Cultivate deep work – 18 things to make you more efficient

Picture of By Darren Finkelstein
By Darren Finkelstein

The Accountability Guy®

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Some tasks are just hard. There’s no substitute for deep work.

Everybody has a few daily To-Dos that could almost be knocked out while sleeping. These are the tasks that you need podcasts to get through—if anything, they’re hard to get yourself to do because they’re not especially interesting.

At the same time, some tasks are just difficult. You can’t multitask your way to finishing them. You need to devote serious time and mental effort to knocking them out of the park.

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Here are 18 tips to help you cultivate deep work and boost your efficiency:

  1. Create a Dedicated Workspace:
    Set up an environment free of distractions where you can focus solely on work.
  2. Use a Time Blocking Schedule: specific blocks of time for deep work and stick to them.
  3. Minimize Distractions:
    Turn off notifications, close irrelevant tabs, and put your phone on silent.
  4. Set Clear Goals:
    Define what you want to accomplish during your deep work sessions.
  5. Prioritize Important Tasks:
    Focus on the tasks that have the most impact first.
  6. Batch Shallow Work:
    Group non-essential tasks together and handle them outside deep work sessions.
  7. Practice Mindfulness:
    Stay present by practicing mindfulness or meditation before starting deep work.
  8. Leverage the Pomodoro Technique:
    Work in focused intervals (e.g., 25-30 minutes) with short breaks.
  9. Take Regular Breaks:
    Allow your brain to rest with short, timed breaks between deep work sessions.
  10. Limit Meetings:
    Reduce time spent in unnecessary meetings to protect your deep work time.
  11. Use Noise-Cancelling Tools:
    Wear noise-cancelling headphones or play white noise to block external sounds.
  12. Set Boundaries with Others:
    Let colleagues or family know when you’re in deep work mode to avoid interruptions.
  13. Cultivate a Routine:
    Establish a consistent deep work routine to train your mind for focus.
  14. Use a Task Management System:
    Keep track of tasks and prioritize your deep work projects using tools like Trello or Todoist.
  15. Master a Single Task at a Time:
    Avoid multitasking to maintain full concentration on the current task.
  16. Track Your Progress:
    Measure the outcome of your deep work sessions to see where improvements can be made.
  17. Get Adequate Sleep:
    Ensure you’re well-rested for better cognitive performance during deep work.
  18. Reflect and Adjust:
    Regularly review your productivity patterns and tweak your deep work habits as needed.

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