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How I went from 2 hours of productivity a day to 12–14 hours

I don't even remember how many months it took me to go from being addicted to gaming, often sleeping away the morning until it's noon to someone who is productive most of the day.

Before that, you need to know what I mean by productive. I believe going to the gym is productive also believe studying a different language that can be helpful for me in the future is productive. It’s just about what I put on my calendar and need to get done for the day.

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And what I did is:

1. Game, sugar & phone addiction

The books were the healers in this case, starting from “Deep Work” by Cal Newport to ‘’Dopamine Nation’’ by Anna Lembke.

I'm not saying that just reading them changed me, it was all about taking action about what I learned from the book. Mainly through creating a framework and accountability, I was able to quit. It was not easy, I can guarantee you that. It took me more than 10 tries to get things under my control.

2. 3 things, and 3 things only

I have made the conscious decision to do nothing but 3 things with very rare exceptions such as meeting friends, which I luckily do not have many of. The three things are

  1. My health, eating well, drinking water, and hitting the gym.
  2. Studying a new skill or language which is coding, is an investment for creating things that are in my mind.
  3. My Business.

That’s almost 100% of my awake time. Of course, I take 10 to 15-minute breaks in my productive hours. These breaks allowed me to stay in deep focus so don't underestimate these rules. Only do 3 long-term things and never try doing more than that, it just doesn't work.

3. Nutrition

I used to be skeptical about the effectiveness of following a particular blueprint for achieving happiness. However, after implementing Bryan Johnson’s blueprint as much as possible, I became a genuinely happy person.

I also found that certain supplements, such as lithium (which I am not advising anyone to take), helped regulate my mood and allowed me to be more productive. It’s important not to underestimate the power of good health.

4. Hang around with 4 drinking friends and you’ll be the 5th

I know very well about this because I was an example when I was in college. So always remember to hang around with people who have high-level mindsets and who are also like-minded.

There are a few communities on a website called Skool that you can join to find like-minded people. This really helps to stay in touch with your goals. It has helped me a lot to share and read the thoughts of others. It is also a good reminder to read about your goals daily.

5. Redeveloped my mindset

I used to believe that motivation was the key to success, however, my perspective on this has changed. Nowadays, whether or not I feel like studying or working on something is not as important to me as it used to be.

That being said, there are certain situations where I do make exceptions. I try to avoid overworking myself and take breaks when necessary, but I also make sure to earn them. For example, I recently rearranged my entire room and then went to the gym. However, when I felt exhausted, I decided to skip the gym and take a hot bath instead and saw the movie Click (2006), literally enjoyed 4 hours of my day.

It’s important to remember that we’re all human and it’s okay to take a break when needed. It’s also essential to avoid rewarding yourself too much when you haven’t really accomplished anything significant.

6. Only do what you can

Pushing yourself to the edge won't be a great idea because there is a chance that you will get a burnout. Instead, do it for 10 minutes.

I never started my productive journey by pushing myself, rather it was about how I maintained my consistency in doing productive things. I began my gym by doing it for 10 minutes and even if I don't have a mind to go then I just wear my gym outfit and call it a day. Again I repeat that until I eventually made it to the gym. Next thing you know, I’m working out 4 days a week. If all you can do is touch the book you want to read, don’t worry. As long as you progress it’s great.

Big disclaimer: It may sound easy but it wasn’t. At times, I still find myself procrastinating. It took me weeks to consistently focus on my tasks. However, I got better at it. I am not promoting the ‘hustle culture’ lifestyle, but I am sharing this because some people call me insane for working from 8 in the morning to bedtime. But, let me tell you, I have never been happier in my life. If you want to spend four hours every night with your girlfriend, go ahead and schedule it. It is not about being productive, it is about living the life you want.
This is what I want, and it is hard to achieve, but the fulfillment I feel now is indescribable.

