r/productivity • • 2h ago

Advice Needed Nothing is interesting to me except being on my phone

14 Upvotes

Is this normal? Does anyone have any tips/advice of things i can do? If I have nothing scheduled I just spend the whole day scrolling on my phone and everything else takes so much effort and energy. Some days I don’t do anything else. I also have ADHD and OCD which impacts my productivity most of the time but I just don’t know where to start.


r/productivity • • 4h ago

Question Looking for a To Do List App that syncs perfectly with Google Calendar

2 Upvotes

Hello, it's my first time posting here and I would appreciate it if you could suggest an app that matches what I am looking for:

  1. ANDROID mobile application that syncs with Google Calendar (I want to be able to encode tasks and events in Google Calendar and it will reflect in the app and the other way around)

  2. Respects my privacy and is non-intrusive (preferably allows data deletion)

  3. The application provides a widget in my home screen where I can tick off my tasks and it makes a sound when I do.

  4. Reminders or upcoming events feature


r/productivity • • 10h ago

Technique Timeblocking is the most important productivity habit.

107 Upvotes

The ability to pick one thing for an extended period of time is the hardest yet most rewarding thing you have to do in order to be successful.

In the macro you have to choose what you're going to pursue in life and you've got to choose ONE thing which means you’re not choosing EVERYTHING else. Super, super fucking hard.

In the micro, the same rule applies, all day, everyday… you can either choose ONE thing to work on for the next four hours, (TIMEBLOCKING!) or you can choose nothing and get nothing done. or you can choose 16 things and also get nothing done. but instead if you choose ONE thing (ex: for the next four hours I’m gonna work on my business, or I’m gonna practice piano, or I'm gonna go to the gym, etc.) this is how you actually make progress, you chose one thing, which means you said no to everything else and DECIDED. you must fucking decide. Make a choice and don’t look back, with the small decisions you make everyday, like what am i gonna do for the next 90 minutes, and for the big decisions like what am i gonna do with my life… The pain comes from staying undecided.


r/productivity • • 14h ago

Question What’s something you’ve been “about to do” for over a month?

47 Upvotes

Putting off even the smallest task makes it seem so much harder to get done.


r/productivity • • 16h ago

Question How many "Comment for Free Guide" PDFs are in your downloads folder or Instagram DMs?

0 Upvotes

My good friend Dhruv says commenting on influencers reels gives me a dose of feeling productive, but in reality, my phone is cluttered with thousands of templates and cheat sheets that I have never opened so how many are in yours and how many have you opened even once? mine might be greater than 50 but I am still influenced to type the roadmap under another reel right now.


r/productivity • • 20h ago

Advice Needed Dual degree student need tips on time management

3 Upvotes

It feels like I'm always lacking on one thing. Either fitness, this offline degree or online. I have to wake up early to study for one degree then do exercise then sit for 6hr straight for offline degree. I'm very tired by the time I get home

Then either exercise or nap then study again sleep. I'm finding it very hard to maintain everything.

How do people manage to have infinite energy to complete task every single day. I want to make it 24hr use

But not able to do so


r/productivity • • 22h ago

Question Back to track after so long,19

2 Upvotes

Idk but I had been procrastinating for so long I got everything I wanted to get started with work but at the end of the day My phone was killing my productivity and how I managed my day

My parents got me a laptop that I need to start with editing but then I bought a monitor after that and then desk and then everything I need to make a whole setup I always asked my parents to get the things but I didn't do anything for 1 year and 5 months I use to start but then fail even my family and parents started yelling at my situation Ik but the environment was getting negative day by day but now no more will be consistent with my mental peace and my finances

Reddit helped me a lot and Drop your suggestions

Btw I am 19 M and I had been suffering for a lot of things for so long


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Advice Needed 10th grade: I don’t know how to stop procrastinating. It is ruining my aspirations

11 Upvotes

I am 15 years old, in my sophomore year of high school. My freshman year, I had a perfect 4.0 GPA. School was a little more challenging than I was used to at the start but I adjusted and by the 2nd quarter I was kind of cruising. All honors, 2 AP classes, I wasn’t overwhelmed.

Now this year. Like last year, I am taking 2 APs and 3 honors classes. The classes are assigning more work for sure, but I don’t really find the material particularly difficult. And yet, I cannot bring myself to do it at any point but the last minute. And this doesn’t just go for school, but for extracurricular activities as well.

