One of the best tips for getting things done is to always pretend like you’re leaving for vacation tomorrow and it’s your last day in the office for the next week. When people are preparing to leave the office for vacation, they tend to do a few things:
- Write out a plan for what needs to get done before they leave and create a daily to-do list.
- Get their email inbox cleaned out.
- Make sure all meetings for the next few weeks are squared away.
- Return any lingering phone messages.
It’s fantastic! By the end of the day, they’ve accomplished more than they often do in a week, and hopefully can enjoy some time away.
For many people, their day-to-day doesn’t look like the list above. They don’t plan their day; they let their day plan them. Emails can linger for days in their inbox. Things get messy.
The idea of truly pretending that you’re going on vacation tomorrow likely won’t work; it’s hard to fake enthusiasm like that. However, grabbing a few of those practices every day can be a fantastic way to make every day smoother and more productive.
