How This Tool Helps Me Get More Done Without Burning Out
It really works
Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by your work?
You know what you need to do (a lot of things), but sometimes, you overschedule yourself and get burnt out.
Or other times, you start five different things and never quite get any finished.
The lack of a clear action plan can derail your productivity.
Moreover, the lack of accountability about how you used your time can leave you feeling helpless and frustrated that you are getting nothing done.
I faced a similar problem.
I only worked from my mind—never planned how to schedule my time.
I followed a reactive approach to work - If any new task popped up, I left what I was doing and focused on the new task.
I never had any accountability system - at the end of the day, I left work but didn’t account for how I used my time.
I adopted a solution that helped me overcome these three issues in one system. I use it daily alongside other productivity apps like ClickUp and Rize.
I am able to avoid procrastination because I know exactly what I should be doing.
I also schedule time for mental health to ensure I do not burn out. I specifically do these to help keep me balanced:
I have time for meditation and prayer.
I have time for daily walks.
I have time for relationships with family.
Scenario
I want to describe a scenario where I am working on a 5-chapter e-book from Thursday to Saturday and launching it on Saturday evening.
I am considering a situation where you have a break from work and would love to create an extra source of income by writing an e-book during one weekend before going back to work on Monday.
What we will be scheduling are the tasks I will complete before launching it. These include:
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Launch
During the period, I will also ensure that I manage my relationships and take care of my mental health to avoid burnout.
Step 1: Blocking out time for my relationships and mental health
To ensure my relationships are healthy, I set non-negotiable time to spend with my family and spouse.
For my mental health, I will consider daily walks and prayer and meditation as strategies that ensure I take a much-needed break from work to recharge.
My first step is to schedule these two in my Google Calendar. I use Google Calendar to manage my personal life and non-work activities.
This is what this looks like for the period Thursday to Saturday.
This helps me to see the time I have to work on my project:
7am to 1pm (6hrs)
2pm to 5pm (3hrs)
Step 2: Scheduling my activities to develop the e-book
I use time blocks in my Notion Calendar to schedule the e-book chapters I am working on.
I learned this from Cal Newport, who says that he “dedicates 10 to 20 minutes every evening to build their schedule for the next day.”
When you take some time to think about how you want to spend time, you can eliminate the irrelevant tasks that do not add any value.
I schedule my Notion Calendar to work on the chapters from Thursday to Saturday.
With my time blocks set up, I can now work on my e-book and launch it.
The Limitation of the Notion Calendar
The problem with the Notion or Google calendar is the lack of accountability.
I observed that the tools are good at scheduling. However, there is no way to ensure you are doing what you said you will do, or rather, the lack of accountability is a problem.
This is what led me to develop the All-in-One Notion productivity system.
It syncs the tasks in the Notion calendar and filters out only what I need for the day. This brings clarity, and I can focus on only these tasks.
To do this, I ensure the Notion tasks are linked to my Notion workspace. From there, the system automatically filters out everything.
I also only plan my activities once in my Google and Notion calendars, and for the rest of the time, I use the All-in-One productivity system to track my daily work.
Click the Open in Notion button.
Add properties such as the priority (Morning, Afternoon, Evening), project, and the status.
The system will filter out what we need to do today as below.
To ensure accountability, there is a Pomodoro timer added that helps me track time and whether I need to take a short break while working.
The beauty of the timer is that it allows you to add your own music playlist from Spotify if you love working with a music background.
I can also add notes related to the tasks. for example, areas I need extra research on.
The system also helps me review my day based on the number of tasks I have done. Suppose I complete chapters 1 and 2 and my walks and meditation by the end of the day. I will track my progress this way.
The progress tracker also has prompts to review my performance. What increased my productivity? Where should I improve tomorrow?
Finally, the system has an archive where I can see the tasks I completed by the end of the day.
With these 3 apps, I have a system that ensures I succeed not only once but always.
I would love for you to also experience the freedom of automating your planning.
Plan everything at once. Your meetings, family activities, work activities, walks, and gym sessions are on your calendar.
Sync them to the system and allocate them to different times of the day.
Then, daily, use this system to narrow your focus only on the day’s tasks.
The system is a virtual room that helps you work for a dedicated period and take necessary breaks to renew your mind.
That's it for now.
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As always, fresh ideas are welcome. Please feel free to send in your feedback, thoughts, questions, and suggestions—I read them all!
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Catch you again soon.
Yesss, this has worked for me for the last 5 years. I love my time-blocking method; it keeps me sane, productive, and helps me get my tasks done. Nicely written!
Love to know