I read everywhere you need to take a break and reward yourself for a task completed or something. But what do people usually do. I don’t want to look at social media. Maybe read a book… I’m looking for more ideas how I can make the reward satisfying.

A few years back, I was a master at staying busy. My to-do list was always overflowing, my calendar was packed, and my day was a blur of tasks and meetings. On the surface, it looked like I was getting a lot done. But the truth was, I felt like I was constantly running on a treadmill—moving, but going nowhere.

I had this moment of realization one evening when I looked at my to-do list and couldn’t remember why half the things on it even mattered. It hit me that I’d been confusing “busyness” with “productivity.” So, I started digging into what productivity actually meant for me. I wanted to understand how to get things done without feeling like I was barely keeping my head above water.

Here’s what I learned, and maybe it can help someone out there who’s also feeling stuck:

1. Identify What Actually Moves the Needle I realized that not all tasks are created equal. Some things were just busywork—tasks that made me feel accomplished but didn’t really get me any closer to my goals. I started using the 80/20 rule, focusing on the 20% of tasks that brought me 80% of the results. It was uncomfortable at first because it meant saying “no” to things that felt urgent but weren’t important. But it also gave me back hours in my day.
2. Set Boundaries with Your Time I used to think that “productive” people just worked nonstop, grinding away. But I learned the hard way that burning out is not productive. Now, I set strict work hours and give myself real breaks. When I’m working, I’m fully present. When I’m resting, I don’t feel guilty. This shift taught me that productivity is less about working longer and more about working smarter.
3. One Task at a Time I used to pride myself on being a multitasker. But research (and experience) taught me that multitasking actually made me less effective. Now, I pick one task, set a timer, and dive in. I can’t tell you how much more fulfilling it feels to give my full attention to one thing and do it well.
4. Reflect and Adjust Regularly Every week, I spend a little time reflecting on what worked and what didn’t. I ask myself questions like, “What drained my energy?” and “What felt truly meaningful?” This practice has been eye-opening because it allows me to adjust my approach, rather than just blindly pushing forward.
5. Celebrate Small Wins Finally, I stopped waiting for huge milestones to feel accomplished. Now, when I finish a meaningful task, I let myself feel that moment of satisfaction. It reminds me why I’m doing this in the first place and keeps me motivated for the next task.

At the end of the day, productivity isn’t about checking off every box or being constantly “on.” It’s about knowing what really matters and putting your energy there. I’m still a work in progress, but learning to work with purpose has transformed my life. It’s a slow, sometimes messy journey, but it’s one that’s finally leading me somewhere that feels worthwhile.

If you’re struggling with productivity, remember: it’s okay to let go of the “more is better” mindset. Sometimes, less is not just more; it’s exactly what you need.

Soo basically the title. I heard that making milestones and then adding a reward to it is a great way to motivate yourself and that would def work for me since i love buying stuff. Is there an app for it or a website?

So google gave me 10$ coupon. I wanna use it wisely. So which productivity app should I purchase from Play Store?

Heya, as the text says, i kinda want to become a single minded schoolgirl, it may not be "healthy" but idc

I will change anything and everything to become single mindedly dedicated to academics, including but not limited to:

Planning Hobbies Music taste Clothing/willing to enforce a uniform Diet Religion

I want nothing more than to be a study machine with no free time. I simply a push and hence i ask for advice despite most not agreeing with my desires.

Thank you for reading.

Hi everyone , so the new windows clock app has a productivity session feature and one specific thing they have is that I can set a total amount of time I want to have and it'll automatically set the work time and still have my default break time. eg. same break time but depending on whether I put 45 mins or 100mins it'll set the number of sessions and session length.

My actual question is whether there's a cross platform app that has this same feature. only on Android is fine too

Does anyone know if there’s a way to wake up to Spotify or Apple Music songs as an alarm? I’ve tried so many basic alarm sounds, but I’d love to start the day with my favorite music. Just curious if anyone has found a way to do this.

I use YT to follow certain creators who's content is really valuable like Tim Ferris. But I see a lot of distraction on YT. Obviously they wants me to be on YT forever but is there a way (setting / extension) to only see videos from the people I'm subscribed to?

I dont basically need discovery until I explicitly turn on that flag.

