474: Pitfalls to Productivity
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Why is it so challenging to implement productivity tips into our lives? Amazon has over 10,000 books on the subject of ‘productivity’, so there certainly isn’t a universal solution for everyone. One of the major stumbling blocks to actually being more productive is a lack of understanding of how we work, and the nature of the work we need to get done. We break down common misconceptions to being more productive, along with several things to take into consideration when assessing a new productivity method, tool, or technique.
Main topics
Misconceptions of quick fixes
Challenges to implementing
Taking a holistic approach
Knowing yourself
Main takeaway: Knowing your priorities, work style, and the realistic demands on your life is crucial for finding genuine productivity improvements.
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A VERY ROUGH TRANSCRIPT OF THE EPISODE
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Meghan 00:00
Oh hello, welcome to pet sitter confessional episode 474. I'm Meghan, I'm Collin. And we are the hosts, thank you to our sponsor, pet sitters associates and our awesome Patreon supporters, we really appreciate you giving back to the show and finding value in it. If you would like to learn more about what a Patreon member is, you can go to petsitter confessional.com/support. Megan
Collin Funkhouser 00:26
mentioned that we were approaching almost 500 episodes. And with that volume of information out there, and especially topics, it can be hard and daunting to get into the show and figure out what we've talked about or what those specific episodes are. So what we've done is we've gone and collected our top episodes and grouped them into topics that we get asked a lot about, or that we know will be particularly helpful. And we call these our starter packs. So if you want to go and view what we've put together already go to pet sitter confessional.com/starter packs. And that's all one word, things that we have up there right now include information about all the episodes about hiring, business, basics, marketing, all of them about self care, and pricing. They're all individual players. And you can click right to the episode, read the show notes and get all that information without having to search around. One
Meghan 01:19
of the topics we talk a lot about here on the podcast is efficiency in your business and being productive with your time. A lot of people give tips and hacks and tricks to be more productive to do more with the time that you have. Because we can never get time back. The tricky part is that ultimately you have to know yourself and how you work how your business operates, and be a little bit introspective in order to know what's going to work for you.
Collin Funkhouser 01:44
The topic of productivity is huge among individuals, especially business owners. I mean, it's it's really a self help topic of how do I help me be better at something, the bookshelves at your local bookstore are laden with this there are so many blogs, there are so many podcasts dedicated, they're extremely coaches dedicated to adjust this topic of being more productive. And there's a lot of information out there. And really what that speaks to is the fact that nobody is quite satisfied with the information that's there. And so we have to ask ourselves is that a problem with the information or with the person receiving the information, because there are a lot of misconceptions around productivity in that, oh, if I just do this one fast, quick, amazing thing, I'm going to boost my productivity by 10x. If I wake up at 4am, and go run for 20 miles, I'm gonna have the energy to get everything done on my to do list and have a completely empty email inbox by the end of the day. And what this says is, it's a really big misconception about quick fixes in our life, and that this continual seeking and pursuit of the one thing or the next best thing, or that one other tip or hack is going to get me over the boundaries and the barriers that I keep finding myself in,
Meghan 03:05
we really do need to understand ourselves. First and foremost, before we can implement any of the productivity hacks, it's the importance of understanding our own work style. When thinking about how we work, we need to recognize that there may be popular productivity techniques, like the Pomodoro Technique, but we need to make sure that it actually aligns with how we work best. Because there's often this lack of introspection, that we are not understanding ourselves better to know how we can best serve ourselves and our business. Yeah,
Collin Funkhouser 03:36
when it comes to the problems of actually implementing these these productivity methods, or hacks or systems or tools. We don't know ourselves enough, we don't know our brain chemistry, we don't know what time of day we are going to be most active. Are we a morning person? Afternoon? Are we an evening person? If we don't know those simple, fundamental things, if we don't know how we like to organize things? Is it by tags? Is it by context? Is it by place? Is it by files is it you know, it's it's really going, what do I need? And instead of us trying to force a system into our life and going well, I guess I just have to do this thing, because that's what people do. That's That's how I see all these people who are productive and quote unquote, successful. So I guess I need to follow their lead. Instead of just trying to do what they do. We have to go, how do I actually work and what systems methods or what conglomeration of that because if we're being perfectly honest, there's no one size fits all. So we've got to put three or 410 different systems together to make our own way of operating so that we can actually be productive in the way we need to be. Because