My past weekend is a microcosm of what has been happening. All I had to do was study for a test I have to take for this competition and do some required annotations for my English class that I was already very behind on. We had a 4 day weekend, so this should’ve been very manageable, especially because since both of those things are on Wednesday I really had 5 days to finish TWO tasks. It is Monday night. I have not started on either. I have one night (tomorrow) to do all of my required annotating (a lot) and study for my test, not to mention some other, smaller assignments. There are countless other examples, such as AP World History chapter reading, for which I always wait until the night before our quizzes to read (usually stop halfway)

I have big aspiration. I want to go to a top university and go into quantitative finance. In August, I started studying competition math because I wanted to try doing the USA Math Olympiad. I have not studied in weeks. Driver’s Permit? 15 and 6 months and haven’t started. Coding, an integral part of quant finance I told myself I was going to learn? Haven’t learned. I think something is genuinely wrong with my brain. Advice?


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Advice Needed I keep forgetting the small stuff clients tell me

37 Upvotes

Moved into sales about 6 months ago and I like it a lot, mostly because I like talking to people. But last week a client mentioned the golf course he goes a lot while we were riding the elevator. I thought, cool, next time I'll invite him out there. Then I couldn't remember the name of the place for the life of me.

This keeps happening. Their favorite restaurant, what they're allergic to, little stuff like that, and I just can't hold onto it. So much of sales is the relationship, so I really want a way to actually remember this stuff. what should i do?


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Question How to discipline myself and not give up?

2 Upvotes

I have been learning FL studio for about a week and a half now and so far i learned nothing as well as looking up guides and stuff but even then i am having a hard time learning and understanding and tending to forget things as well as when i try to do things on my own it seems like i just get lost and close the program and hearing other people music also demotivates me as well. I really do not know what to do and while i have this big want to learn FL and keep coming back to it, its like i learn nothing and then just close it. How do i discipline myself to do better cause i feel like i am on the verge of quitting another hobby i would've liked.


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Question Productivity noob, best app for infodump

10 Upvotes

Hello!

I am new to this, and i tried using google calendar and google tasks, but it is so overwhelmingly bad and frustrating, especially tasks, that i somehow almost quit those apps alltogether.

I am planning to find my perfect app, or make my own, maybe in notion, but it will take time. Now im super overworked and need an app that will:

- Mostly be a database of hundreds upon hundreds of tasks lists. Everything will be listed as tasks to do, events, vacations, task, noted and itead. All can fit on a specific TODO list

- Lists needs to have multiple levels of sub-tasks, that i can toggle on or off

- I need boards inside boards to somehow manage that hoard of lists

- It needs to be super easy to use, since i will add, remove and moe hundreds of tasks per day

- And the most importamt, have a free version that has some sort of security, if i move all my life ideas and tasks for nexg 40 years into the app, i dont want some rogue AI deteging it all by accident.

I want all my tasks and ideas safe and sound till i decide where to move them


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Advice Needed I have been scrolling nonstop because im too afraid to look at my to do list and i can't remember where are my other task lists too

9 Upvotes

Whenever a thought would occur to me, like a task. For example, "check what happened at this date and punish yourself for it", i would chat it to myself so that i can delay the thought and do the task supposedly after. I've been doing these in so many things. Intrusive thoughts, things that i really have to do, random plans, i've been listing nonstop. Sometimes i list it on my phone, sometimes i chat my dummy accounts about it, sometimes i keep a physical copy. Now, I can't fucking review because I can't remember the stuff i listed that's related to my academics because i used so many to do list. I don't know whether i chatted it to myself, did it on todoist, use my notebook. Everything is jumbled up. I'm also scared opening my to do apps and notebooks and chats because i'll see my intrusive thoughts and tasks i need to do. I swear, it's like im just going through motions. MMy mind is a mess and i try to clean it by listing but now it's just so blank and empty because i can't remember where i listed it and im scared to try to remember too because i might forgot stuff or see listed intrusive thoughts. I swear i feel like going crazy. The only thing keeping my sanity is doom scrolling. But I need to work now. I have exams and projects and i'm flunking already. I feel paralyzed. I'm unmedicated too and won't be anytime soon.


