Danny Forest

March 21, 2018

Productivity

How To Accomplish Your Goals 10x Faster And Better

Danny Forest

March 21, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by @linhnguyen on Unsplash

Last night I was chatting with my business partner from Bad Parrot.

I was telling him I’m releasing my book March 30th, my game on April 3rd and my store on April 6th.

That made me realize the last few weeks were not as unproductive as I thought they were.

I normally consider myself a very productive person. I often read and write about it.

I’m a big fan of Zdravko Cvijetic’s Zero To Skill productivity cheat sheet. It’s the perfect way to start being productive yourself. Just following that, you should dramatically improve your productivity.

Once you’ve mastered that, there’s only so much you can do yourself. Once your 24 hours are “well spent”, you can’t get more.

But there’s a way to still accomplish more, and it all boils down to a single word:

Delegation

My book was written by me, but it was put together by my incredibly useful assistant, Elaizah. This allows me to focus on what I’m good at: writing.

Its promotion will be handled by my networks, some Facebook ads crafted by a Fiverr export. And a special thanks to Zdravko Cvijetic, Tom Kuegler and Jordan Gross for sharing in their network.

My game is a collaboration of 8 people. For the launch for April 3rd, I hired a company’s services and they handle pretty much everything so I can focus on what I’m good at: designing and programming.

My store’s products were all found by Elaizah. She’s filling the store with the products this week. They way, I can focus on what I’m good at: designing the look of the store.

For Bad Parrot, I’m currently in talks with a talented local developer from Bangalore to collaborate with me on the frontend of the application, so I can focus on what I’m good at: the backend.

Saying that I’m accomplishing my goals 10x faster and better through delegating is no exaggeration. If it wasn’t for the people helping me, I certainly wouldn’t have accomplished all of the above. So thank you guys!

In fact, for every new collaborator, that number goes up. You accomplish more with 100 collaborators than you do with 10.

In a subsequent post, I’ll give more details on how I find people to help me and give some key tips on how to successfully delegate.

In the meantime, here’s a quick “formula” to know what you should delegate:

Create a list of things you want to accomplish.
List the tasks you’re doing for each goal.
Rank each task on how good you are at doing it.
As much as you can, delegate any tasks you think you’re a 7 (out of 10) or below.

And remember folks, it’s a collaboration. A win-win situation. Make sure your collaborator gets something out of it. It doesn’t necessarily have to be money.

So start thinking about delegation if you want to dramatically improve your productivity.

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

March 20, 2018

Productivity

Top Tips On How To Be Pumped About Going Back To Work After A Vacation

Danny Forest

March 20, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by @lighttouchedphotography on Unsplash

When’s the last time you were pumped to get back to work after a vacation?

Most of the times, you’re either too comfortable to want to go back, or you exhausted yourself by cramming too much into a small vacation.

I’m just back from a small 4 days vacation in Mumbai, and let me tell you: I was pumped to get back to my productive activities!

It’s not that I didn’t enjoy my vacation, because I really did. But like everyone, I know how much it sucks to get back to work after being unproductive for a few days, weeks or months.

But I turned that over. I set myself up for wanting to come back without sacrificing quality time in a city I didn’t know.

Here are a few tips that worked for me to be pumped about going back to work after a vacation:

Tip #1: Disconnect From Work And Technology

This was, in part, my topic for yesterday’s story.

This is obviously not that easy, but if you can pull it off, it will help you want to get back to work. Truly disconnecting means not doing anything work-related.

No email checking, no calls, no social media. Nothing.

Don’t bring your work laptop. If it’s the same as your personal one, don’t turn it on unless it’s for researching things to do or book flights and accommodation.

Shut that phone off. Use it for the essentials only, like Google Maps and Translate.

Relax, get back to your hobbies. It’s your time, do things you want to do that doesn’t work towards your productive activities.

Tip #2: Plan Your Return On Your Last Day Off

This is critical.

Don’t go back to work not knowing what to expect. It’s the same principle as planning your day the night before. You’ll have clarity on what you need to do and you’ll be pumped to clear off that checklist the day of.

Be precise in your planning, and break your tasks in the smallest possible chunks.

I had 18 items to do just yesterday, most of which took between 10 and 30 minutes to do.

Everything was realistic.

Try not to schedule your hardest tasks on the day of your return. Or maybe not even in the first week. Give yourself a chance to be back.

I was pumped to accomplish the tasks on my list.

Now, I realize not everyone is in the same situation as me and have limited control over their work task, but if that’s your case, make sure to ask your superior what tasks they’re thinking of assigning you and try to negotiate with them.

Most bosses would be happy to help you get back to it.

Tip #3: Be Positive About It

“I hate Mondays” — Garfield

That’s the attitude you don’t want to have.

Do not tell yourself that coming back will suck. Even if you know it might. Think about the positive aspects of your work. Think about the things you like about your work.

Is it your colleagues?
Is it the work itself?
Is it the learning?
Is it the free snacks or lunches?
Is it the salary, or the benefits?

Whatever it is, capitalize on it.

If you struggle to find anything positive, well, maybe it’s worth considering other options? There are almost always other options.

Tip #4: Be Grateful

Some people don’t have the luxury of taking a vacation.

Too often, we take it for granted.

Be thankful for being granted vacation. Be thankful that your work made your vacation possible.

Some people can’t afford it. Both in terms of money and time.

When you stop taking your vacation time for granted, you start appreciating what made this vacation possible in the end: your work.

I traveled around the world for a year without working. I was in vacation mode for a year. It’s not as nice as it sounds.

