Why You Should Aim for Imperfect Productivity

The internet is jam-packed with stories of people showing off their working schedules.

“I wake up at 5 AM. I do yoga between 05:15 and 6:00. I turn off all distractions and work through till 12:00.” Blah, blah, blah…

While many of these people are genuinely looking to help you boost your productivity, in reality, a lot of the time they’re just trying to boost their own ego.

Sure. Getting up early every day and getting to “the grind” nonstop is a great way to get things done. But is it the way you want to get things done?

According to a piece from The Wellbeing Thesis:

“Kim, Park and Niu (2017) research found it is important to take mini-breaks throughout the working day. Mini-breaks help to support your wellbeing and increase productivity. A mini-break is a few minutes away from your work; this may be chatting with someone who is in the room with you or getting a drink.”

But I’d take this argument one step further…

Rather than simply taking “mini-breaks” throughout the day, I believe productivity can be boosted with regular bouts of procrastination, scattered throughout the day.

Or what I like to call Imperfect Productivity.

Given most people consider procrastination to be a HUGE detriment to your work, you might think I’m crazy right now. But here are a few reasons you might want to hear me out…

If your breaks are scheduled, are they genuine?

For a long time, I tried to stick to the same scheduled breaks every single day. Generally, these would fall once mid-morning and once mid-afternoon. Giving me time to squeeze a meal in the middle, of course.

But I came to realize these regularly scheduled breaks were doing more harm than good.

Yeah, stepping away from your computer, or whatever it is you do, can be of great benefit. But there’s no denying having to stick to these timeframes drastically disrupted the sense of flow I found in my work.

You know the feeling — when you’re so “in the zone” in what you’re doing everything else around you becomes irrelevant and you feel like you’re making significant progress.

When I found myself having to work around these set break times as opposed to looking forward to them, it undoubtedly affected my work.

I was either rushing to get things done before the big hand of the clock struck twelve — I don’t like to leave a job half-finished — Or I was lagging because I knew I had plenty of time to finish the task at hand.

NOT the kind of procrastination you want to be indulging in. Trust me.

What was my solution? I started listening to my body more.

Rather than letting the sands of time dictate when and how you take a break, focus on the way you feel — If you find yourself getting a little burnt-out, you’ll know when it’s time to shut your eyes, or go and catch up on your favorite Netflix show.

The same goes if you’re struggling to progress, too — sometimes we’re just not “feeling it” when it comes to getting things done. And that’s OK! You’re probably just overthinking things anyway and a little time doing things you enjoy, or things that distract you, could be beneficial.

If you’re the type of person who finds it hard to get motivated, maybe this isn’t the best advice, and a schedule could be the way to go.

But if you’re like me and enjoy sessions of dizzying, intense productivity, mixed with calming, relaxing bouts of chill time? This could do the trick for you.

Trust your instincts. When it comes to knowing when it’s time to get in gear or lower a gear they won’t steer you wrong.

Your quest for perfect productivity could drive you mad

How many people do you know (in real life, or on the internet) who are KILLING THEMSELVES every single day trying to cram as much work into twenty-four hours as possible?

Workaholics are everywhere. There’s nothing wrong with being a workaholic, don’t get me wrong.

But if your desire to work is driven by an insatiable need to prove your level of productivity to others, or even yourself, it could be time to take your foot off the gas a little.

The human body, like all machines, is only designed to handle so much pressure. The same goes for the human mind.

If you’re dead-set on pushing yourself to the absolute limit, you could be opening the floodgates to several unsavory conditions like stress, anxiety, depression, and countless others.

But if you’re one of those people who thinks your brain can handle just about anything, this report from Psychology Today has something to say to you:

“Despite long hours, chronic stress prevents you from being as productive as you once were, which often results in incomplete projects and an ever-growing to-do list. At times, it seems that as hard as you try, you can’t climb out from under the pile.”

The question you need to ask yourself is: Is your quest for perfect productivity worth risking your health and lowering your quality of life?

If the answer is no, and you know you’re guilty of the above, be a little kinder to yourself and take some time away.

When you come back, refreshed, recharged, and rearing to go, you’ll be a completely different animal.

There are such things as “Healthy Distractions”

The word “Distraction” is almost always perceived in a negative light. Something that takes you away from what you’re supposed to be doing, forcing you to lose both time and productivity.

But what if I told you some distractions can actually help boost your productivity? I call these Healthy Distractions.

These are the kinds of distractions you shouldn’t be ashamed about giving in to.

I’m not talking about video games or random social media scrolling — they’re almost always a detriment.

I’m talking about distractions that help you keep moving things forward, even if you aren’t moving things forward in your work.

Things like going for a run, meditating, making yourself a delicious meal, doing a little housework. All things that have absolutely nothing to do with your job, yet all forms of productivity that will help you make progress in some aspect of life.

Because that’s what life’s all about at the end of the day: Progress.

We can’t all move in one direction at one thousand miles per hour. But most of us have the option to take the occasional detour, as long as we make it to our destination in a reasonable time.

We all have different ways of working. What works for me might not work for you. It’s one of the many beauties of being uniquely individual. Either way, I hope you’ve found the above interesting at the very least.

But if you’re one of those people who’s dealing with productivity issues right now, don’t be so hard on yourself. It can be a pretty deep hole, but it’s always one we can dig ourselves out of.

Take a breath. Take it slow. You’ll get there.