How To Work Faster: When Slow and Steady Just Won’t Cut It

Here at the Well-Ordered Mind, we are all about structure, progress, and peace. We prize order, incremental progress, regular chipping away at a project. For maximum sustained productivity, we advocate living in Quadrant 2, and we are squarely on Team Tortoise.

Those are our ideals. Life, however, is rarely ideal, and sometimes looming deadlines mean that what you really need to win the race is quick and steady. This post will offer some tips for making your work time more productive. These ideas can help when you are racing to beat the calendar or the clock. As a bonus, these ideas can also make your regular work times more productive, even when you aren’t up against a tight deadline.  

Block Time

Productivity is about making decisions beforehand. If you need to finish a project, the first step is to look at your calendar and figure out when you can work on it. Choose times when you really will be able to say no to other commitments. Maybe this has to be early in the morning, late at night, or on the weekend. If you can manage a retreat (a half day, weekend, or week) for focused work, that would be ideal. But since life is not ideal, block out whatever time you can.

Then make blocking that time a policy. Tell yourself, “On Saturdays from 6 a.m. – noon, I don’t do anything except work on my project.”

You should share this policy with others who might be affected by it. That can help you avoid interruptions, and it can keep you accountable for really using that time as planned.

Plan Ahead to Reduce Friction

Make decisions beforehand not only about when you will work, but what you will do. In the time management world, this is part of what it means to reduce friction.

To reduce friction for a writing project, make a detailed to-do list for the time. The list should be as specific as possible, broken down into clear, actionable tasks. “Work on Chapter 5” is not specific enough. “Clean up reference list” is not specific enough. You want something more like a mini-outline:

• Write implications for research (C-BAM, image of ideal teachers)
• Write implications for practice (professional development, inclusion of adjuncts, understanding personal concerns)

Or

• Add sources from Chapter 3
• Check citation style
• Format reference list (hanging indents, spacing, heading, URLs)

Another part of planning ahead is making sure you have the supplies you need. Is your laptop charged? Do you have your articles downloaded? Did you program the coffee maker? Do those tasks ahead of time if possible, so your work time is reserved for work.

Leverage Your Energy

We all have times of day when we feel more energetic and focused. If you are rushing to meet a deadline, you may have to push through work sessions at less-than-ideal times of day. If you have a choice, though, block out your work sessions at your best times.

Lifestyle factors affect your energy as well. It may be difficult to sleep when you are under pressure, but other choices are more under your control. Are you eating enough protein? Drinking enough water? Nutrition is not my area of expertise, but I happen to be related to someone for whom it is. I asked my sister, Cate, to provide some quick advice on eating for energy, and she said that you should pay attention to both when and what you eat.

“Skipping meals or eating sugary drinks and snacks can cause highs and lows in blood sugar, leading to unstable cognition and decreased energy to accomplish your tasks.”

She also advised against relying on energy drinks to keep you going when you are under pressure. These “are no substitute for the nutrient-dense foods that provide your body (and mind) with the fuel it needs.” Eat smaller, more frequent meals and choose less-processed foods to maintain energy.

Also, a cup of coffee doesn’t hurt. Maybe two. Cate didn’t say that, but we have enjoyed many a cup of coffee together, so I think she’d back me up here.

Exercise helps too. There has been a lot of research done on the role of exercise in learning. One of my favorite books on the topic is Spark, by John J. Ratey. Consider prefacing your work session with a brisk walk, some jumping jacks, or a few pushups. Exercise and careful eating–as well as having a plan for your work–can help with the sleep problem as well by making your body more tired and your mind more relaxed.

Optimize Your Focus

You’ll work fastest when you concentrate most fully. That means you need to manage distractions, whatever they may be for you. The phone? Open tabs on the computer? The neighbor’s leaf blower? An uncomfortable chair? The beep of the dishwasher asking to be emptied?

Consider where you focus best. Maybe it is at home. Maybe in a library or coffee shop. Different people need different noise levels and surroundings for optimal concentration. Wherever you work, try to make the space as comfortable as possible. Do you have enough light? Does clutter distract you? Do you focus better standing or sitting? (If you tell me that you focus best lying down, I am probably not going to believe you–although such people do exist, I’m sure.)

Manage Your Distracting Self

External distractions can interrupt focus, for sure. But we can also distract ourselves right inside our own heads. Did I order that birthday gift? Make that call? Oh, and I need to bake cookies for church. And why did I say that stupid thing to my boss yesterday? And that’s such a great idea for a research project . . ..

Manage internal distractions by putting them in a designated place. I suggest a notebook where you can write them down for consideration at a time when you are not supposed to be working. When you write something down, you get it out of your brain, freeing up space (at least metaphorically–I’m no brain scientist) for the work at hand.

You can also distract yourself within your project. This happens when you pursue arguments, sources, or topics not essential to completion. It also happens when you try to make your project perfect. If you have unlimited time, you can consider every theoretical perspective and identify every relevant source. But right now, your time is limited. So, you need to use it on the aspects of your project that are most important. Make sure that your detailed to-do list gives you the structure you need to focus on the high-priority items.

Just as with other internal distractions, you can manage bunny trails and perfectionistic polishing by writing down ideas and improvements in a notebook or digital document. If you end up with extra time, by all means go back and check out your thoughts.

This Too Shall Pass

While most of the tips in this post will be helpful for adding efficiency to any project, this section is specifically for those facing an approaching deadline.

When you are trying to work at top speed, you are going to have to let some things slide. You might sleep less for a while. You might not dust for a few weeks. You might not call your mom as often. You might put off some tasks at work. This state should be a temporary one. The fact that you are working toward a deadline means that there is a hard stop to the hard work. Remind yourself of that. Consider what things in your life you can neglect or streamline for a time, and make sure to communicate to people whom this might affect.

Then, tell yourself that, while graduate school may be a marathon, this is the final .2 sprint. And remind yourself of the relief, gratitude, and joy you will feel when you cross the finish line.

More Information