Work gives you purpose. Be thankful for the opportunity to do something productive.

Tip #5: Exhaust Yourself, Just Enough

We’re creatures of comfort. It’s against our nature to do things out of our comfort zone.

When you take a vacation that’s too relaxing, you become too comfortable. It’s hard to break out of it and want to go back to doing productive things.

You definitely should relax on vacation, but make sure to spend some energy too. Spend energy on things you like to do. On things out of your comfort zone. Learn new things. Meet new people. Eat new foods. Let your imagination run wild.

But don’t overdo it!

Have you ever gotten back from vacation more exhausted than you were before?

Yeah, I’m sure you have. And you know it sucks.

Plan your most relaxing activities for the end of your vacation. That way you’ll have spent energy in the beginning, and won’t have time to get too comfortable before going back.

Tip #6: Change Your Mindset About Work

Everyone talks about work-life balance.

I reject that mindset. Work and life go together. There’s no balance.

Work is life. Take this definition of work for example:

“activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result”

We all want to achieve results. The moment you start seeing work as a way to get things done and not about a paycheque, you’ll start to understand that work gives a meaning to life.

When you believe that you’re doing things that work towards your goals, you’ll stop thinking of work as a chore, but as a way to achieve your greatest ambitions in life.

Coming back to “work” then becomes coming back to achieving your goals.

And that is enticing and will get you pumped.

Conclusion

Going on vacation is great, no questions there. But coming back from it is not always easy.

Make sure to truly disconnect, be positive and grateful, exhaust yourself enough, change your mindset about work and plan your return before coming up.

That will pump you to be back to your productive activities.

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

March 19, 2018

Productivity

Resting Really Is A Crucial Part Of Your Success — Embrace It

Danny Forest

March 19, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by @heftiba on Unsplash

“I regularly take a vacation from all my productive activities.”

This sentence alone probably brings a lot of questions in your mind:

Maybe Danny doesn’t like his work?
Maybe Danny just can’t handle the pressure?
Maybe Danny is just a slacker?
Something else?

The truth is, I love what I do. Everything I do.

I’ve been coping surprisingly good with pressure considering the number of things I do all at once, like running Power Level Studios, writing on Medium, writing a book, working on two other startups, starting a podcast, etc.

And because of the above, you know I’m no slacker. On the opposite, I work so hard that to maintain a peak state of mind, resting is a necessity.

It’s like when you work out, the most productive thing you can do for gains is to rest in between to let the body recover.

Losing Momentum

Last month when I came back to Canada to do some paperwork and visit friends and family, I had lost my momentum. Seeing new groups of people every day and rushing to get paperwork done completely drained me mentally.

I had lost the hard-earned momentum I had built from the last 3 months in Spain.

I didn’t have to energy to wake up at my regular hour. I even skipped working out two or three days in the past 30 days. That was the thing I swore not to skip.

I hardly made any progress on Soul Reaper.

I stopped writing every day on Medium.

I fell behind on all my activities.

I’m sure this kind of lost momentum happened to you as well at some point.

In fact, even though I’m a highly self-disciplined and productive guy, I’d say to happens to me regularly.

It’s normal. Our high-stress environments are not meant to be lived at high pace every day, 365 days a year.

Because of that loss of peak state, I decided to rest for a few days when I arrived in Mumbai 4 days ago.

Resting

Sometimes, you just gotta rest.

“Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax.” — Mark Black

It’s not the first time I write about this subject, but it’s so true that I had to write about it again.

This morning is the day I returned to being productive again. I woke up at around 4am, my usual time. Part of it is jetlag (I landed in India 4 days ago), part of it is my wife being restless next to me, but the main part is: I’m excited to start my productive activities again.

Do you ever feel like that coming back from vacation?

I certainly did this morning. I also felt that way the last three or four vacations I’ve taken.

The biggest factor in my excitement to be productive again comes from having rested.

I’m talking about truly resting. A real vacation. A break from everything. No technology, unless necessary (like Maps or Translate).

I did not touch my computer at all until yesterday.

I forced myself not to think about work. I try to empower my team to be self-sufficient, so it’s easier to disconnect. I trust them.

And I think this is an important part of disconnecting. Prepare your colleagues before you go and trust in them. If you can do that, you’ll be able to free your mind.

During my vacation, I slept, napped, did light sightseeing, played video games, read, meditated and journaled.

Restoring Momentum

Obviously, I’ve just started my productive activities again an hour ago, so it’s a bit pretentious of me to even mention “momentum” at this point.

But I’ve been through that cycle multiple times now, and it worked every time.

The thing is, if you have truly rested during your vacation, you’ll have an incredible amount of energy you’ll need to spend.

Use this energy.

Get back to your most productive habits.

Listen to your body and mind. Don’t overdo it.

Little by little, and with perfect consistency, your momentum will be back. Just not right away.

And that’s normal. It takes me 2–3 weeks to reach my peak state.

Once you’ve earned your hard-earned momentum back, you’re on your path to “success” again.

Conclusion

When you’re feeling overwhelmed and can’t perform at your peak performance, it’s time you start thinking about resting.

You don’t need to go away or even take a few weeks off. A few days is usually enough to “recharge your batteries”, provided you really do switch off during your break. No technology, no work, nothing.

Relax, get back to your hobbies. It’s your time, do things you want to do that doesn’t work towards your productive activities.

When you’re rested, get back to your productive habits and be consistent with them.

So next time you feel overwhelmed, dare take a break and rest and rebuild your momentum.

