The only list of everything you need to know about boosting productivity in 3 POINTS.

If you're scrolling through the Google search results for inspiration on how to be productive and you see articles listing more than five items, you're about to fall into an oxymoron. Here is the only 5 minute read you'll need that works to get you on track to be more productive.

Because humans have an natural sense of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) you probably have at least six tabs on already open. Just to show you that there are no hard feelings, I'll take the time to summarise the other redundant lists you'll encounter.

Six of the points mentioned are to remind you to work with your current scenario. If you have to be in the office in the morning, wake up earlier. This gives you "more hours in your day" and allows you to accomplish more tasks calmly. If you work from home, work at your most productive time. Morning person? Get most of your tasks done by waking up early. Night owl? Get a head start on your morning deadlines the night before.

The other five points encourage you to improve yourself and your environment around you. Tidy up your work area, wear headphones, eat healthy or learn to type faster. These are mostly suggestions that are dependent on your line of work and location. My favourite suggestion is to engage with new material. If you have a long commute you should try reading. If you hate reading or you have to drive, listen to a podcast. Self-improvement is key to productivity.

Now that I've unpacked ten articles and neatly organised the information for you, pay attention to the following three points for maximum productivity.

1. Plan and keep track

Before you jump into your day of productivity it is important that you note what you need to accomplish in a way that works for you. Keep note of your deadlines and sometimes you have to set your own deadlines within those goals. For example: If you have a deadline at work and your child has a play on the same day, find a way to make sure that you complete your work deadline before the play. Visualise your coming events and make sure that your schedule is working for you to meet all your important goals. Keep track of how much time you dedicate to each task while making room for short breaks and exercise. Work in intervals that take advantage of your stimulated energy. Taking some time to stretch will not only revitalise you but also prevent strain.

2. Prioritise and don't procastinate

If a task can be done in less than 2 minutes, then do it. Looking at a large to-do-list can be daunting so if you can shed of the smaller items you find that a busy day was actually not as bad as you thought. You can find that by getting started on activities helps fuel your productivity and drive you to accomplish bigger tasks. The idea is to keep the ball rolling so avoid unnecessary meetings that could have been an email or engaging in tasks you could have delegated. Learn to either say no to errands and events that kill your productivity, or find smarter and less time consuming ways to get things done, such as online shopping or virtual assistants.

3. Minimise

Remember in the beginning when I was telling you the oxymoron of reading a long list to find productivity? This last point is giving the side eye to the five unnecessary tabs that are open on your browser. Close those tabs, switch off phone notifications and learn to be proactive rather than being reactive. Set aside time for responding to emails, and don't get caught in the trap of jumping onto everything that lands on your lap. Focus on one thing at a time, with less emphasis on perfection. Having completed tasks boosts productivity more than having tonnes of incomplete projects. Avoid grasping onto multiple sources, ideas or discussions as this leads to getting overwhelmed with information thus wasting your time and putting a halt on your productivity.

Don't you just love it when everything comes back full circle?

What ways do you use to improve your productivity? Use your calendar? Bullet journals? Whatever method you use, comment it down below. Personally, I sometimes plug in headphones with nothing playing just to get a few minutes of work done.