5 Questionable Statements about Improving Your Productivity

I frequently have my eyes open for ways to boost my productivity. In my evaluation of various productivity software and tools, tips and advice, guidelines and programs, I have seen a number of productivity statements that tend to raise red flags for me. Truth be told, I may even be guilty of making one or two of those questionable statements myself!

If you look at each of these individual statements, and use it as the basis for everything you do to improve your productivity, you may face a harder process than necessary. This list will hopefully help you approach your productivity goals objectively, or at least give you some food for thought.

Here are some of the questionable statements I’ve seen that make me tilt my head and say, “Really?”

There is one definitive productivity solution for everyone.

We all know that most things are not one-size-fits-all, but this is particularly true when it comes to productivity. And there are a lot of “ultimate” guides, “definitive” tools and “perfect” solutions that promise an effective and universal productivity process for everyone. It’s tempting to buy into that, especially when you feel a bit desperate when it comes to productivity, but this is one type of claim you will undoubtedly want to dig into a bit more.

Getting things done is the most important element of productivity.

Productivity is a measure of how much – work, time, effort, money, energy – you have to put into something to get to the desired outcome. Being productive means you are efficient with the least amount of input that’s necessary.

For some, this may mean getting things done, for others prioritization is most important, and still others find that improved productivity only comes from effective organization. For most of us, our personal productivity is a combination of many different elements that make us more efficient.

Productivity is a do it once and forget it activity.

Being productive requires, sometimes unfortunately, constant attention. While you can develop a process that helps you become as efficient as possible, it’s not static. As your life, business and responsibilities change, so should your plan for being productive.

Productivity means doing things immediately and never procrastinating.

Despite the negative connotation, procrastination can be a good thing. Deliberately putting some things off until later can help you do them more effectively when you’re ready to tackle them, especially when you are making the conscious decision to procrastinate. Plus, some tasks are simply more important than others. It may make sense to put less important work behind the work stands to have the biggest benefit.

Your level of productivity (or lack thereof) defines your level of success.

Just as being organized doesn’t necessarily mean you are more successful, your level of productivity doesn’t directly measure who you are, how knowledgeable you are, how much money you make, and how much you enjoy doing what you do.

It can be argued that the more productive you are, the more you will be able to accomplish with the least amount of stress, but that’s not necessarily true. Plus, there are plenty of people who are super productive, mainly because they don’t have a lot to manage. Productivity and success are not directly correlated.

What are some of the statements you’ve seen that contradict productivity as you view it?

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