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

February 27, 2018

Productivity

A Morning Routine Really Does Set You Up For Success — Here’s A 6 Step Process To Create One

Danny Forest

February 27, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by Max Nikhil Thimmayya on Pexels

It’s 6am on a Tuesday morning. It’s been two weeks since I’ve lost my hard-earned momentum.

I’ve written about momentum before. When you have gained true momentum, you are unstoppable. “Not doing” is harder than “doing”.

Yet I’ve lost it since I’ve been back to Canada, jumping from one group of people to the next almost on a daily basis.

I mean, it’s pretty normal to lose momentum when you can’t follow your schedule/routine.

But now I’m back to Toronto and have a more “stable environment”.

Yet yesterday I still had the hardest time waking up. I knew my list of things to do had grown over the last few days, but that was not good enough motivation for me to get out of bed at normal times for me.

I had to go apply in person for a visa for India in the morning, and that completely destroyed my morning routine. In the afternoon, I had no motivation to tackle my list of things to do. Thankfully my wife was motivated and pushed me to do it.

It’s then that I realized the power of a successful morning routine.

How To Get Started

In a previous story I wrote, I shared 3 valuable tips I followed every morning. Even I didn’t realize how great they were until last night. I’ll re-share here:

Prepare your next day the night before.
Start the day with one or two easy tasks.
Work on your hardest tasks when you work best.

When you write down the things you have to do for the next day slightly before going to bed, it puts your mind at ease, and it lets your subconscious work on it overnight so you can execute early in the morning.

When you start the day with one or two easy tasks, you get your much needed “wins” right away. The release of dopamine you get boosts your will to execute for a good portion of the day.

And for me, that sets me up for working on my hardest tasks shortly after.

But I haven’t been able to follow that as of late, until this morning.

How To Build A Successful Morning Routine

Warning: this is based on my own personal experience. It may or may not work for everyone, and it’s definitely not backed by any science.

Here’s an example from this month:

Step 1: List Down All The Things You Want To Do On A Daily Basis

This month, I wanted to write every day, just like the previous month. I also wanted to record myself reading my stories.

I wanted to start doing a simple workout routine every day. I knew I would have a static home, so I needed a routine I could do with no material. I settled for 100 push-ups, 100 squats, and I quickly added 100 dips.

I wanted to learn how to successfully journal.

I wanted to learn some Norwegian for my store.

I wanted to learn how to do social media marketing.

I wanted to continue meditating (since last month).

Step 2: Order The Tasks By Ascending Order of Importance To You

It’s important to realize what you think is more important for you. I likely had too many things on my list that I had to cut. By knowing what’s more important, it’s easier later to decide where to put each task on your calendar.

Step 3: Write Down How Long It Takes You To Complete The Task

This is important.

You need to be aware of how a long a task is going to take you. Be realistic. Be precise.

The least realistic thing on my list is writing a story every in 40–60 minutes. But I force myself to follow it. Sometimes my stories end up not being as good, but that’s how you learn.

Step 4: Place Tasks On A Calendar

Now that you know what’s most important and how long tasks take you, place it in your daily calendar, similar to the image I pasted above.

I tend to just use Google Keep (previous Apple Notes), but Google Calendar should work well too.

I don’t have the mental capacity to remember everything on my calendar, so I refer to it very often, especially at the beginning of the month.

Step 5: Apply The Tips Above On How To Get Started

Prepare your next day the night before.
Start the day with one or two easy tasks.
Work on your hardest tasks when you work best.

These are powerful. Apply them. I’ve built so much momentum before just by doing those.

My one or two easy tasks to get started is usually reviewing comments I’ve received the night before and reading a story from someone I follow. That usually gives me the boost to start writing myself.

And I actually apply this principle to different segments of my day. If you check my schedule, I start work at 9am. I do one or two easy work tasks to start with.

Step 6: Be Consistent In The Execution Of Your Morning Routine

That is crucial!

Try not to miss a day. I tend to execute it every day, including weekends. I’m a little less strict on Sunday though.

Every missed day “doubles” the effort needed to get started.

Have you noticed how after vacation, going back to executing your routine is so much harder? That’s why.

Conclusion

Do not underestimate the power of your morning routine. It sets you up for a successful day. Consecutive successful days brings momentum. Momentum makes you unstoppable.

It starts with careful planning, and continues with consistent execution.

Take 2 hours every month to plan your next month’s routine.

Follow the principles of planning the night before, doing easy tasks in the morning and executing your hardest tasks when you work best.

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

February 18, 2018

Productivity

Begone Procrastination! — Top 3 Tips On Almost Guaranteeing You Won’t Procrastinate

Danny Forest

February 18, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by @paul_: https://unsplash.com/photos/iiTxntO78ts

Even the best of us procrastinate sometimes. We are not programmed to do things that are hard for us. We’re creatures of habit. Creatures of comfort.

Almost everything we do, we do it to be in a state of comfort. And when we reach a satisfactory level of comfort, we stay there. We procrastinate doing things out of our comfort zone.

I’ve been there.

You’ve been there.

We’ve all been there.

In the last 6 months or so, I can’t think of a time when I’ve procrastinated.

So many times, this happened organically without really thinking about it. I was lucky in some ways.

But that made me think deeper into why it was I stopped procrastinating, and it all came down to the 3 things that follow.

I should point out that none of these tips are new. Everyone talks about them. But I’ll share my own experience in hopes to illustrate just how good these tips are.

Sunk Cost Bias

This is a powerful one, and really, everyone knows it, but maybe doesn’t recognize it enough.

