The Key to Unconventional Productivity

Sometimes the most important thing to completing a task is to take a pause

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There isn’t a productivity guide in the world that will solve the problems that pretty much all of us face daily.

We all face similar obstacles getting stuff done: doing busy work instead of important work, getting distracted instead of doing difficult work, or feeling tired and not wanting to tackle hard tasks.

These are all really the same problem: When you have important but difficult tasks to do, you run to distractions or do busy work, or just goof off, because you don’t have the energy.

I deal with this every day, and I don’t always solve it. But what if we could dive into this problem and figure out what’s going on with us? We'd be masters of the universe (or at least the universe inside of us).

Pause Training

In truth, we face this problem of running from discomfort all the time, but we normally don’t notice it as it’s happening. This is why meditation is such a great training ground for the mind—you sit there and have nothing to do but notice the mind running from the discomfort of the present moment. Over and over. And in time, you learn how to work with this. So I suggest you use your important tasks as meditation training, so you'll learn to work with the discomfort that arises.

Here’s how:

1. Pick one important task you really should get done today.
2. Clear space in front of you to do this task. Close the browser, or all browser tabs except the one you need to deal with this. Shut off the phone, clear everything else away, and focus your mind on this one task.
3. Sit there and do the task.
4. Watch your mind try to run.

Now we’re going to do “pause training,” where instead of running from the discomfort, you pause. Breathe. Turn your attention to this discomfort—it might be fear, frustration, uncertainty, self-doubt, or fatigue. Drop your story about this discomfort, and just notice how it feels physically in your body. Where is this feeling of discomfort located? What quality does it have?

You'll notice that the discomfort actually doesn’t feel that bad, even though you habitually want to run from it. It’s just energy. It’s not actually good or bad, but just energy that’s in your body, one that you normally don’t want to have and normally judge as “bad.”

Try this pause training for yourself. It won’t work to just read about it, you have to work with it. Get to know it and become intimate with it.

Unconventional Productivity

Once you’ve started to work with the discomfort, you‘ll see that it’s no big deal. Nothing to worry about. It’s just a feeling, just energy. You’ll relax a little around it. Try to develop a friendly attitude toward it, instead of being harsh on yourself. Just notice, just smile, just breathe, just be gentle.

How do you turn this into productivity? Here’s a system to try:

1. Set Your Three Most Important Tasks (MITs). Do this every morning, first thing when you start work. List a few other “should do’s” after that, but focus on the MITs first.
2. Pick One of the MITs. Clear space to do it. Before you check your email.
3. Do Some Pause Training. Notice when you want to run from this task, and instead pause and investigate the physical feeling of discomfort with an attitude of gentleness, friendliness, and curiosity.
4. Set a Heart Intention. When you relax into the discomfort, and see it’s not a big deal, set an intention around the task. Are you doing it to improve your life, or to do something good for someone else, or to help the world? Find the heart in your intention—it’s ultimately coming out of love. Say to yourself, “It is my intention to do this task out of love for __” (fill in the blank: yourself, someone else, the world, etc.).
5. Work With Love. Open your heart and do this task with the love that comes out of your intention. Notice when you’re feeling discomfort and want to switch to something else. Relax and do pause training if you need to, then start again.
6. Take Breaks. Every 10 to 15 minutes, get up and walk around. Stretch. Drink water. Check in with yourself and see how you’re doing. Then return to the task or pick another MIT.

You won’t be perfect at this, so don’t expect perfection. Just work with it, gently, and you'll get better and better with practice.

Leo Babauta is the author of six books and the writer of Zen Habits, a blog with over 2 million subscribers. Visit ZenHabits.net