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How to Level Up Your Productivity With One Simple Change

It’s easy to feel heavy these days, especially when logging on to LinkedIn.

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It’s easy to feel heavy these days, especially when logging on to LinkedIn. Like dominos, tech companies are announcing layoffs after layoffs. It’s a never-ending stream of depressing social posts, from “every story has an ending” to “my role has been impacted,” followed by well-meaning bystanders offering support and networking introductions.

When companies slash workers, they often place the blame on employees’ lower-than-expected productivity. But what exactly is productivity? How is it measured?

Defining Productivity

Wall Street and company CFOs have their own definition: Productivity is measured as the total output divided by total input, which includes labor. If revenue and profit drop below analysts’ expectations, especially if the company has gone on a hiring spree, productivity appears low.

Individuals, on the other hand, often think about productivity as it relates to their workflow. How fast are they completing the tasks on their to-do lists? What hacks can they use to improve their personal productivity, like the Pomodoro technique or zero-inbox?

As you can see, context matters.

According to the dictionary, productivity is defined as “the ability to generate, create, improve, or bring forth goods and services.”

Wall Street and individuals both use aspects of this definition, but they measure it differently. Wall Street looks at generating monetary wealth. Individuals, in contrast, focus on what they or their team can create: those to-do lists that ultimately lead to bringing forth goods and services.

“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” – Paul J. Meyer

Every Company Can Improve Productivity by Reducing “Work about Work”

Every company can improve its productivity. (And no, I don’t expect us all to turn into robots.)

Why am I so sure? There are always inputs (think labor, resources, and attention) that don’t generate meaningful outputs.

According to Asana’s Anatomy of Work report, employees spend an average of 60% of their time on non-value-add activities that are “work about work,” such as communicating about work, searching for information, switching between apps, managing shifting priorities, and chasing status updates. Only 40% of an employee’s time is spent on skilled or strategic work.

Looking at our definition of productivity, we can see that “work about work” is a bug in the system; it cuts into the time employees could be spending on generating skilled or strategic work. Indeed, Asana’s report concluded that nearly three months of an employee’s time per year could be eliminated without negatively impacting outputs.

Let me repeat: Based on current work patterns, most employees could take the entire summer off without affecting their productivity.

According to Asana’s research:

Every week, workers are losing an average of nearly three hours on unnecessary meetings. Every day, they are bombarded with 32 emails. Every hour, their attention is fractured between disconnected tools and having to constantly switch between them.

“Work about work” is an entrenched part of modern organizations and is still the biggest barrier to productivity—one that organizations shouldn’t take lightly. Too many workers are stuck in this black hole, sucked into a world of small tasks that add up to an enormous burden.

By reducing the time you spend on “work about work,” you can immediately improve your productivity equation.

3 Practical Ways to Reduce Your “Work about Work” and Increase Your Productivity

So how can you get started?

1. Conduct a meeting audit to reduce unnecessary work communication

Review all the meetings you and your team have held over the past two weeks (or a month, if you’d like a more accurate snapshot). For each meeting, note whether it was needed and how you could change the cadence, length, or attendees to reduce the meeting’s burden. Then, experiment with these changes in the upcoming weeks.

2. Do some spring cleaning to make it easier to search for information

We all have that “junk drawer” at home. You know, the one stuffed with old restaurant takeout menus and loose change. Similarly, there may be folders or random documentation scattered on your computer desktop or in your project management tool.

Carve out some time to clean up your knowledge base, or as we call it, your “digital house.” Consider scheduling a “cleaning day” quarterly, and make sure that your documentation is up to date, with everything in the right place and with a clear owner.

3. Use templates to reclaim time spent chasing status updates or recreating the wheel.

What type of work do you repeat week after week? Maybe it’s adding a contact into the Salesforce CRM or creating a quarterly review presentation for your client. Perhaps you’re a product manager and collect the same requirements sprint after sprint.

Whatever it is, if it’s repeatable, stop reinventing the wheel. Instead, develop a plug-and-play template—once and for all—and then move on. This might mean designing a standard presentation deck, a recurring Asana task, or programming a Zapier automation. Spending the time upfront to templatize can save you and your team time and energy down the road.

Tamara (Tam) Sanderson is the co-founder of Remote Works, an organizational design and consulting firm with a mission to liberate teams from the nine-to-five and teach them how to do their best work anytime, anywhere. Her new book with co-author Ali Greene, Remote Works: Managing for Freedom, Flexibility, and Focus, is the ultimate playbook for managing remote teams. Learn more at remoteworksbook.com.

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Personal Development

This Silent Habit Might Be Sabotaging Your Career

Your temper might be costing you more at work than you realize. Here’s why it matters.

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You may be the last to know that you’re walking around with a giant chip on your shoulder. Meanwhile, your coworkers are giving you a wide berth. (more…)

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Change Your Mindset

The One Leadership Habit That Separates the Great From the Forgettable

True leaders don’t just speak their values, they live them, proving that integrity is the foundation of lasting influence.