A sunk cost is a cost that has already been incurred and cannot be recovered.

Think about memberships. A gym membership is a good example.

You know why a yearly membership at anything sucks?

A year is just too long a period for a brain to “remember” the sunk cost. That’s why when you sign up for the gym in January, you stop going one or two months after.

It’s not frequent enough. By paying monthly, you’re always reminded that you are sinking money into the membership, therefore you’re more prone to do it.

I signed up for the gym in January. I went to the priciest gym in Málaga. Truth be told, I couldn’t really afford it. And that’s the point.

I had to do it. I sacrificed spending money on other things so I could afford it. I had to go.

15 days in, I wanted to go. It wasn’t just that I needed to. Now that it’s expired, I miss it. But I’ve built so much momentum that I created a fitness routine for myself that I can do from home.

But think about it though.

Think about things you’ve spent money on vs things you haven’t. Which one were you more motivated to do.

And it doesn’t have to just be money either. Anything that’s high stakes for you. Money is easy since it’s measurable, but basically anything you don’t want to part with should work.

Group Activities

I’ve seen that almost on a daily basis back at the co-working space I was working from back in Málaga.

I accidentally started a fitness group last month.

I was so motivated in my fitness that I also did 100 pushups after work. That was a friend’s idea, which he had not executed on. But seeing me do it, he shortly joined in on my efforts.

Then people started joining. We grew from 2 “members” to 15 in one month.

And every morning, there was at least one person who didn’t feel like doing it. But then they see 7 other people go. And all of a sudden, they wanted to do it. They weren’t alone. The other’s motivation inspired them to also do it.

You see that effect in any team-based sport.

You see that effect in offices.

You see that everywhere.

A party where you’re alone is a freaking boring party. You just want to leave.

Surround with like-minded people. Be accountable. Accomplish things with other people. Share your victories.

The Point Of No Return

One of my favourite, but a harder one to pull off.

I’ll give three quick examples:

Getting a mortgage to buy a house;
Investing in your business or that of someone else; or
Having a baby.

Once you receive your mortgage, it’s go-time. You have to buy the house. The only way you’ll rid of the debt is by selling the house back. That requires a lot of time and effort.

It’s easier to go forward than go backward from there.

That is the key here. Going backward being the harder choice of the two.

If you open up a physical store, you have to buy all the equipment in order to be operational. As soon as you buy, the material depreciates in value. Selling it back comes at a cost you’re likely not willing to pay.

What are some of the points of no return you’ve had in your life?

Did you procrastinate?

Do you ever intentionally create points of no return for yourself?

Conclusion

So I challenge you here.

The next time you have a goal you’d like to accomplish but are prone to procrastinate working towards it, think about these 3 tips.

When planning for executing your goal, answer these questions:

Can you sink money, or something else you care for into the process of achieving your goal? Like a membership for examples.

Can you find a partner or a group of people to do it with?

Can you make it so it’s harder to go backward than to go forward?

If you can do all these 3 things, it’s almost guaranteed you won’t procrastinate.

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

January 25, 2018

Productivity

Pro Tips For Power Napping Like A King

Danny Forest

January 25, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by Jeff Rodgers on Unsplash

I power nap almost every day. And I swear I’m no lazy bastard.

In fact, power napping is one of my top productivity advice.

Now, when I say King, I mean it figuratively speaking of course. I can’t image kings sleeping on their desk like I do ;).

And I’m no history expert, but I assume that some of the greatest kings in history also did power naps to rejuvenate and help them make better decisions. Please share in the comments if you have factual examples of kings doing it throughout history.

Power Napping Is A Skill

Power napping is hard. Like any skill, it takes practice. I’ve only started being good at it 6 months ago. I do it almost every day now. But before that, I would try at least once per week and I would “fail” most of the time. Actually, even to this day, I still don’t always fall asleep.

A power nap is typically 15–20 minutes long. I personally power nap to give myself an extra 2–3 hours of productive work.

A more powerful alternative is the coffee nap. Basically, you quickly drink a shot of espresso coffee right before your power nap. The caffeine takes about 20 minutes to kick in, so right at the same time as you finish your power nap.

I would suggest you don’t try coffee naps until you can do power naps though, for three reasons: 1. Not everyone can quickly drink a hot coffee. 2. It’s harder to fall asleep, and 2. It’s quite powerful when you do it right. When I do coffee naps, I have to be ready to go to bed much later. It makes it much harder for me to fall asleep.

Pro Tips On Power Napping Like A King

Here are a few tips for a successful power nap:

Don’t power nap if you’re not tired enough. I usually fall asleep in about 10–15 minutes when I’m really tired. This is different for everyone. 10–15 is actually quite a lot. If I’m tired enough but need a break, I usually take a 15–20 minute walk.
Put an alarm. I set mine for 25 minutes. I end up napping between 10–15 minutes. The alarm frees you from thinking about waking up on time.
Don’t nap for more than 15 +/- 5 minutes. This depends on people obviously. 10–15 minutes work great for me. 20 minutes makes it hard for me to wake up.
Cut off the distractions. I always listen to a song called Earth, from Gladiator’s soundtrack (by Hans Zimmer). I know other people who use earplugs. If you’re good at meditating, you can probably do without earplugs or music.
Be comfortable but not too much. Napping in a comfortable bed makes it hard to get out. I currently nap on my chair, resting my head on the desk with my arms crossed over. It’s really not that comfortable. If you have access to a couch, I would go for that.
A “successful” nap is not always about sleeping. I don’t always fall asleep. You still gain energy back from relaxing.
It takes some time to recover from the nap. Plan for 15–20 minutes to be back to full energy. A successful power nap almost entirely removes this grace period.
Don’t nap when it’s close to bedtime. By close, I mean less than 3-4 hours. You will have a hard time sleeping at night if you do that. I sometimes just go to bed at around 8pm because of that. My next day tends to be more productive since I’m well rested.

