This one simple habit will make you more productive

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You have big goals you’d like to achieve. But many of these goals have been on your list for the past few years.

If you’re so smart, why can’t you accomplish your goals? You’re smart, passionate and hard-working. But some days, you realize you did nothing towards your important goals.

What does it really take to achieve your goals? If it’s not brains, passion and hard work, what is it?

An 18-minute habit for getting important things done

Check out “18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done” by Peter Bregman.

It’s a pragmatic and entertaining book that can help you focus on what’s truly important, by practicing a simple 18-minute habit:

Step 1 (5 Minutes) Set Plan for Day. Before turning on your computer, write down a short list of things you will do towards your big goals. Schedule these into your calendar, with the most important items in the morning.
Step 2 (1 minute every hour) Refocus. Set an alarm to ring every hour. When it rings, ask yourself if you spent the last hour working on the items you wrote down in step 1. Were you productive? If not, recommit to winning during the next hour. Repeat this exercise every hour until the end of the work day. (disclosure, I’ve found that an alrm going off every hour creates more stress than it’s worth, so I checkin and refocus every 3 hours).
Step 3 (5 minutes) Review. And the end the day, take time to review how you did. How did you find your focus? Where did you get distracted? How can you be more productive tomorrow?

Imagine feeling more happy and productive!

Rituals like the one described above make big changes in our lives because they change how we go about changing.

If you practice this 18-minute habit, I mean actually do it, you’ll get more done AND feel happier and more productive at the end of each day.John Haydon delivers social web strategy solutions for “the quick, the smart, and the slightly manic.” Curious? Then visit the John Haydon blog, follow him on Twitter or leave a comment.