Meghan 04:43
if we aren't introspective, then it really can come down to this overconfidence in our productivity methods. If we don't have that proper reflection, or consideration of the effectiveness of a particular technique on our lives and how we work, it can really lead to inefficient work habits and ultimately not being productive. And oh, this hack didn't work for me. But this guru or this expert said it was going to but it didn't? Well, that could be because you didn't take the time to know yourself best. And think about, well, is this technique going to work? For me? It may work for this person, but is it going to work for me? Well,
Collin Funkhouser 05:20
and sometimes that hubris can just come from the fact that we don't think we need systems, or we don't think we need tools. And so we go well, I'm, I'm quote, unquote, productive without using my calendar. So I don't need to use my calendar. So I'm going to go ahead and go out and do off all these other things. But what happens then is that life gets more complex, we've run into more problems, where we're I don't know, if you've noticed, we're kind of running businesses kind of out of hand and crazy. And we continue to convince ourselves that we don't need the help. We don't need the system, we don't need the tools, we don't need the tips, we don't need the insights. And so we continue to trudge on, meaning that all of this information that we're learning, all those books on the shelves just go to waste, because we don't think they're for us that we don't think we need them personally. And it does lead to those inefficient work habits, because then we just try and brute force our way through a problem that ignore tools and things that could actually be helpful for us.
Meghan 06:19
Or then we run into problems of like, Oh, I forgot the keys, or I accidentally deleted the visit, or something really kind of catastrophic happens in our business. And we go, oh, man, what could I have done to make that better? What systems? What processes do I need to do in order for that thing to never happen? Again, because one of the biggest myths is that there is a universal productivity solution or system that is going to work for everyone that if I just do these 10 hacks that everybody talks about, that I'm going my business is going to be amazing. And I'll never have to change anything. Again, as long as I implement these things. A productivity system is and should be highly individualistic. And that advice, like time blocking or taking breaks may not be beneficial for everyone. Yeah. Because
Collin Funkhouser 07:07
if you're the kind of person who taking breaks, actually is detrimental to you because you are like to push through and just get something done. If that's how you're
Meghan 07:17
wired, right? If raise your hand, because that's me. Somebody
Collin Funkhouser 07:21
coming along and saying, no, no, you need to take a 20 minute break, go take a break, that will be the most infuriating thing in your life, and you will actually be more distracted than if you would have just sat down and worked the way you work. And what's also important here is it's not just that you are you are unique, and how you need to be productive. But your work is also unique in what you're actually trying to accomplish. And that is an aspect that so many productivity gurus and hacks and coaches and tips and whatever trying they completely miss is, does this technique, work with the way this person is wired and the work that person is trying to get done. Now only you know, your work. And so just taking something whole cloth and not trying to adapt it to you or your work that you're trying to get done, is going to lead to you not actually staying on with that and pursuing and pushing through, and persevering. When that gets hard individualizing the work and individualizing the tools and practices will help you stick to it and actually be more productive in the end. We've
Meghan 08:29
used that word several times hacks, when you usually that indicates a shortcut or a simple trick, something that is going to work really fast and work really well. But that's not always the case here with productivity. Because why we have to be introspective and we have to kind of cherry pick what's going to work for us, we have to make holistic changes rather than relying on these quick fixes. Because just as there's no way to get rich quick overnight, except if it's a scam, and then it doesn't really work. There really is no way to hack your way to the top in anything but especially in productivity. If you don't already have this on your list add getting insurance to it. As pet care professionals, your clients trust you to care for their furry family members. And that's why pet sitters Associates is here to help for over 20 years they've provided 1000s of members with quality pet care insurance. Because you work in the pet care industry, you can take your career to the next level with flexible coverage options with client connections and complete freedom in running your business. Learn why pet sitters Associates is the perfect fit for you and get a free quote at pets@llc.com. You can get a discount when you join by clicking membership petsitter confessional and use the discount code confessional when you go to checkout, check out the benefits of membership and insurance once again at petsfit llc.com.