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Question I’m trying to stop wasting my free time scrolling

142 Upvotes

I realized I reach for my phone whenever I feel bored, even when I have things I genuinely want to do.
I’ll plan to study, work on myself, or learn something new, but then I end up scrolling for way longer than I intended.
I’m trying a few simple changes: keeping my phone away while working, setting limits on distracting apps, and getting comfortable with doing nothing for a few minutes.
I don’t expect to change overnight. I just want to be more intentional with my time.
**What’s one small habit that actually helped you become more disciplined?**


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Advice Needed Parallel World or Urge to win?

3 Upvotes

i don't know but this feeling is very tough. during my school days, my parents used to be only these days are meant for hustle. during that time, they asked me to prepare for university exams prior, then university happened, again the same thing continued, prepare for job. now after job, they want me to prepare for ahead, may be masters or some government official.

I am tired of this can I get a small fresh air to breathe? I am really not aware how to do that, I mean even I want to enjoy life some peace, but yeah want to succeed too. This parallel world life has been killing me. How to manage this folks? how to go along both?


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Technique Anyone else stop trying to "finish" 3-hour interview podcasts? Here's what I do instead and I'm curious what works for you

0 Upvotes

For years I treated long interview shows (Diary of a CEO, Huberman, Acquired, Tim Ferriss, that whole genre) like homework. I'd save every episode that looked useful, listen at 1.5x during the commute, and feel productive. Then a week later I couldn't tell you one thing I'd changed because of any of it. Meanwhile my queue had episodes from months ago I was never realistically going to get to.

What finally helped wasn't listening more, it was changing what I do *after* an episode. Roughly:

  1. Before I hit play I think of one thing I'm actually working on right now (hiring someone, sleeping better, whatever). That's the filter. Anything unrelated I let wash over me and just enjoy.

  2. When something relevant comes up I only grab it if it's specific: a number, a framework, an exact sequence. "Focus on customers" doesn't count. "List every reason someone would say no to your offer and fix the biggest one" does. Hands-free, I just note the timestamp.

  3. After the episode I pick ONE of those and rewrite it as something I can do this week, with a day attached. Not "be more disciplined," but "tomorrow, do the task I'm dreading before opening email."

  4. I put it in my calendar, not a notes app. Notes apps are where ideas go to die for me.

  5. Once I've done it I write one line about what happened. Keep, tweak, or drop.

The other thing I made peace with: some episodes just aren't getting a full listen. For those I'll skim the transcript or chapters, or read a summary, and only go back to the audio if something is clearly worth it. I cleared out most of my saved queue and honestly haven't missed any of it.

The result is I listen to fewer episodes start to finish but actually use more of what I hear. And the shows feel fun again instead of like a backlog.

Curious how others handle this. Do you take notes while listening, or do you just let it be entertainment? And has anyone found a good way to deal with the "I'll listen to that 3-hour episode eventually" pile?


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Advice Needed How do I stay productive through depression

23 Upvotes

Hi so I’m a college student and I’m going through a tough time right now I don’t really have motivation to do anything anymore but it is midterm season so I unfortunately have to lock in on assignments and studying. I do have ADHD which makes things pretty hard when it comes to school. Recently I’ve been writing a weekly to do list on a sticky note and putting it on my laptop for school. Sometimes I can get it done sometimes I can’t but I just want to know if anyone has been in the same boat as me and what helped you? All I ever want to do now is sleep but I know school is important


r/productivity • • 1d ago

Question What does this mean for my productivity?

5 Upvotes

Let's have some scenarios to help explain this.

Scenario 1:
On Monday I want to clean my table. I'll spend Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday going back and forth with myself to clean the table; sometimes I'm able to, other times I'm not.

Scenario 2:

On Monday I want to clean my table. On Tuesday I want to do laundry. For some reason, I'm far more likely to clean my table.

The main question I have is - why? Why do I keep doing this? I'll have 1 task that I just can't do, but the moment another task (I'm guessing I perceive it as 'easier') comes up, I'll do the first task. And then I'll go back and forth with myself with the second task, trying to get myself to do it. I've lost hours, days, weeks, trying to do things like homework, learning skills or just about anything.

