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Health and Wellness

The Art of Productivity

Being a Semi-Productive Human Some of the Time

Katie Bell

Jun 29, 2016

Arizona State University

Being an adult is hard.

We’ve got all of these responsibilities to take care of now. Add school into the mix and you’ve got a long list of things we have to get done in a short amount of time. Luckily for us there is an art of productivity. The key is getting things done while avoiding other things. I’ll give you a few examples.

Laundry

The absolute best time for me to get my laundry done is the day or two before I have a paper due. Maybe I have started it by this point, but probably not. So instead of sitting in front of a blank computer screen and wasting my time, I finish all the laundry that I haven’t done in the past two weeks. By the time I wash, dry, fold and put away between three to four loads of laundry, i’ve killed a few hours. I may not have finished my paper but now I’ve got clean sheets on my bed and an outfit for tomorrow. Who is the real winner?

Showering

So you’ve spent another day doing nothing. You woke up at 10:00am and got sucked into the vortex that is Netflix. On the one hand it is your day off so you technically don’t have anything you have to get done today. Except pay the bills, go to the gym, get your oil changed, go grocery shopping and everything else you can’t do on a normal day. It’s now 5:00 pm and you’re thinking the day is lost. That’s when I take a shower. Taking a nice long shower and getting dressed is key. Regardless of what you get done after the shower, you’re squeaky clean and you smell wonderful.

Cleaning

There’s nothing more productive than cleaning. And the best part of cleaning happens to be there is no end point. One can always find more things to clean. Dusting the cabinets, re-organizing office drawers, sweeping the floor and the like. I prefer to save cleaning for when I have to make life decisions I don’t want to make. Whether I have to have a tough conversation with a friend or make a choice that affects my future, it can wait until my room is spotless. I swear my life could be a complete and utter mess, but if my house is clean I feel like I can conquer the world with one hand tied behind my back.

So there you have it. The next time you’re ready to throw in the towel because life sucks sometimes, have no fear. Stop looking at the at the things you aren’t doing and start looking at the things you are accomplishing. There is an art to productivity. Even though I may not get everything on my list done, I am doing something. As long as you keep trying that’s all anyone can ask for. I think that’s what being an adult is all about.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.

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