If you do want to do a coffee nap, go for an espresso. If you can’t set the water temperature, let it sit in the freezer for 3–5 minutes. You have to make sure to drink it fast. Real fast. The caffeine takes about 20 minutes to kick in, so it’s the same length as the power nap.

Practice, Practice, Practice

This takes practice. Keep trying. Don’t judge a “failed” nap. There are still benefits even if you don’t always fall asleep. Acknowledge that it does take time to fully recover as well. I’ve been doing it for over 2 years now and on average, I get 2–3 extra productive hours every day.

If you’re a leader in your company, lead by example. A lot of people are shy and are afraid of looking like a slacker. Show them it’s okay to power nap. Encourage them to do it. Do it yourself.

If you work from public places like coffee shops or co-working spaces (like me), just do it. The first time I did it, I was afraid of judgment. Especially because I was quite new here. But seriously, who cares. I cared more about my productivity than for what people thought.

And to my surprise, I didn’t get judgment, but curiousness. People started asking me why I was doing it, how I was doing, etc. People started doing it after.

Conclusion

Yawning constantly? Nap!

Can’t do simple tasks? Nap!

Struggling to keep your eyes opened? Nap!

Nap! Nap! NAP!

Act like a King, power nap in the middle of the day. Make better decisions, be more productive, work longer and better. Your brain deserves a break too!

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

January 23, 2018

Productivity

In Need Of Motivation? Try These Simple Tried And True Productivity Tips

Danny Forest

January 23, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo by Joseph Gonzalez on Unsplash

Think about this simple idea: Productivity leads to wins. Wins lead to momentum. Momentum makes you unstoppable. Being unstoppable means that motivation almost becomes irrelevant.

Waking up at 5:45am? Piece of cake once you’re unstoppable!
Going to the gym? Piece of cake once you’re unstoppable!
Finishing a hard, or a boring task at work? Piece of cake once you’re unstoppable!
Working on the same game for 2–3 years? Piece of cake once you’re unstoppable!
Learning a new skill? Piece of cake once you’re unstoppable!

You get the idea.

But this all starts by being productive.

“Focus on being productive instead of busy.” — Tim Ferriss

And being productive is not all about working more than others, it’s also about working more efficiently. Differently. Thinking outside the box.

Apply the following 5 tips. Let them inspire you to come up with your own. Let me and the world know what works for you in the comments. Let’s all be productive and build our momentum!

Tip #1: Split Tasks into their smallest components

Is an orange a single component?

Well, no. When you break it down into its smallest components, there’s quite more to it.

A lot of our tasks are similar. For some reason, we don’t dare break it down into smaller components.

I personally aim to break everything down into about 10–15 minutes tasks.

As proven by science and explained in this article, the brain dumps a little dopamine every time we successfully accomplish a task — no matter how big or small.

This habit also has a tendency of keeping you moving toward your goals, and clearing the mental clutter in your mind. — TheMindUnleashed.com

Photo Credit: https://eduwithtechn.wordpress.com/2007/02/26/improving-student-achievement-through-small-wins-introduction/

Tip #2: Start the day with one or two easy tasks

Photo Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sK3wJAxGfs

Even though I consider myself to be highly motivated, I still need a “win” or two to start my day. After completing easy tasks, I have the motivation and energy to tackle the real hard problems.

Working as a programmer, I typically start with an easy bug fix or small UI change that can be done in 10 minutes or less. Pushing the code up and moving the Trello card to “Done” gives me the drive to keep going.

Working out? Do 10 push-ups as you wake up. You’ll be ready to go to the gym.

Writing? Start by praising a writer you like.

Or even easier, start by making your bed. I personally find it a little too easy and doesn’t really work towards my own personal goals, but it works for other people.

Tip #3: Work on your hardest tasks when you work best

For me, it happens in the morning, right after I finish my one or two easy tasks. I start so early that I don’t have any distractions for about 2 hours, and I have all the energy from having woken up not too long ago + coffee + dopamine rush from previously completing tasks. It’s a recipe for success!

Hard tasks for me include game design/balancing and engineering new systems. Things that require all my brain power. It will be something different for you.

The point is: Don’t spend your high-quality energy on low-importance tasks, otherwise you’ll end up with high-quality results for low-importance tasks.

Photo Credit: http://www.matthew2323.info/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/sisyphus-267x300-267x300.jpg

Always aim for high-quality results for high-importance tasks. It’s that simple!

“Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.” ~ Peter Drucker

Tip #4: Prepare your next day the night before

This greatly helps with waking up in the morning! At the end of my workday, I write down all the tasks I’ll be working on for the next day and review it before going to bed. This helps me wake up with a sense of purpose. I know what needs to be done, and I want to do it!

As a bonus, my brain keeps working while I sleep, so sometimes I come up with genius ideas on how to complete my tasks while I sleep! Everyone has heard the expression: “sleep on it”. Well, there you go! It’s been proven many times that it helps and here’s an explanation:

REM [sleep] helps to stabilize, consolidate, and enhance connections between memories. Information that was stored in long-term memory during the day is activated (also called rehearsed) and turned into useful connections while we experience REM sleep. — factmyth.com

Tip #5: Take breaks and relax

Have you ever worked on a problem you couldn’t figure out for hours, and later went back to it and solved it in a matter of minutes? Often right?