I’ve been using the Samsung Gallery app on my phone, and I love how it can detect and classify images by content. For example, if I type “card,” it shows me pictures of my debit card, license, and other card images I’ve saved. It’s not perfect, but it gets the job done in most cases.

This has been a huge productivity booster for me since I’d otherwise spend several minutes (or even up to an hour) hunting down specific images.

Now I’m wondering if there’s any similar software for Windows PC that can do this kind of image classification and searching. Something that lets me search by keywords and categorizes images accurately would be awesome.

If this isn’t the right subreddit for this question, could you point me to one where I might get better suggestions? Thanks!

Alright, r/productivity, I'm looking for something beyond the same tired "play some lo-fi beats or white noise" advice. I want to learn how to use sound to really improve focus, mood, energy, and maybe even tackle stress reduction - I’m talking about an evidence-backed roadmap that actually delivers results. Here’s what I’m looking for:

1. Types of Sound and Specific Applications: How different approaches (binaural beats, isochronic tones, pink noise, etc.) affect specific outcomes. Don’t just tell me “binaural beats help focus” – I want to know which frequencies, how long to listen, and when is one better than the other. This is what separates insights from random playlist recommendations.
2. Scientific Evidence and Sources: I don’t want placebo-effect sound hacks ;)
3. Playlist or Recommendations: Have you found any tools, platforms, or playlists that are genuinely useful? Please don’t recommend apps that are just throwing random sounds together.

I know it’s a lot to ask, but I’m willing to put in the time and effort to explore, so thanks in advance to anyone who can provide solid info!

What specifically worked for you to get out of bed and feel like a decent human being in the morning?

For example, I am using the Ivy Lee method currently and sometimes, I can´t finnish all 6 tasks of the list during the day. It sometimes happen that I finnish, let's say the 6 th task after midnight but I count it as new day and so the next day (after I wake up) I focus only on 5 tasks (or less, depends how much I do at midnight). Do you do this as well? What's your approach?

I am looking for the best, secure, single app solution for my needs... I think I have the answer but I want to make sure I am not missing an option.

What I am looking for is something that I can use to outline projects, work and personal. I want to be able to break down projects by project name, tasks, subtasks, due dates and reminder notifications, and notes attached to each task/subtask. The personal side is to just remind myself of things I need to do at home...

Must have feature

I must be able to access my notes and/or task lists through a web browser interface, preferably Chrome if an extension is required. My job requires working on Linux (95% of my time) and Windows the rest. Since I work on company provided machines, I can't install apps, nor do I want to do so, thus the requirement for a web interface. For the personal stuff, I will use my ios devices.

Desired features

Ability to create (almost) unlimited subtasks. Ability to add notes to a task or subtask Calender (add due dates for project/task/subtasks, etc) Reminders (remind me that task/subtask is due in 1 month/week/day etc) (It may sound as though a project management tool would be ideal, but I don't need that much power/sofistication for home.)

What have I tried so far

Obsidian: Really cool and slick. It seems to be infinitely customizable, which is very bad for me, as I know I will end up taking long journeys down multiple rabbit trails. Also, Obsidian does't have a browser interface. As much as I want to use and like Obsidian, I think it is not for me.

Work Flowy: Very simple. So far seems capable. There is an eisenhower box plugin/template, which I think will be very helpful. Has browser interface.

Any other suggestions?

Hello everyone.

I want an app/tool to track the progress of my personal projects.I've been using Trello, but it doesn't have a subtask feature. What do you guys use for project management on your own? I don’t want to continue managing project development without using any dedicated tools, since I can't track myself and can't find motivation sometimes. This app has to be for individual/small team use.

Thanks in regards!

I've had these two tasks for years - just weekly reminders to do something every Thursday... but they just end in mid-January and nothing I do seems to get them to continue?

(Google told me to "delete completed Tasks", which I did, but it didn't change anything. I restarted the phone, no change. Pixel 8a.)

Recently, I decided to spice up my productivity game by pretending I’m a candidate in a high-stakes election. It sounds ridiculous, but it’s surprisingly motivating. When I picture myself running a “campaign,” every task feels like a critical part of my “platform,” and every day is a chance to “win over” my own future self.

