The 7-Day productivity challenge

                                                                                    I know you probably have come across challenges like this a million times across the web. So what makes this different from others. Nothing. It's easier and more realistic. So without further ado, let's get into business. 

                                                                          So firstly we will talk about a few principles on which this challenge will be based:

 

1. Eat the frog - some of you might be familiar with this and some of you may not. so basically just imagine a scenario where you have to eat a frog every day and yeah it's not fried frog hind legs which sound delicious but it's the slimy toad you have to swallow. So naturally, u get disgusted and delay the process and then you skip it for the day, and the next day you have to eat two frogs. Sounds disgusting right ? so what's the solution. Just wake up and the first thing you do is eat the frog so that you don't have to worry about it the whole day. Here the frog has been used as a metaphor for the hardest task of the day. Let us say that subject or particular chapter you have to read for your exam or that leg day workout you have been skipping for the past month and any possible task that you can imagine that you need to do but keep skipping it. Just do the fuckin thing in the morning and get over with it it's as simple as that, realistically u can't escape it so face it.

2. The Golden Hour - It's basically the first hour of the day. So why it's golden. Assume that in the morning you woke up and got a phone call from your friends, confirming the 3-day trip you have been planning since childhood, or maybe you get discover 10000 dollars under your pillow kept by your parents for not studying at all hehe. I know sounds good. On the other hand, you woke up in the morning and scrolling social media, and came across the web about the death of your icon. So basically what I  wanna say is that the first hour of the morning decides the mood for the rest of your day. So what basically you should do is perform a morning routine and well prepare one. Like wake up and then try to avoid your phone for at least the first 30 mins of your day. Just get up from your bed, brush your teeth, take a cup of water and you know get some natural sunlight. And you know during this point due to exposure to sunlight your body releases a lot of cortisol ( basically a hormone that increases your body metabolism and energy) and the water hydrates you. Talk to yourself during this time, plan your day, etc. 

3. Pomodoro technique - we all know bout this technique still ill go over it a bit. while you do your work, don't do it at stretch you will get mentally fatigued. Try breaking it into small intervals. I'll recommend you do 22.5 mins work and a 7.5 mins break and of course don't scroll your phone during that time.

4. Incorporating small changes( Via ATOMIC HABITS BY JAMES CLEAR) -let's say you wanna study more and increase the length of your attention span, so start with small time intervals as I mentioned above then slowly increase .... from 22.5 to 30 then 45 then 1 hour. Or maybe you wanna read a book but you don't quite have the time or let's say interest to read it for a long time. Try reading a page a day ( this was suggested to me by one of my close friends) and you can also apply this to quitting smoking or drinking. 

5." People underestimate what they can do in a year and overestimate what they can do in a day " -

                                                                                    A great quote I know. I modified it and nowadays I try setting weekly goals instead of daily targets and yes stop making work routines it's not gonna help.

                                                                                Ok now enough of that let's go through the basic rules of the challenge :

a) Get at least 7 hours of sleep. 

b) No checking phone for the first half hour after waking up.

c)Morning showers- This is something my mom asks me to do and trust me it works it's not about taking showers at 6 am in the morning but like take the shower before you start grinding/working/ studying. Firstly this helps a lot in winter. When you take bath you feel cold but in reaction to that your body tries to reach its optimum Temperature in the process heating you up and boom energy spark. And also it freshens you up.

d) Reduce screentime - Let's say the last day you checked your screentime and it came out to be 7 hours. Apply point no. 4 . Set a target no matter what happens I'll limit it to 6 hours and 45 mins. So, in short, your screentime should be less than your previous day

e) At least 4 hours of work /study ( you can slowly increase as per your need).

f )Go out for at least an hour.

g) Spend time with your family ( although not too much)

h) Try to make someone's day - sometimes a thank you is enough.

i) Give some time to your hobby - like mine is writing and playing the guitar and watching football.

j) Your work desk or place should be clean - This enhances your mood and urges you to focus better.

                                                                          

                                                                        Well that was it I think for the first week this is quite doable I will be doing all of the above and of course, my study time would be a lot more cause else will fail. And one more point NO CHEAT DAYS. Instead, try a prep day. This will act as a bridge between your current lifestyle and your upcoming more productive lifestyle. ENJOY.