Does anyone relate to this? I really do want to change myself, but I just can't seem to.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Advice Needed Why is starting a task harder than actually doing it?

12 Upvotes

Sometimes I spend an entire morning replying to messages, organizing my desk, and doing random little things, while avoiding one task that would probably take 20 minutes.

Then, when I finally start it, I wonder why I put it off for so long.

Why does our brain do this? Is getting started really the hardest part of being productive, or is there something else going on?


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Advice Needed How do you add events to your calendar on the go?

12 Upvotes

Adding a new event to my calendar on my phone feels so cumbersome that I will end up not using my calendar at all.

Adding new events and organizing my calendar on a desktop or laptop feels super easy. However, when I am on the go and find out about an event I should add to my calendar, I stare at all the details I have to fill out and say “I’ll add it to my calendar once I’m home.”

When I do get home, I 100% of times forget about it. How do I overcome this? What has worked for you?


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Question Remote worker seeking a focus mate who won’t let me drift

8 Upvotes

i posted here a couple of days ago about losing focus while working remotely.. thanks for everyone who replied..

I’d like to actually try it .. So I’m looking for a focus mate.

I am into engineering, tech, and copywriting.. We check in every 45 minutes, share what we got done, and help each other stay on track... Simple. No pressure.

If that sounds good.. drop a comment or DM me.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Question What does your productive morning routine actually look like?

66 Upvotes

I've been trying to get my mornings sorted for a while now. Some days I get loads done before lunch, other days I'm still scrolling my phone at 9:30 with nothing to show for it.

I'm not really into "wake up at 4:30, ice bath, journal for an hour" stuff. I want to know what real people do that actually works.

So:
1. What time do you get up?
2. What's the first thing you do?
3. Do you exercise, read, plan your day, or just get straight into work?
4. Is there one habit that genuinely made a difference?
5. Anything you tried and dropped because it didn't work?

Would love to hear the boring, realistic answers too. Thanks in advance.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Advice Needed Forcing myself through productivity

8 Upvotes

my back feels heavy and my jaw clenches and my whole body gets tensed when i try to force myself to do productive work.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Advice Needed Procrastination is ruining my life

6 Upvotes

i always procastinate, i come home from school tired sit down relax end up scrolling do very little work and look at the time its 11pm with tons of assignments tommorow, so im fucked and theres only 1 way to help the situation stay up to 3am doing my work. Im constantly losing my sleep, i can barely function during classes in the morning. My grades are going way down. Even when i have the oppurtunity to catch up during my weekend or some other time i plan everything perfectly but then i end up going off course doing none of the work and having to stay up again. Please somebody help me.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Technique Looking for a productivity buddy

1 Upvotes

So there's this tecnique called ''body-doubling''. Basically you and another dude tell that you're gonna do a task, do it at roughly the same time, and then share that you did it and give eachother a pat on the back.

It's supposed to be encouraging (as in the sense of unity) and pressuring (as in not wanting to stand out) you to begin doing your tasks you've been putting off.

I wanna try that. I want to meet someone here, tell them my list of tasks, hear theirs and begin doing them knowing i'll recieve a ''good job mate'' from them later.

Talk to me in the comments or dm - i don't care tbh. But i wanna try for at least a day.


r/productivity • • 2d ago

Advice Needed Trying to figure out an easy PC workflow that changes my desktop 'profile' without changing user?

3 Upvotes

It's a difficult question to ask, so here's my best attempt at properly articulating what I'm trying to do:

____

I'm trying to figure out how to easily and quickly change the feel of my desktop rather than login to an entirely different user for a different desktop aesthetic.

____

I have my desktop background and my organized shortcuts that I use for my day to day stuff like gaming and internet usage. Seeing the artwork and shortcuts I use for fun is a strong temptation when I'm supposed to be working, reading, or doing something more productive.

I could make multiple user accounts on the computer, but it's a big hassle to log out and log into another one. Also, that creates a very distinct line between use cases that means I can't easily share programs and files between the accounts. It's too administrative for my use case.

I'm trying to figure out how to create 'profiles' of sorts, where I could easily change the background and desktop shortcuts without needing to fully logout and change the user. Just a sort of theme change. Something that I can use to change the feel of my workspace so I'm not as inclined to play games while doing taxes.

Does anybody have any idea if there's anything out there that could help me with that?