Set the transmission to high gear
When you exit planning mode, you enter execution mode. This is productivity in its most basic sense: completing a task as effectively and efficiently as feasible.
Your efficacy and efficiency are determined by:
- Experience: There is a learning curve for any task. A person who is performing a task for the hundredth time will be faster and better than a newbie.
- Workflow: Peter, one of my colleagues, is an expert in process optimization. He keeps his desk, desktop, folders, bookmarks, file names, and code tidy, which makes working a lot easier and more fun.
- Tools: Accept technologies and tools that will increase your productivity.
- Intelligence: Obviously, it plays a role, but one that I believe is frequently exaggerated. Aside from nature and nurture, performance is also influenced by things under your control, such as your environment and habits.
- Flow state: Flow is a state of mind that helps us to be extremely productive. It's a mental state in which:
- One's attention is concentrated on a small number of stimuli.
- Nothing else matters since you're completely focused and involved.
- You don't have to be concerned about failing.
- You become disoriented, and time becomes twisted.
- Your actions and awareness are intertwined.