The problem is we obsess over problems we can’t solve. We spend the little energy we have left trying to figure it out, but the mind just doesn’t work as it should. Take a damn break! It’s a skill that takes practice: figure out when and how to take breaks. Don’t do it on a schedule, that makes no sense. Take a break when you can’t solve a problem that you should be able to solve with minimal to low-effort.

Photo Credit: http://highexistence.com/images/view/50-ways-to-take-a-break-%E2%98%AF/

My favourite ways to re-energize are: Power Naps, Coffee Naps, Walking, Showering and Meditating, in no particular order.

Bonus tip: Ignore the people judging you for taking a well-deserved break.

People may label you as a slacker but they’re wrong. Ignore them, reap the rewards and be more productive than them!

Conclusion

Remember that being unstoppable all starts from being more productive.

Whatever you find hard to get motivated on can be made simpler with a series of small productivity wins.

The tips above help you manage your expectations, but also help with respecting your body and mind.

Have you tried applying any of these tips?

Which ones work for you?

What are some of your personal favourite tips?

Feel free to share your experiences in the comments and inspire the rest of the world!

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

January 19, 2018

Productivity

Be More Productive And Sociable By Making Your Environment Uncomfortable

Danny Forest

January 19, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo Credit: http://thechoiceeffect.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/062b.jpg

How comfortable is your house or your apartment?

Do you have a really nice living room, with a big screen TV, a really comfortable couch? And video games maybe?

Do you have a workshop and/or a garage?

Do you have a pool and/or a sauna?

Do you have a big library with lots of books?

Do you have pets?

If you’re like most of us, it’s easy to get distracted and reach for entertainment and comfort while working from home.

I used to be terrible at working from home. If I had to wait for anything to happen at work, I would turn on my video games and play until the wait was over… or until I finished one more level?

When my wife and I came back to Toronto from our year-long trip around the world, we bought no furniture, with the exception of a desk and a chair to work from. It was one of the most minimalist apartment you’ll ever see.

When I came to the rental office with my backpack to sign the documents, the person working there asked me when I would need the elevator and I told her: “What I have on my back is all I own or need. No need for an elevator.”. She was certainly not expected that.

Living In Spain

For now, I live in Málaga, Spain. It’s in the south. It’s considered to be a pretty warm place. But it’s winter now, and the temperature is between 5–10 during the night. Doesn’t sound too bad, but when your window doesn’t close properly, it’s almost as if you were sleeping outside!

I can only be in my room when it’s to be in bed, where I have warm blankets. I can’t really shower in my apartment either. Sure there is hot water, but there’s no window, so all the air from outside comes in. It’s freezing getting out of that shower.

On top of that, every time I come back home, the landlord’s dog barks at me.

Spending Time On Things That Matter

But these two moments of my life were when I was most productive. And I love these places for that.

By not having any distraction and having my office as the only comfortable place in the apartment, I was able to consistently focus on my work. And because there was really nothing much to do at home, we would go out more.

In Málaga right now, I have every reason to be out all the time. I go to the gym, work long hours (intentionally) and hang out with friends. I’m only there to cook, eat and sleep.

Photo Credit: https://www.pinterest.ca/explore/minimalist-quotes/

Where To Start

I know this is not easy, and may not work for everyone, but I’d suggest starting with removing the comfortable couch. It’s the source of many distraction problems. There’s almost no need to remove the TV or video games with there’s nowhere comfortable to sit on. It’s a good way to limit the TV time.

And piece by piece, you can start removing other things.

If you’re moving, take less things with you.

If you’re back from traveling, only get yourself a mattress to sleep on.

Conclusion

It’s easy to get distracted with all the fancy stuff we have around us. Dare remove key pieces and you’ll find yourself to be more productive and sociable.

It’s not an easy shift, but like anything, once you’re used to it, you won’t want to go back!

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

January 17, 2018

Productivity

Want To Be More Productive? Start This Simple Daily Habit

Danny Forest

January 17, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo Credit: https://unsplash.com/photos/ABGaVhJxwDQ

I walk fast. Really fast.

What takes a normal person 30 minutes to reach, it takes me less than 20. I learn the shortcuts. I avoid red lights. I am efficient.

This all started when I was a kid working in strawberry fields. I was paid by productivity. Each filled basket I would return to the truck, I would get money for it. Now sometimes the truck was not very close. Sometimes it was a 3 minute walk just to get there.

That’s a lot of wasted time.

If we count going to and coming back, that’s 6 minutes where I was not getting paid for. Multiply that by at least 10 times during the day and there was a full hour lost!

Now if I would reduce the time it takes to reach the truck to 2 minutes, I would have another extra 20 minutes that other people don’t have. When you work by production, time really is money.

Similarly, when I was last in Toronto, I was walking to work. It took me 23 minutes. A normal person would take about 32 minutes. That meant that on average, I had an extra 18 minutes per day. There are many things you can do in 18 minutes. I recently started meditating. I do it for 20 minutes. It’s basically the amount of time I’m saving from walking fast.

Why Walk Fast?

I can’t prove this scientifically, but I believe walking fast teaches our brain to work at a different pace.

One observation I made over the last few years is that most people I know who walk fast and strategically are really productive people. Fast walkers understand the value of time, and it transfers that understanding to other areas, like work.

And of course, there are many health benefits to walking fast:

Raises your heart rate to a higher heart rate zone;
Increases fitness and endurance;
Increases muscle flexibility;
Tones muscles;
and more.