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Life

9 Harsh Truths Every Young Man Must Face to Succeed in the Modern World

Before chasing success, every young man needs to face these 9 brutal realities shaping masculinity in the modern world.

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Image Credit: Midjourney

Many young men today quietly battle depression, loneliness, and a sense of confusion about who they’re meant to be.

Some blame the lack of deep friendships or romantic relationships. Others feel lost in a digital world that often labels traditional masculinity as “toxic.”

But the truth is this: becoming a man in the modern age takes more than just surviving. It takes resilience, direction, and a willingness to grow even when no one’s watching.

Success doesn’t arrive by accident or luck. It’s built on discipline, sacrifice, and consistency.

Here are 9 harsh truths every young man should know if he wants to thrive, not just survive, in the digital age.

1. Never Use Your Illness as an Excuse

As Dr. Jordan B. Peterson often says, successful people don’t complain; they act.

Your illness, hardship, or struggle shouldn’t define your limits; it should define your motivation. Rest when you must, but always get back up and keep building your dreams. Motivation doesn’t appear magically. It comes after you take action.

Here are five key lessons I’ve learned from Dr. Peterson:

  • Learn to write clearly; clarity of thought makes you dangerous.

  • Read quality literature in your free time.

  • Nurture a strong relationship with your family.

  • Share your ideas publicly; your voice matters.

  • Become a “monster”, powerful, but disciplined enough to control it.

The best leaders and thinkers are grounded. They welcome criticism, adapt quickly, and keep moving forward no matter what.

2. You Can’t Please Everyone And That’s Okay

You don’t need a crowd of people to feel fulfilled. You need a few friends who genuinely accept you for who you are.

If your circle doesn’t bring out your best, it’s okay to walk away. Solitude can be a powerful teacher. It gives you space to understand what you truly want from life. Remember, successful men aren’t people-pleasers; they’re purpose-driven.

3. You Can Control the Process, Not the Outcome

Especially in creative work, writing, business, or content creation, you control effort, not results.

You might publish two articles a day, but you can’t dictate which one will go viral. Focus on mastery, not metrics. Many great writers toiled for years in obscurity before anyone noticed them. Rejection, criticism, and indifference are all part of the path.

The best creators focus on storytelling, not applause.

4. Rejection Is Never Personal

Rejection doesn’t mean you’re unworthy. It simply means your offer, idea, or timing didn’t align.

Every successful person has faced rejection repeatedly. What separates them is persistence and perspective. They see rejection as feedback, not failure. The faster you learn that truth, the faster you’ll grow.

5. Women Value Comfort and Security

Understanding women requires maturity and empathy.

Through books, lectures, and personal growth, I’ve learned that most women desire a man who is grounded, intelligent, confident, emotionally stable, and consistent. Some want humor, others intellect, but nearly all want to feel safe and supported.

Instead of chasing attention, work on self-improvement. Build competence and confidence, and the rest will follow naturally.

6. There’s No Such Thing as Failure, Only Lessons

A powerful lesson from Neuro-Linguistic Programming: failure only exists when you stop trying.

Every mistake brings data. Every setback builds wisdom. The most successful men aren’t fearless. They’ve simply learned to act despite fear.

Be proud of your scars. They’re proof you were brave enough to try.

7. Public Speaking Is an Art Form

Public speaking is one of the most valuable and underrated skills a man can master.

It’s not about perfection; it’s about connection. The best speakers tell stories, inspire confidence, and make people feel seen. They research deeply, speak honestly, and practice relentlessly.

If you can speak well, you can lead, sell, teach, and inspire. Start small, practice at work, in class, or even in front of a mirror, and watch your confidence skyrocket.

8. Teaching Is Leadership in Disguise

Great teachers are not just knowledgeable. They’re brave, compassionate, and disciplined.

Teaching forces you to articulate what you know, and in doing so, you master it at a deeper level. Whether you’re mentoring a peer, leading a team, or sharing insights online, teaching refines your purpose.

Lifelong learners become lifelong leaders.

9. Study Human Nature to Achieve Your Dreams

One of the toughest lessons to accept: most people are self-interested.

That’s not cynicism, it’s human nature. Understanding this helps you navigate relationships, business, and communication more effectively.

Everyone has a darker side, but successful people learn to channel theirs productively into discipline, creativity, and drive.

Psychology isn’t just theory; it’s a toolkit. Learn how people think, act, and decide, and you’ll know how to lead them, influence them, and even understand yourself better.

Final Thoughts

The digital age offers endless opportunities, but only to those who are willing to take responsibility, confront discomfort, and keep improving.

Becoming a man today means embracing the hard truths most avoid.

Because at the end of the day, success isn’t about luck. It’s about who you become when life tests you the most.

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Change Your Mindset

Work-Life Balance Isn’t a Myth: Here’s How to Actually Make It Happen

Work stress doesn’t have to win, here’s how to protect your peace and thrive in any workplace.

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Starting a new job often comes with excitement and ambition. Yet, beneath that initial enthusiasm, many employees quickly encounter the reality of workplace challenges, especially stress. (more…)

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