10 Most Efficient Productivity hacks for Students

Productivity is key to success. The more you become productive, the more you can get the best out of it. It’s easy to start the day being productive, but it becomes harder to continue the same routine every day. Also, we start losing focus and start to procrastinate.

So why does this happen and why people can’t stay productive as they wanted to?

It happens because we don’t understand the actual meaning of productivity correctly. Productivity does not mean being busy all the time. Most of us think that the more we work the more we become productive. But we are humans, not factory machines. Our bodies can’t take on so much workload. At the end of the day, we feel lethargic and our brain starts losing focus. Because of that, we constantly procrastinate and jump from one task to another without completing any of them.

So here are some hacks based on my personal experience, which will help you to improvise your productivity :

1. Eat the frog !!: Mark Twain once said, “Eat a live frog first in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” This technique is great to get more work done in less time. Most of the time in the morning we try to finish all the small, nagging, and annoying tasks to get over them as soon as possible. As a result, we become tired and start to procrastinate even though we have a lot of important work to finish. Mainly eating the frog means finishing the hardest and most important task first. So if you have more than one frog, eat the ugliest frog. It will be the very first thing in the morning.

2.  The two-minute rule: This rule is the most effective way to stop procrastination. Putting away the work undone just because you feel bored and do not have enough confidence to finish it on time, you will never be able to start. Also, you will end up skipping most of your work. Instead of skipping, give yourself just two minutes to finish the work. So by limiting the time, your brain will be forced to complete the work within 2 minutes. And after completing the work in under 2 minutes you will feel more confident. And by keep doing that you will be able to finish most of your work. David Allen said in his famous time management book, “ If an action will take less than two minutes, it should be done at the moment it’s defined.’’

3. The Pomodoro method: In the late 1980s, Francesco Cirillo developed a time management method called, ‘the Pomodoro method. It uses a timer to break work into intervals, typically 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks. It’s a very effective method. But it’s not necessary to study for exactly 24 minutes. Because sometimes it’s very hard to complete a lesson within 25 minutes. So you can set a time that suits you the most. Scientists said the maximum time a student can study is for about 45 minutes. After you set your timer, keep repeating that until you have completed your study. By adding a few sets of Pomodoro you can easily tackle a huge amount of work. It's a great method to improve productivity. 

4. Avoid distractions: Social media is the main source of distraction. If we once get into it, we keep scrolling down and down for hours and waste our valuable time. And if we keep doing this, we will never be able to improve our productivity. So, before going to study, always make sure that you put your phone away from you and turn off your social media notifications. By doing that you won't touch your phone and won't get distracted easily. Also, you can limit your social media app's screen time. Some apps can help you to focus on your studies. Like "Fliped, Forest, Study bunny" etc. These apps are very great. I personally like them. These apps helped me a lot during my study sessions. I’ll talk about those apps soon on my next blog.

5.  Make a schedule for the day: Always try to make a to-do list before going to bed. So when you woke up you don’t have to waste your time thinking about what tasks you have to do for the rest of the day. Also, you can add a timetable to your to-do list. So you will have a particular task at a particular time. And also by doing this you will get to know what task takes exactly how much time and you will be able to shorten the time of your particular tasks if it takes less time. That way you will be able to save some extra time. Most importantly try to make your to-do list flexible. So that you can change them easily as needed. And always make the to-do list as short as possible. Besides writing every single task, sort them into a section. Like house chores, study, exercise, work, etc. 

6. Be Organised: To become productive it’s very necessary to keep everything organized. Because, if you organize everything, especially the desk area, you can save a lot of time.  Besides, when you see everything organized you will get positive vibes and also will get encouraged to start your day productively. In my experience, when I organize my room I feel more productive and motivated, and also it boosts my energy for the day. So the best way to improve your productivity is to keep yourself organized.

7. Avoid multitasking: Most of the time we try to complete many tasks at the same time. But, we failed to complete any of the tasks. Because our brains can not focus on one task, they keep switching between other tasks. As a result, simple and small tasks become more difficult. So, how much we try to do several tasks together, our minds will not be able to concentrate on any of them. So always try to avoid multitasking. On the other hand, try to concentrate on doing only one task at a time. So you will be able to give your full focus on that task.

 

8.  Do exercises: Exercises are not only for losing weight. Believe it or not, exercise is a very effective habit that can help to improve productivity. Because by doing exercise regularly we will have a sound mind in a sound body. There is a close connection between the body and the mind. Regular exercise can make our body fit and healthy. So if our body is fit, it will be a lot easier to concentrate on our studies. And, we will feel less tired after a long study session. Also, it keeps us free from diseases and makes us physically strong and healthy.

9. Always stay hydrated: Studying for several hours continuously, can make us very sleepy and tired. Also, our brain stops working and we can not concentrate on our studies at all. But if we keep drinking water constantly and make ourselves hydrated during every single break, we will feel fresh and less tired. And also by drinking water frequently, we will have to go to the washroom many times and that way we won’t feel sleepy anymore. I know it sounds very funny and annoying but this is a very effective trick. And this trick always works.

10.  Give yourself at least a day's break: Sometimes we need a break from everything. Because of so much work and pressure. Also, we take too much stress. Then how hard we try, we can not concentrate anymore and lose confidence. Also starts to mess up everything. That’s why we should give ourselves at least a day's break. So that, we can refresh ourselves and our minds too. And on that specific day, we can do some self-care, read some books, go outside and spend some time with friends and family. That way you will feel positive, and motivated and it will refresh your mind. Also, you will gain your confidence again.

These are the 10 most efficient productivity hacks that can help you improve your productivity. So that you can study or work without any pressure, stress, or interruptions. So try these hacks and let me know if any of these hacks helped you. Also, feel free to give any advice or suggestions if you want.