When To Walk Fast?

The idea is to do that when you are simply going from a point A to a point B.

If you walk to and from work, that’s the best time to power walk. Same with going to the grocery store, to the gym, etc. Any time there’s a destination in mind.

Keep your leisure walk at a speed you’re more comfortable with.

Conclusion

Changing your walking speed is such an easy thing to do, yet it changes your health and perspective on time.

Try it the next time you have a destination in mind, and like any skill, do it consistently. Before your know it, you’ll be a fast walker!

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

January 15, 2018

Productivity

That Dreadful Snooze Button And Fighting Dragons In a Sea Of Flames

Danny Forest

January 15, 2018

Productivity

Cover Photo Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2N74EkqA7k

As I’m writing this, I haven’t touched the dreadful snooze button in 15 days, waking up at 5:45am every morning.

To be honest, I don’t even know why our phones make it the easiest button to press. It should be hard to snooze. So hard that you wouldn’t even want to do it anymore and just wake up.

Am I the only one who thinks that?

Anyway, since this year, I haven’t touched it. Waking up super early is not only easy now, it’s mandatory in my mind.

Just this morning I was in pretty deep sleep, dreaming about fighting a dragon in a sea of flames. I was standing on a floating chair, trying to attack the dragon with a sword attached to a cord. Hilarious dream of course, but I guess not out of the realm of possibilities for a video game designer haha. Needless to say, it was a very captivating dream for me.

Anyway, the alarm went off as I was fighting this epic dragon, which clearly had all the advantages in the world to win against me. But I was close to winning, and that damned alarm went off, taking it all away from me!

I had a good reason to hit that snooze button. At least my brain did. I so wanted to know the end of the story!

Screw You Snooze Button and Epic Dragons

But I didn’t press the snooze button.

I thought about all the “real” things I wished to accomplish today. Or every day for that matter. You see, I’m following a pretty crazy schedule this month because I set myself a bunch of really hard goals to reach. Here it is, unedited:

With a jam-packed schedule like that, I don’t have time to hit the snooze button. With my goal of eating 4,500 calories per day, if I delay my schedule, that means I’ll need to push everything on that list down, ultimately meaning that I would have to skip the nap, the meditation or the free time at 9pm. Or delay the time I go to bed. I don’t want any of that.

When I see it that way, it takes less than 1 second to convince my brain to let me out of bed. It’s already a tight schedule, I don’t want it to be even more difficult to accomplish.

“It will remain a dream if you hit snooze this morning.” — addicted2success.com

Conclusion

You will never be able to stop using that dreadful snooze button unless you set clear expectations of what needs to be done for the day. Be specific, and believe in what you’re going to be doing.

Not achieving what’s on your schedule for your day should be so undesirable that the brain will choose to let you out of bed, and to hell with the epic dragons!

You can do this!

Thanks for reading! :)

Danny Forest

December 8, 2017

Productivity

Tried and True: 7 tips on staying motivated and productive

Danny Forest

December 8, 2017

Productivity

I’ve been working on Soul Reaper on and off for more than 2 years. It’s a lot of time working on the same project without having released anything yet. For most people, it would be hard to find the motivation to still work on the project on a day to day basis.

For me, it’s as easy as it’s ever been! I wake up at 6am every morning and work until 7 or 8pm, 6 – 7 days per week. I’m super motivated and highly productive, and so can you be with these tips!

Tip #1: Split Tasks into their smallest components

Here’s a task I had as a Trello card: “Menu for organizing team”. Seems kinda small right? But this task can take 1 to 7 days to complete, or more. Where do you start? When does it end? What is the menu about? How does it work? This is too big a task! You can easily break it down into more manageable parts. Here’s how I broke it down:

As proven by science and explained in this article, the brain dumps a little dopamine every time we successfully accomplish a task — no matter how big or small.

This habit also has a tendency of keeping you moving toward your goals, and clearing the mental clutter in your mind. — TheMindUnleashed.com

Tip #2: Start the day with one or two easy tasks

You might find this tip less frequently from other articles, but it works great for me. Even though I consider myself to be highly motivated, I still need a “win” or two to start my day. After completing easy tasks, I have the motivation and energy to tackle the real hard problems.

I typically start with an easy bug fix or small UI change that can be done in 10 minutes or less. Pushing the code up and moving the Trello card to “Done” gives me the drive to keep going.

Photo Credit: https://rrhr.com.au/office-survival-celebrating-the-small-win/ — **Photo Credit:** https://rrhr.com.au/office-survival-celebrating-the-small-win/

Tip #3: Work on your hardest tasks when you work best

Hard tasks for me include game design/balancing and engineering new systems. Things that require all my brain power. It will be something different for you.

The point is: Don’t spend your high-quality energy on low-importance tasks, otherwise you’ll end up with high-quality results for low-importance tasks.

Always aim for high-quality results for high-importance tasks. It’s that simple!

Tip #4: Prepare your next day the night before

This greatly helps with waking up in the morning! At the end of my work day, I write down all the tasks I’ll be working on for the next day and review it before going to bed. This helps me wake up with a sense of purpose. I know what needs to be done, and I want to do it!

REM [sleep] helps to stabilize, consolidate, and enhance connections between memories. Information that was stored in long-term memory during the day is activated (also called rehearsed) and turned into useful connections while we experience REM sleep. — factmyth.com

Tip #5: Take breaks and relax

Have you ever worked on a problem you couldn’t figure out for hours, and later went back to it and solved it in a matter of minutes? Often right?

