7 tips to boost our productivity like Elon Musk
1. Identify the most important tasks
Elon Musk’s top priority when he wakes up in the morning is to reply to his emails. This may sound completely banal, but it’s the thing he has identified as the most important. Indeed, by replying to his emails, he manages to unblock situations that prevent others from working. That’s why it’s the first thing he does.
🔊 “Focus on signals over noise”: this was one of the phrases he used in a speech. Prioritizing tasks enables us to get on with the job more quickly. It’s therefore important for us to establish what we should do first when we start working.
2. Prioritize asynchronous means of communication
If we start our day with the most important thing, we become unavailable to communicate with others. That’s why Elon Musk favors asynchronous means of communication such as emails. This method enables him to communicate when he wants and when he’s available to do so.
At our level, what we can do is turn off the notifications on our phone, for example. They can be very disruptive for our concentration! The same goes for meetings: it’s important to identify which ones are a priority and which ones aren’t. The aim is not to slow down when we do an important task!
3. Work from home
Since the arrival of the pandemic, this is a tip that’s easy to implement! Indeed, teleworking has become commonplace since Covid-19 came into our lives. It’s not impossible to be efficient when teleworking because being at home makes it easier to concentrate. We’re called upon less by our colleagues, which has less impact on our concentration. Having long uninterrupted periods of work is very important for being fully productive. This is why many companies, even before the crisis, put an end to open space working.
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🚸 On the other hand, not all of us are in the same situation. When you have children at home, it’s almost impossible to work in peace. So, it depends on your individual situation!
4. Multitasking / batching
In concrete terms, Elon Musk explains that he groups together similar tasks. A bit like batch cooking, the point is not to waste time reproducing certain things. It’s about saving time by mixing certain activities, such as scheduling a meeting during lunch. He takes multitasking quite a long way as he says the following:
“I realized that I could be with my children and still answer my emails. I can be with them and still work at the same time. If I didn’t have that ability, I wouldn’t be able to do what I have to do.”
🧐 Again, you need to take the advice and adapt it to your lifestyle. The most important thing is not to mix everything and to enjoy the moment too. What you need to remember is that it’s possible to batch tasks that require the same mindset.
5. Prioritize your diary
Elon Musk doesn’t have a “to-do list” but uses his diary. Doing this enables you to better plan your time. You should put tasks straight into your diary depending on the time they take. Starting your tasks without organizing them in your schedule is the best way to spend a long time on an activity. Determining a work time is therefore very important! Elon Musk explains that he works with 5-minute blocks, which is short. Why not use this technique by doing 30-minute or even 1-hour blocks?
☕ It’s important to mark everything in your diary, including little things like coffee breaks! What a great way to make a well-organized bullet journal!
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6. Develop your knowledge
The CEO of Space X is someone who likes to learn. He believes that knowledge helps him to move forward. One of the things he does most often is learn from others. One of his employees explained that he spent a lot of time asking questions to people who worked for him. It’s not to know whether they are doing their job properly, but to learn from their knowledge! Learning from his employees has enabled him to develop T-shaped skills.
➜ Having T-shaped skills is when you develop generalist skills in many areas (the horizontal bar of the T). It’s also having an area of expertise in which you excel (the vertical base of the T).
7. Constantly challenge yourself
If Elon Musk could give one piece of advice, it would be this: “Constantly think about how you could do things better and challenge yourself.” You should therefore constantly think about what you’ve done and see how to improve what you’ve just done. If you improve every day and every week, you will get closer to your objectives! This is an important introspection to see what works and what doesn’t.
💯 For example, you can consider giving your day a grade: were you happy with the work you did? If you give a bad mark, you need to understand what went wrong.
Bonus: Take a shower
Probably the most surprising, even incongruous piece of advice from Elon Musk! 🤪 He was once asked what daily habit has the biggest positive impact on his life? He then replied: “Taking a shower”. Indeed, he explains that showering is extremely positive. Often, it’s a moment when you completely disconnect and manage to think fully when you take a shower.
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Editor’s note: Action, reaction!Thanks to these 7 tips, you have all the cards in your hand to live hyper-productive days! They’ve been proven, Elon Musk said so! And if, despite all your efforts, you don’t manage to be fulfilled in your activities, or if your professional life doesn’t suit you, it may be time to contact a coach to take stock together of your situation and your expectations. |
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