Here’s how I’m running my personal “election campaign” to boost my productivity:

1️⃣ Daily “Press Briefing” (aka Morning Brain Dump):
Every morning, I spend five minutes on a “press briefing,” where I jot down everything that’s on my mind—goals, random ideas, even little tasks I need to handle. I categorize these into “Today’s Priorities,” “Future Promises” (stuff I’ll work on later), and “General Housekeeping.” It’s like briefing my imaginary voters (aka, my own brain) on what I’m focusing on that day.

2️⃣ Track “Campaign Wins” (One Positive Thing Reflection):
Every day, I log one “campaign win” to keep my morale up. Did I finish that annoying email? Go for a walk? Resist the urge to nap at my desk? Boom—campaign win! I write it down as if it’s a victory speech, and it’s shockingly motivating to see the little things add up. Turns out, building momentum is just as important in my “campaign” as it is in a real one.

3️⃣ Weekly “Campaign Strategy Meeting” (Weekly Reset):
At the end of each week, I hold a “strategy meeting” with myself. I go over my wins, review my “campaign promises” (aka tasks I’ve logged), and set goals for the coming week. This reset helps me adjust my “platform” as needed, and it’s a good reminder that I’m making progress—even if I had a few setbacks.

4️⃣ Managing “Polls” (Mood and Energy Tracking):
Just like a candidate needs to gauge public opinion, I track my “approval rating” (how I’m feeling each day) to understand what works best for my energy and focus. If I’m feeling great one day, I can push harder; if not, I’ll prioritize self-care. The pattern of my “approval ratings” has been super helpful for planning when I tackle certain tasks.

So yeah, I’m running my own little campaign for productivity, and it’s working wonders for my motivation. I even have a place to organize all of this—it logs my tasks, tracks my wins, and helps me hold myself accountable, all in one spot. I still don’t know if I’m “winning” yet, but I can say this: my “approval rating” has never been higher. 😆

Instead of making a to-do list then checking the items off as they are complete, have you ever tried sitting down and writing down a list of things that have been complete?

Opinions?

Please Can you recommend an alternative app to track personal time other than Timelines app that needs no subscription?

I really like Timelines app & its great UI and functionality but It needs subscription!

Is there any app that can compete with Timelines that needs no subscription?

Like seriously, how do u guys plan life for every aspect (finance, work, hobbies, etc)? What apps do u use ? How do u keep your life organize? .

I’ve been using a few different calendar apps, but I still feel like they’re missing some key features. For me they just feel outdated, just like printers

hello everyone,

i've seen this sort of post a bunch as i've been researching but didn't get to find what i'm looking for. for some context, i am 18 and live with my mom while i'm studying and simply living, generally

but essentially, i notice that throughout my life i am ridiculously productive when my mom isn't around. i do more of the things i planned on doing, especially tasks i do for myself, i just "dare" to do things more, i think more of what i actually want to do... if anything, i feel like a strictly better version of myself when my mom isn't there.

when she's there, i seem to feel rather lazy, i don't do as many things at all, and again especially for myself. i just do less, overall. harder for me to do things generally

i don't understand why this happens. i genuinely don't. and my mom is wonderful, too, she isnt abusive or mean at all. and i genuinely mean that, i don't think i'm manipulated or anything of the sort.

maybe it's just the unconscious pressure of living with someone? if i do X thing, i might get bothered because someone may want to talk or need help with something, and this not being possible at all can help one not focus on what can end up happening.

is, or was, anyone in the same situation? if so, how did you fix this apart from living alone / with someone else? i will have to live with my mom for quite some more time, so i would like to find a solution to this. it really frustrates me that for now, the only solution i find in order to be more productive / """better""" is to be completely alone and not be with someone who very much cares for me and my wellbeing.

i hope you're all doing well, cheers and much love

I rely a lot on lists and want to get them all in one app (I currently use the notes app on my phone plus paper notepads). I ideally want these functionalities available on the free version:

• To-do lists that I can categorise both by topic and by due date/urgency, so I can view based on either
• Preferably a habit tracking function, or the ability to set recurring tasks rather than need to re-enter them every week/month

I've found Notion great at work and i like the idea of having attached docs - I could keep recipes I want to try on one page and link to that from the task 'try new recipe' Would you recommend one of the apps in particular for this usage? Any extra tips for getting the most out of it?

