Jumpstart Your Efficiency With a Few Simple “Duo” Guidelines

Do you ever feel like you are trying to be productive, but nothing seems to work? Often, we jump into “doing more” without asking whether we are doing the right things? This can leave us feeling like we are running but never reaching the finish line. To work smarter, here are some tips to jumpstart your efficiency with a few simple “duo” guidelines. Think of these as common productivity habits to do in tandem.

1. Don’t Make a To-Do List — Unless You Prioritize It

Creating an exhaustive to-do list is helpful for getting your ideas out of your head and into a more permanent and accessible location. Admittedly, generating a giant list feels productive. At the same time, if everything has equal weight, it can be hard to know where to start. As a result, we may find ourselves turning to whatever feels easy rather than to what is most important.

✅ Do this instead: Clarify your top priority tasks.

Don’t just capture your thoughts – process your list. This might be by marking tasks with a star, a circle, a bold font, or other attention-getting mark. Limit these special notations to just a couple of tasks (i.e., one to three). Then, schedule these top tasks into your calendar for the day. Consider these top priority tasks as appointments, blocking out exactly when you will show up and how long you will work on them.

If you aren’t sure which tasks are most important, ask yourself:

• Which of these tasks has an imminent deadline?
• Which task will I feel most relieved to get off my plate?
• Which of these, if left unaddressed, might cause a future problem?
• What do I need to do first before I can move onto other items on my list?

Remember, if everything is important, nothing is important.

2. Don’t Declutter — Unless You Create a System to Keep It That Way

An organized and cleared location feels amazing… until it gets immediately re-cluttered. Additionally, when we gather items into a bin or closet to make our space “look good,” all we’ve done is created a future disentangling project for ourselves.

Organizing is less a one-time task and more an ongoing approach that sustains a predictable, ordered, functional life.

✅ Do this instead: Establish routines for regularly resetting your space.

Start by decluttering, then assign everything a “home.” The next step is to develop a plan for how, when, and by whom items that are taken out and used will get returned to their appropriate locations. Depending on your needs, this resetting may be done several times a day, once a day, once a week, or in some cases, once a year. If you live with other people, discuss who will perform the reset tasks so it doesn’t all fall on one person.

Without a strong commitment to reset and restore order, your efforts to get organized are bound to quickly unravel. Remember, organization isn’t about where things are today, but really about where they go every day.

3. Don’t Plan Your Day — Unless You Leave Buffer Time

Life happens – traffic, a blowout diaper, a technology meltdown, a power outage… the list is endless.

✅ Do this instead: Build in margins.

The best way to stay nimble in the face of inconvenience is by having transition or buffer time in our schedule. For example, we can allocate 15-30 minutes between major tasks. Or, leave 10 minutes earlier than seems necessary to arrive on time. Time pressure only makes already stressful situations worse. In contrast, knowing we will be able to “catch up” during these built-in intervals alleviates the anxiety that builds when we feel we are falling behind.

One additional note: not all interruptions can be managed in brief periods of time. Periodically, we will be faced with developments that completely interrupt our lives (e.g., an illness, an accident, a job loss, etc.). Sometimes, being productive means knowing when to admit that the wise course of action is to cancel, postpone, or reschedule what we had planned.

4. Don’t Say Yes to a New Task — Unless You Know What You’re Saying No To

Taking on new projects feels exciting and can even feel like progress. But without boundaries, “yes” can become the enemy of focus. Think of your time like a candy jar: it only fits so much. Eventually, it overflows.

✅ Do this instead: For every “yes,” decide what you’re saying “no” to.

Our time, energy, and attention are finite, so we need to treat them like currency.

Do you want to accept a new volunteer role? What will you need to walk away from so you can do this? Do you want to take on more responsibility at work? What are you doing now that you will need to give up? Think of this as the “one in, one out” rule for your time.

Productive people say “no” much more frequently than they say “yes,” and when they do say, “yes,” the choice is made mindfully, fully counting the cost.

