It can be hard to stay motivated each November as the days get shorter and darker. This year the world is also coping with the Covid-19 pandemic and in Ireland we have entered our second lockdown. To help people turn November into a productive month, I have developed a Lockdown Planner. This work was inspired by a conversation with journalist Yvonne Reddin. She contacted me after we met online at Samantha Kelly’s recent Womens Inspire Network conference. We both wanted to do something to help people through these Lockdown weeks.
This chat resulted in the Lockdown Productivity Planner – new tool developed to help you take control of your business and personal life. It is available to download here on our Productivity Resource Page.
Focus on What You Can Do
During this Lockdown, my key productivity tip is to focus on what you can do rather than what you can’t do. In my family we are approaching this Lockdown as a challenge. A time to set personal and work targets and then put the head down and get them done. A bit like Lent! My target is to walk every day and cut down on sugar. Do you have a target you would like to achieve every day? Is there a bigger goal that you want to complete by the end of November?
Planning your time and setting small targets for each day can help you stay on track. It helps you stay motivated too. Getting things done, no matter how small those things are, can really boost our mood. That feeling of productivity motivates us to keep going.
The Lockdown Productivity Planner
So I present to you the Lockdown Productivity Planner to help you take control of November. This Planner is an Excel file you can download and edit. It features the following:
- Weekly Goal Setting
- Daily Productivity Tips
- A Weekly Review
- A blank Planner – so you can add your own information
Other Productivity Resources
I have also developed a Lockdown Habit Tracker to help you track any new habits you start this month. Tracking a habit each day helps you stay motivated because if you get on a “streak” you won’t want to miss a day. It worked for me last night when I was motivated to do my daily walk in the wind and rain just to tick that box!
We have lots of other resources to help people be productive while working from home. Checkout our Covid-19 Resource page here for Productivity articles, tips and templates.
If you would like to book a Productivity and Time Management Webinar, Training session or Coaching programme please contact Moira.
Written by Productivity Consultant Moira Dunne, founder and director of beproductive.ie.