Here are my favourite ways to resource my brain power:

Power Nap: My personal favourite. Sleep on your chair, a couch, a bed, a bean-bag, anything really. If you really are mentally tired, you should fall asleep in between 5–15 minutes. And even if you don’t fall asleep, the rest from trying still helps. I always set an alarm for 25 minutes. 10–15 minutes to fall asleep (for me) and 10–15 minutes of sleeping. After practicing for a while, I rarely wake up to the alarm; I usually wake up a few seconds before the alarm goes off. It takes another 10–15 minutes to be fully energized, so you might want to tackle an easy task first before jumping back to the hard task.
Coffee Nap: One step more hardcore than the power nap. A coffee nap is when you chug a coffee before a power nap. The effects of the caffeine take about 20 minutes to kick in. Just in time for your nap to finish! When done right, I find this technique to be the most efficient. I’m immediately refreshed right after the nap, but the problem is that I have a harder time sleeping at night, so I don’t use it that often.
Take walks: Another favourite of mine. I go out, put some uplifting music in my ears and just stroll around for 15–60 minutes. I think about nothing important, like what I going to do for dinner and other mindless thoughts. Near the end of my walk though, I try to transition to thinking about the task I was working on before the break. This helps me be ready for when I’m at my desk again.
Take “thinking” showers: I don’t know about you, but I’ve had most of my most brilliant ideas while showering or walking. “Since [showering] do[es]n’t require much thought, you flip to autopilot. This frees up your unconscious to work on something else. Your mind goes wandering, leaving your brain to quietly play a no-holds-barred game of free association”. More explanation here: http://mentalfloss.com/article/52586/why-do-our-best-ideas-come-us-shower.
Entertain myself: This one doesn’t work as well for me, but I know it works for other people. If I do entertain myself, I play on my Nintendo Switch, watch an episode of a TV show on Netflix or read a chapter of a book.

Bonus tip: Ignore the people judging you for taking a well-deserved break.

People may label you as a slacker but they’re wrong. Ignore them, reap the rewards and be more productive than them!

Tip #6: Remember the ultimate goal

When you work for two years on the same project, it’s hard to see the big picture. I look at my Trello board and all I see is a mindless list of “micro” tasks, leading to something… but what?

For motivation and sanity’s sake: you need to visualize the end result. Every day. Ideally at all times really.

What can you see on Elon Musk’s desk? A miniature model of a rocket, amongst other things. Subconsciously, it keeps reminding him of the big picture: “Traveling to Mars”.

Me? I carry around a paper foldable version of Soul Reaper. It reminds me how much I want to play the final game.

Created by the talented Bryan: https://www.instagram.com/paperfoldables/

Tip #7: Every day, surround yourself with like-minded, highly motivated, individuals

I saved the most important tip for last. In my experience at least.

If you work in an office with your co-workers, you might have that one taken care of already, but not necessarily, especially in larger corporations. Sure, everyone is working towards the same goal, but they might not be highly motivated. Working with people who hate their job is poisonous. They drag everyone down. If you have colleagues like that, hang out with the others who are motivated and it will uplift you.

The Power Level Studio team is fully remote. Most live in Toronto, but we don’t physically work together. I tried working from home, with bad to good results. As with any habit, it gets easier with time.

But back in August, everything changed. My productivity levels increased 10x.That’s when I started working 80+ hours per week while not even being exhausted and having enough time to hang out with friends regularly, watch Netflix, play video games, read, learn 3 new skills per month and start side businesses.

How did I manage that?

I found a great co-working/co-living space in Siem Reap, Cambodia. It’s called AngkorHub. Here’s a photo of my friends and I at the family-style lunch table:

For those who don’t know me personally, I’m the bearded dude with the Hurley shirt on the left. Photo credit: https://www.instagram.com/p/BZ3y6XFBHHH/?taken-by=angkorhub

Firstly, I lived above the coworking space, reducing my commute time to 30 seconds. Leaving me with probably 1–2 hours more than most in a single day.

Secondly, everyone working there are highly motivated people working on things they care about. We shared stories and motivated each other every lunch time over the communal table, where a cook would prepare food for everyone (for a very low price). In addition to being a much-needed social moment, it allowed me to save time (and money) by not having to cook or find food outside. I’m estimating 1 hour saved here on average.

Thirdly, by living at the co-working space with other people, I surround myself with like-minded people I quickly called friends. Every night, after our crazy 12+ hour days, we would go out to eat at the restaurant. It’s a really nice and much needed break.

So if you count 16 hours awake, 12 went to work (with lunch in between) and 1–2 for dinner out, 30 minutes max for the essentials (like showering) and the rest is free. If we round up, that means I had at least 1 hour of free, alone time, where I would play games, watch Netflix or start side businesses. Not too bad!

After AngkorHub, I went to Thailand and then Spain, working from my Airbnb rooms. My productivity tanked. It was terrible. Thankfully I found another awesome coworking space in Málaga called The Living Room. Here’s a photo of a few of us hanging out after work:

Which one am I? https://www.facebook.com/thelivingroomcoworking/photos/fpp.307633346070900/877225835778312/?type=3&theater

I travelled all over the world and tried many different co-working spaces, and AngkorHub, The Living Room and Networks were the best for me. It came down to two reasons: The owner(s)/managers and the social life. That’s it. Everywhere, Wifi is always good. Seats are always comfortable. Desks are always clean. Coffee is always available. The owners and the community is unique and make all the difference.

What do you think?

Have you tried any of the tips above? Did they work for you? Do you have other great tips? Any other questions, comments or suggestions?