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Getting things done isn't working all day at 100 miles an hour.
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Looking for ways to do less and get more done sounds a bit counterintuitive, but it actually makes a lot of sense.
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And the following tips can definitely help you.
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Suppose you've got a really important presentation to do.
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It's the kind of task productivity expert professor Cal Newport says needs "deep work."
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Deep work is your concentration sweet spot, where you can achieve most.
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[Shut out the shallow.]
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Smaller tasks like answering emails are "shallow work."
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Try to be more conscious of what your shallow tasks are, and give yourself permission to block them out for a while so you can focus on the important tasks that require "deep work."
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Lots of successful people have cut out the shallow to work more productively.
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Bill Gates went to a remote cottage.
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Others, like Maya Angelou, shut themselves away to write.
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[Call it a day.]
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For good productivity, be strict about when your working day is over, and when you get to the end of your planned work session, ease yourself into a more relaxed state and try Cal Newport's shutdown ritual.
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Look through your unfinished work.
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Write a short plan of how you'll tackle it tomorrow.
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Then close that textbook or laptop and say something out loud like, "shutdown complete!"
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It might sound silly, but it signals the end of your working thoughts for the day.
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After that?
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Have some fun.
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Give your mind the rest it's earned.
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[Find your top level goal.]
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Businessman Warren Buffett's technique for getting people to focus on their most important goals was simple.
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Write down in order the top 20 things you want to do in life, and then draw a line under number five.
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Until you've done those first five, forget everything else.
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For a more structured approach, organize your priorities by making a pyramid of goals, designed by psychologist professor Angela Duckworth.
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Find the big thing that we could call your life's purpose, like inspiring others, or helping people in society.
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Put that at the top.
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On the next level, you'll have mid-level goals like passing an exam.
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The goals below it should all feed into your top-level one.
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They'll be smaller, more practical things—perhaps writing an email, or doing some research.
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If they don't help with achieving your top goal, then get rid of them.
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You could make a similar pyramid with a more specific task at the top—like that big presentation.
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Remember all the other to-dos should feed in.
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[Make your breaks smarter.]
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Let's get back to the big presentation.
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It'll take a few hours to get it done properly, but in order to keep those stress levels at bay, try the Pomodoro technique named after a tomato-shaped kitchen timer.
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Time-management guru Francesco Cirillo says that for every 25 minutes of intense concentration, you should take five off to do nothing at all.
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The theory?
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Tackling a big task in focused chunks with regular breaks gives the brain time to recover and keeps your productivity high.
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In the five-minute breaks, don't jump on your phone!
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Move around, stare out of a window.
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A recent study showed that regular five-minute walk breaks improve people's mood, and even make them feel less tired and hungry at work.
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And finally, if you really need to concentrate, find some pictures of kittens and puppies first.
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That's right.
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Research in Japan suggests that looking at cute baby animals brings out the natural caregiver in us, and improves our ability to focus on the details.
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Turns out productivity can be cute, too.
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Thanks for watching.
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See you again soon!