient meetings can create several negative effects, so a balance is better.

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For example, if it’s easier and quicker to contact a colleague via phone call, voice message, then do it. No need to spend so much time writing out an unnecessary email if it isn't needed. Mixing up your forms of communication builds a more authentic social bond with others, brings energy from variety and frees up your time.

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Habit #25

Take more breaks

Did you know you will be a lot more productive if you take more frequent breaks?

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Too many people try and stay productive for hours on end which will just lead to them burning energy too quickly and getting less work done. It is also damaging to your eye health and brain function.

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Feelings of ‘I have too much work to do and don’t have time for a break’, or ‘the longer I carry on working for, the sooner I will be finished’ are completely normal and common, however they are proven to not be the smartest, healthiest or most productive way of working. It’s been proven that taking short breaks will relieve stress, restore energy and boost mental resilience needed to be more productive.

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That’s why it's key to take more frequent breaks, for example, every hour you could get up and walk about for 2-5 minutes.

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Habit #26

Reduce work hours

One of the main reasons people spend less time being productive is because they work too many hours and struggle to stay busy and focused the whole day. As a result they run down the time with boredom, tiredness and distraction until the moment they realise work needs to be done.

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With so many of us reported to be overworking and typically unpaid beyond recommended or contracted hours, setting a stricter boundary to when your work day will start and end is a great productivity booster as well as improving wellbeing and life work balance.

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This one habit touches 3 out of 4 pillars from the Life Work Effect.

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Another incentive to reduce your working hours is that it helps you to be more productive for longer periods of time, for example from higher energy and lower levels of fatigue.

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There are many credible studies beyond my own that prove less is more in the case of work hours and productivity outputs. One of my favourites is Microsoft Japan, which trialled a reduction of work hours by 20% to experience a phenomenal productivity increase of 40% 9. If that does not make joining my mission against overworking a complete no brainer for you, then one of us has it wrong.

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Habit #28

Clean regularly

Ensure your workplace is clean. A recent study conducted by Staples Corporation found that 94% of workers felt that they were more productive when the workspace was clean.10 It boosts overall productivity and feels like a nicer work environment, all while heavily reducing the risk of getting ill.

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Habit #30

Big hairy potatoes

?Have you ever seen a big hairy potato? I have and it was not pretty.

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A few years ago I discovered that one of my kids had dropped (or maybe hidden) a couple of potatoes under our dining area side unit. They had been there for sometime before my discovery - judging by the gigantic size of the fur and mould growing from them!

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In other words, a big hairy potato is something you don't want to see or touch. Moving this into a work context, these are the tasks that you don't want to do and typically will avoid or delay for as long as possible.

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Think of those tasks that are complex, boring or require your concentration for a long period of time. Understandably you naturally want to keep putting them off. Maybe you put them off right up to the absolute deadline which means you either miss the deadline or are very stressed and rushed which massively affects the quality delivered.

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The answer is to stop delaying the inevitable. Block adequate time in your diary to get those big hairy ones out of the way ASAP. Do them earlier in the day when you are fresher, which usually means you'll get it done quicker and more easily.

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Furthermore, ending those stalling tactics means you're not distracted from worrying about it and wasting energy consciously or subconsciously. The feel good vibe from getting it out of the way quicker and sooner gives a further energy boost and motivation to next tackle those more enjoyable or easier tasks quicker and to a higher standard.

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Habit #31

Time block challenge

This is a smarter work and productivity habit I have had fun experimenting with for a few years now. Whenever I set a task for myself, a client or a colleague, I try to set a guide for how long the task should take. Sometimes it is a very specific number, sometimes it is a range.

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Often from having a set duration, it helps focus the mind to (most of the time) complete the task within the timeframe, and sometimes with time to spare. It also helps others who might have confidence issues about their work standards, and makes it easier for serial procrastinators to not overthink the task and get it done sooner.

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Try it out and keep a light record of the results - I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how much time and energy is saved from this habit!

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That's it for today - I hope you enjoyed it and are well on your way toward a better life work balance! More habits on Life Work Balance and Wellbeing to come in the final part of this mini-series.?

Daryl Woodhouse?helps organisations optimise ROI. Daryl is on a mission to create a smarter future of work and life. As The Smarter Work Pro?, and creator of the Life Work Effect?, Daryl specialises in growth strategy, performance improvement, hybrid work productivity and burnout prevention.

Through keynotes, workshops, programmes and his first of its kind mobile app saving hard-workers more than 10.7 hours per week, Daryl equips leaders and teams with the inspiration, skills and tools to work smarter, achieve more and live happier without overworking.