Collin Funkhouser 09:42
Because packs don't actually make you better at things. I mean, just imagine if you were trying to make it to your very first visit on time. Well, a hack of productivity could be we'll just drive faster to the first visit from your house. Right? Well, that's actually not a system Animal thing just always drive faster. It's a great hack, isn't it? Right? You'll always you'll always, quote, be on time early. But is it actually getting at the core of what the problem is? holistically? Have you prepared for the day? holistically? Have you? Do you have everything in line? Have you prepped your food? Have you done your stretching? Have you warmed up? Have you looked at the route? Have you checked the traffic? Have you looked at every problem that could come up, and then budgeted that time in, instead of just telling somebody? Well, the real way you can avoid being late is just drive 80 miles an hour, everywhere you go, that is a not sustainable, be safe or respectful to other people or see actually getting at the problem. And so what hackers do is they actually are band aids, their cheap plaster, over a cracking facade of things that are crumbling beneath it. And they try and put a hack on hack on hack on a hack. And what it's actually doing is just making it going to be more of an amazing implosion. Whenever the thing goes off, instead of peeling it all back, stripping it all down, getting okay with getting dirty, and in the muck, and then working hard to rebuild that to actually make it a strong foundation, make it actually something that will last
Meghan 11:14
well, and I guess we need to make a distinction here between being efficient and being productive and and hacking, because you do want to be efficient with things in your business, we all have very limited time. And we need to be we need to do the best with what what limited time we do have?
Collin Funkhouser 11:29
Absolutely the problem comes in is when we place an overdue amount of weight or emphasis on a simple hack, or tip or trick and think that's what's going to get me over the hump here. That's what's actually going to save my time. That's what's actually going to make me get my taxes done on time. Because the honest answer is no, it's not. It's way more complicated than that. The reason we don't stick to or the reason we don't be as productive, or we're not as productive in our life is we tend to rely on little things to help push us over the edge. When we actually need to take that huge step back. Ask deep questions about ourself of going, what do I personally struggle with, with the work that I'm working on? Why is that a struggle for me, then we have to build from there. It's
Meghan 12:17
really so easy to suggest productivity methods, but as much harder in implementing them in a way that fits your lifestyle in your work pattern. That is that is hard to actually do the work, as we've talked about on recent episodes, you can learn all day, it's super easy, just intake information. But then when you go and sit down and you try to implement it, oh, that's when the rubber meets the road, that's when it is hard.
Collin Funkhouser 12:39
That's an that's a huge challenge to actually implementing productivity methods are these productivity tips. Because when we actually have to go do it? Well, then now that's whenever we struggle to actually personalize it to ourselves. And a major challenge of implementing this, again, when we think about this, from a holistic perspective, is actually the role of physical and mental health in this we're talking things about sleep, exercise, nutrition, and then the mental health of stress management, dealing with that anxiety, anxiety or depression and getting help with those things. These profoundly impact your productivity, I mean, just think about all the studies that have come out about looking at nutrition and sleep, and students that are in school, those who are not getting the nutrition that they need, or are not sleeping well struggle to pay attention and stay awake in school, which impacts their learning ability to stay focused and actually get the work done that they need. So instead of again, trying to just say, Well, you just need to do a Pomodoro technique and you'll be fine. Well, are you getting enough sleep? Is that a reason why it's hard for you to focus? Are you getting the good workouts in? And are you eating the right things that are going to allow your brain to be fueled through those tough times. It's about incorporating these wellness as a foundational element of productivity. Again, as we look at this more holistic view, a
Meghan 13:59
popular hack is to turn on Do Not Disturb on your phone. And that is very easy to do you just click a button and your world is is safe from any type of technology and digital distraction. But it really does come down to is that going to work for you. If you have employees in the field? Well maybe Do Not Disturb is not really an option for you. Because you may need to work on something important, but they may need to reach you about a question or a problem that they're having. So again, it's individualizing the situation again, that
Collin Funkhouser 14:33
problem of I've got too many notifications. So I need to get a technology to help me with my notification. So I'm going to put on Do Not Disturb to handle these distractions. But does that actually fit your work? Does it fit what you need? Does it fit where you are in your business was actually workable for you. It's
Meghan 14:51
important to think about your surroundings that could potentially be a barrier to your productivity, maybe your family you've got a lot of fun Only responsibilities right now, the social and environmental factors are huge. What are your social expectations? Are you involved in too many activities or have signed up for too many events, those types of things influence your productivity. Let's say