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on October 20, 2023
  1. 2

    This is great, and I love the thought that productivity is not all about work, but also nutrition, health, languages, etc. I think that's important to remind yourself. Thanks for sharing.

    1. 1

      Productivity in work is what we get from the combination of all the good activities we give to ourselves from our daily routines, the environment we create, self-helping actions, positive perspectives towards learning, etc...

  2. 2

    There is only one solution to procrastination which is dont think and just do it. Most of the time procrastination is because you think to much. "What if it does not work out", "is this the right thing", "what am I doing" and many of this thought.

    To avoid all this unnecessaries thinking, you need to set system in place. I will go workout at 8 am, then eat then read. Thats all no thing to think about it. Just do the same thing over and over again.

    The moment you need to stop and thinking you will procrastinate.

    Here an article that will help you a lot to avoid procrastination 10 ways to stop procrastinating as an Entrepreneur

  3. 2

    Great tips!

    What helped me the most to boost my creativity is turning off push notifications on your smartphone and laptop. Moreover, setting time boxes for specific tasks is another great tip (you not always need to be 100% perfect, but when you timebox something you achieve a lot more in retroperspective).

    1. 2

      Wanna try and take this up a notch? Try hyperdo app (that I'm building) it blocks not only notifications, but apps themselves. Happy to provide beta access.

    2. 1

      I do pomodoros (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomodoro_Technique), which is basically timeboxing. Also, turn everything off, except the thing you are working on. More on this concept in the book Deep Work (by Cal Newport).

  4. 1

    Congratulations and well done, Akshay! Keep going!

  5. 1

    This has to be the most important, yet unspoken factor of achievement.

    I’ve started timing myself whenever I actually engage in an effort-full task and it’s kind of stunning how little work you actually get done in a day.

    My favorite way to raise this is to focus on increasing your discipline. Doing hard things and other areas of your life will make it easier to not procrastinate when it comes to your work.

    If you can’t sit down in the morning to get your work done, try taking a cold shower. Then see how easy it is to do something like sit at a computer.

  6. 1

    Good that you realized this. How long has it been going for you already?

    Make sure you watch out for burnouts. Those can come even when you think "I'm happy, I like what I'm doing".

    As soon as you notice lack of motivation, loss of inspiration or fulfillment, it's a sign for you to take a step back. It took me a long time to learn this, as it's hard to notice. 🚨

    1. 1

      Actually, I think burnout is unreal. Instead, it's a trick our mind plays and it won't play with you if you are obsessed with doing something you love.

      Obsession is internal. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy unlike a career, purpose, passion, or interest – which all eventually lead to burnout.

      Obsession is potent. It’s powerful. It’s a life force. So exhaustion and burnout are non-existent because the level of energy is on a totally different level.

  7. 1

    Thanks for the read. Nice to know that all of us (or at least most of us) are in this together. Keep pushing!

    1. 1

      You too, keep doing the good work:)

  8. 1

    Thanks for sharing!

    1. 1

      I thought it could help somebody so...

  9. 1

    Well done!
    I found the book Atomic Habits quite interesting on this topic for everyone struggling with new habits that don’t last longer than the latest summer fashion. It helps to understand how habits technically shape in us and what we can do in being successful in managing our good and bad habits.

    1. 1

      I also found Atomic Habits helpful in this area. It's a bit repetitive but maybe thats what is needed to drive the point home!

    2. 1

      You should try:
      Katy Milkman, How to Change -- evidence-based approaches to building new habits. Way better in my view than Atomic Habits.

  10. 1

    The fact that I've recently started making these lifestyle changes to catch up with school curriculum and job search in Data Science and stumbled across this article at the right time..

  11. 1

    Completely agree with these - I'm work remotely at the moment and have found it difficult to control my nutrition.

  12. 0

    I have made the conscious decision to do nothing but 3 things with very rare exceptions such as meeting friends, which I luckily do not have many of. The three things are

  13. 1

    This comment was deleted a year ago.

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