Six Lies About Productivity - How To Overcome Them

As a remote worker, you want to increase your productivity for your projects. You might look up online articles to improve your work efficiency. However, articles can lie about being productive. Instead, you may have false information, which can hurt your overall work experience. You need to expose these lies about productivity.

Below are six lies about productivity, with a step-by-step guide to improve your workspace through efficient means. Once you overcome productivity lie misconceptions, you can apply more effective techniques instead. They are not listed in any particular order, and these lies about productivity have pros and cons.

1. You Can Work Anytime You Want

It is one of the biggest lies about productivity. As a remote worker, you have more time to yourself. However, not all time is created equal. You need to figure out what time works best, not just whenever you feel like it.

Pros:

• Work at any time you want, day or night

Cons:

• Must abide by your circadian rhythm
• No consistency in work routines
• Lack of motivation for schedules
• Complacency

There is the best time to work, according to scientific research. Take advantage of your circadian rhythm. Try to work in the morning when you are at your most energetic. When you work at home, don’t allow lies about productivity to convince you to lack consistency.

2. Keep Working Until You Are Done

Understandably, you want to finish work as soon as possible. You might consider no breaks to get the job done. However, side effects are detrimental.

Pros:

• Makes you feel like you are productive

Cons:

• Puts too much stress on your mind and body
• Lack of breaks leave you with energy deficiency
• You can lose your motivation
• Monotonous work

Make sure to take scheduled breaks. If you need to relax, try using ergonomic chairs with standing desks from Autonomous. An ErgoChair 2 with a SmartDesk 4 gives you back support, proper posture, free range of movement, and flexibility.

3. Multitasking Lets You Do More

This is one of the more egregious lies about productivity. It is a common misconception we do complete more than two objectives at once. While it sounds like a good idea on paper, in practice, it is inefficient.

Pros:

• Perform multiple tasks at once

Cons:

• Distractions keep you out of focus
• Puts too much stress on your brain
• Humans are built to be mono-taskers
• Compromises your ability to work effectively

 Our bodies are not built to multitask. Focus your energy on one project at a time. Once you maintain your concentration, you can finish them faster.

4. I Should Do It Tomorrow

Perhaps you have too many assignments due all at once. You might think to put it off for another day. However, procrastination is one of the worst lies about productivity.

Pros:

• It decreases the workload for the day

Cons:

• Increases the workload for the next day
• Wastes too much time doing nothing
• Procrastination is overly powerful
• Manifestation of lazy behavior

 Do what you can today. Try not to put work off until tomorrow. Maintain a strong work ethic and don’t give in to procrastination.

5. Perfection is the Goal

It seems simple enough. Perfection means the highest quality you can achieve. Of course, you want to strive for perfection, but is it unachievable?

Pros:

• You hold yourself to a high standard

Cons:

• Perfection is unattainable
• Spends too much time correcting perceived mistakes
• Works harder but not smarter
• Lack of delegation to your tasks

It’s not perfection we should aim for, but progress. Focus on being the best you can be. Don’t believe in perfection lies about productivity. You can achieve better results with the progression of your tasks. Don’t spend too much time trying to do too much.

6. Schedules Are Unnecessary

If someone tells you not to stick to a schedule, they lie about being productive. Even if it is not their intention to lie about being productive, it’s still unhelpful advice. It may seem like you only need a mental to-do list without writing anything down. It’s a common misconception that open schedules mean you don’t need any long-term planning. 

Pros:

• You can go with the flow

Cons:

• Lack of structure in your work routine
• No defined long-term goals in place
• Builds unhealthy patterns of inactivity
• Imbalance of work and home activities

Stick with a schedule so you can maintain work productivity. Defined goals allow you to complete your objectives with a mission in mind. You need a higher level of motivation, which a lack of schedules doesn’t provide.

Overcome Productivity Lie

With these helpful tips, you can overcome productivity lie problems. It’s easy to fall into the trap of listening to unhelpful advice. Lies about productivity can harm your overall work experience if you follow bad habits. Overcome these lies of productivity so you can find the truth to better work experience.