Collin Funkhouser 15:14
you want to start doing morning and evening daily reviews about the tasks that you have completed, that you need to complete, or that you still are waiting on feedback from, this is a great technique to make sure that you are staying on top of these little tasks that come up throughout the day, so they don't get lost. However, let's say that you are also highly involved with a family member who has soccer practice in the evenings or hockey practice or whatever that is, or curling, and you need to be there for that, well, that's going to cut into your time, and it's actually going to prevent you from doing that evening review. So then you stop doing the evening review. So then you stop catching the things that you didn't get to throughout the day. So then those fall off of your plate, and those don't get done. Now you have to go. Okay, how important is my review how important is curling practice for my family member. That is where we have to start aligning these of going just Megan said earlier going people shout off Oh, well, you just need to do this, or you just need to do that. But you also have to balance how that fits in your life outside of your work with your social environment, and making sure that those are overlapping, and that you have those prioritize correctly, because at the end of day, early in practice, it's probably way more important than an evening review. So I need to do something with this evening review, move it earlier, move it later, while still giving myself plenty of time. So I'm not cutting into my sleep, so that I'm getting up so that I can get what I need. So that can be focused tomorrow morning. It is an incredible balancing act that we have to do as we work through these things. And this is where the idea of a hack or a tip or whatever, it's just not enough, you have to look at it from a holistic perspective.
Meghan 16:46
Something to keep you motivated is to set those long term goals, the ones that are realistic, that have time limits that you know exactly what's going on, day in and day out that you can clearly see the objectives that you're going for. When you regularly review your progress, you can adjust your strategies according to know how much time you've devoted and what what has fallen off your plate and what you need to put back on. It can help align those daily tasks with the broader objectives that you have,
Collin Funkhouser 17:16
and keep you motivated to keep chunking away at them. Again, having that long term perspective of there's no way I'm going to get there immediately, there's no way I'm going to get there overnight. Acknowledging that from the get go is a great way to help you go, Okay, if I understand that getting into this, I know I can work through this no matter what comes up
Meghan 17:35
and knowing that there will likely be setbacks and even potentially failures in something you're implementing in your business. And that that is okay. It is okay for something to not work out, it is okay for you to put on Do Not Disturb. And then an employee has something that you missed it and you're like, oh, man, that's not going to work for me. I need to adjust and adapt what methods work best for me. We want to encourage that mindset of experimenting and learning in our business. And yes, acknowledging the setbacks that they are going to happen. We are entrepreneurs after all, but to learn from them, and to have them motivate you to keep you going.
Collin Funkhouser 18:13
Because we can become discouraged when we try. We buy the latest book, when we enroll in that latest course when we listen to that best podcast on productivity. We try that method, we try our darndest, and it doesn't work out and we fail. Instead of going well that tip didn't work. I need to go find the next tip, I need to go buy that next book, I need to do that next thing. Instead of doing that, we need to hold that tip in our hand and look at what has what was suggested to us and go, How can I make this work better for me? And understand why did it fail or understand what we could do to make it better, and actually work with that. And that process of experimenting and progressing through everything is going to allow you to better understand yourself more, and what help you're actually needing and is going to work best for you. Because in the
Meghan 19:02
end, we need to understand our personal priorities and our workstyle that's really again what this all comes down to that it's easy for people to say you need to do this. You don't need to do this and put these demands on you and your time. But until you are introspective until you ask yourself the hard question of how do I work best? What do I need? Do I need no cards? Do I need my phone out in front of me? Do I need to go take a walk in the woods and that is where I am most productive? Do I need to go to a yoga class? Do I need to go wakeboarding knowing what your priorities are your workstyle and the realistic demands of your life and things that you have already committed to in your business and in your personal life that is crucial for finding your genuine productivity improvements. If you have advice for other pet sitters and dog walkers in this area, and we'd like to share it with others you can email us at feedback at Pet Store confessional.com Or you can call us at 636-364-8260 Thank you to our sponsor. petsitter, his associates and our awesome Patreon members for supporting today's show. Thank you for taking your time and listening to this. We are so appreciative of you. We hope you will join us next time.
Collin Funkhouser 20:10
Bye