5. Don’t Multitask — Unless One Task Is Truly Mindless

Multitasking feels like a superpower—until we realize we’ve made zero real progress on either task. We may think we can listen to a conversation and scroll our phones at the same time, only to discover when we look up that we would be hard pressed to repeat what the other person has just said.

The truth is that the human brain primarily focuses on one thing at a time. When we try and think about two things at once, it’s akin to trying to simultaneously do bicep curls while playing the piano. Rather than multitasking, we are actually “toggling,” moving our focus back and forth, a process that takes both time and energy.

✅ Do this instead: Pair a focus-required task only with something passive.

Multitasking only works if one task is automatic. For instance, I can drive a car (focus) while listening to music (automatic). You might be able to nurse a baby (automatic) while listening to a podcast (focus). One might be able to fold laundry (automatic) while talking on the phone (focus).

When in doubt, lean toward focusing on one thing at a time.

6. Don’t Chase Productivity Tools — Unless You Commit to a Workflow First

Trying out the latest app or a new system can feel like progress, but it’s often just glorified procrastination. I understand why we tend to do this: “shopping” is fun! However, trying to become more productive by finding the “perfect” tool is the equivalent of buying bins and boxes before decluttering and organizing. We can end up with a solution that doesn’t fit.

✅ Do this instead: Define your workflow and needs before choosing a tool.

The best tool is one that you use and trust. What makes a tool useful? A tool is useful when it meets your needs for:

• Time
• Budget
• Accessibility
• Learning Curve
• Function

Before you invest in a tool (e.g., a calendar, planner, CRM, database, inventory management, etc.), invest the effort to clarify exactly which features you need and how you operate. For instance:

• Do you need to access information from multiple locations?
• Will more than one person need access to this information?
• How and when will you interact with this tool?
• Do you prefer digital or analog interfaces?
• Does the tool require WIFI, cell service, or a subscription plan?
• How and where will your information be stored?
• How are security and privacy guaranteed?
• How hard will it be for me to learn to use this tool? How much time can I allocate to the learning process?
• What is the cost of the tool, and not just the initial price or a free trial, but the ongoing cost?
• What kind of professional support is available? Can I speak to someone, or will I only have access to line chatbots?

Remember that a good tool can’t fix a bad system. First figure out your process, then shop around for the best tool.

7. Don’t Work Late — Unless You Know When You’re Resting

Burning the midnight oil every now and then is fine. However, doing it regularly and/or without scheduled recovery is a recipe for burnout. Your schedule may be demanding—but only you can protect your time and health.

✅ Do this instead: Plan to rest.

Rest is part of productivity, not the opposite of it. If we have to push hard today, we need to plan for active recovery tomorrow (or sometime soon).  Without rest, adrenaline eventually runs out, and we often wind up with an illness or other situation that can significantly damage our ability to get things done.

There is also a motivational aspect to rest. We are not machines, so our energy and focus will naturally rise and fall throughout the day. Interestingly, simply knowing that we have a rest period on the horizon can help us maintain focus and energy in the moment. For example, an interval workout intersperses periods of high intensity with periods of rest/lesser intensity. These work because we are more likely to “go hard” if we know it’s only for a couple of minutes, and then we will have a break.

Everyone needs times to be unproductive, recharge, and rest. Such pauses are good for our bodies and provide powerful windows for creativity and inspiration. If you are never getting a break, consider what resources or alternatives you can pursue to get a break at sometimes each week. Also, protect your sleep as much as possible. Admittedly, if you have a new baby, this isn’t realistic. However, if you are losing sleep because you keep falling into the habit of doom scrolling on the couch, the onus is on you to unplug and go to bed.

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One last thought: while getting things done is important, productivity isn’t always about doing more. It’s about doing what matters, well, which often comes down to balancing one good thing with another.

What would you add to this list of “duos” for jumpstarting your efficiency?