I need to take control of my thoughts and actions. I experience a lot of lassitude (where my mind knows what I want and often need to do but my body and inner thoughts lack the motivation/energy to carry out the task) and it sucks. Ruins relationships and personal goals and I just feel awful about myself because it seems SO easy and yet for me it just isn’t. More so looking for control of my mindset, not just practical or physical solutions although I am open to them. I envy the people who get up immediately to do a task and don’t just sit there and think about doing it.

I do not have the clock app anymore, and for a short period of time did not have Snapchat or Instagram. I redownloaded Snapchat because that is the main way I communicate with my friends, and Instagram because I have a small business on there, but both apps have that mindless scrolling feature. Can’t disable reels, I’m on IOS. I just need self control but it’s soooooo hard! I feel like an idiot not being able to get off the apps. Time limits don’t work for me, I just turn them off and they just generally really upset me. (When I didn’t have social media, I replaced it with IOS games. I’m obsessed with doing nothing productive ☹️) please help! my dad is a clinical psychologist and he has no idea how I can fix it other than deleting the app, but I want to gain that self control. I guess I could just log out of my personal IG and stay on my business one? That might help.

Is there a way I can create multiple events at once at google calendar in a manner they become independent events after creation?

Context:

Let us say, I want to establish a time block every day from 10-12 for answering emails. I set up the event, and select “repeat on weekly on weekdays”. The problem is that if I delete the entry on the days I have something else up (using “delete > only this event”) and then later want to change something about the recurring events (e.g. set them to start at 9:50), all my deleted days reappear. This could be solved by creating multiple similar events that not not affect each other after creation. Is there a way to do that?

My grandpa just died a week or so ago and I have been fucking up everything and anything since then. I just bombed my fucking test and my GPA is absolutely cooked, and in the beginning of the year I wanted to be a 4.0 student. I can’t focus for shit, and I have negative motivation to do anything. A couple of weeks ago I was fine. I was in the gym (albeit still fat as hell) and could do some of my work for short periods of time. I don’t know how to get myself out of this slump. Any advice?

I've been dealing with brain fog for the past three years or so, and it's completely wreaked havoc upon my ability to function as a student.

My thoughts are humiliatingly sluggish, I can't analyze subject matter as deeply as I used to, I frequently forget how to spell basic words, it's more difficult to remember things, and the process of articulating even the most basic of concepts makes me want to bash my head against a wall until my brain unscrambles back to its normal state.

I used to be effortlessly good at writing. It was one of my few useful skills.

Now, I fail every class that includes a written final because I literally am only capable of mustering up two sentences that vaguely connect to one another. Not because I cannot make sense of the class material, but because I cannot put the thoughts in my head onto paper.

So far, to solve the issue, I've:

-Tried sleeping more

-Cut sugar from my diet

-Ate more protein

-Exercised more frequently

-Reduced stressors in my life

-Drank more water

-Tried meditating

-Taken iron supplements

-Taken B12 supplements

-Went on and off of adderall to see if it would make any difference

-Increased/decreased my caffeine consumption

-and I've taken a blood test, which determined that all of my levels were normal. Including thyroid.

I'm tired of drowning. I don't have any more ideas.

 Reminders worked while I had my work mac but now that I am on PC, I am using the site and you can't see the "today" list via the website.

Microsoft To Do is OK but really simple. Almost too simple even Reminders has more complexity.

Todoist is a subscription that my husband is not OK with. The free tier barely works.

Things 3 works OK and there is a "Today view for Things" where you export your tasks that are due today to a file and then you can import them to your browser and while that works, in order to sync it back I need to export and import via the shortcut. It is a PIA unless I want to manage my tasks via my iPad/iPhone which I have tried for the last few months to do (with T3 and Reminders) and failed spectacularly.

I keep things like the following stuff in my task app:

• Take out trash (Sundays through Thursdays)
• Check aquarium PH (every 3 weeks)
• Take meds (daily)
• Workout (daily)
• Research X for my Ai I am making (one-off)

Mix of reminders + tasks I need to get done. I try to limit it to the "needs" and not the "wants to get done" if that makes sense.

Hey redditors!

I am working as a software dev remotely, and here is my daily schedule that I tend to follow most of the days.

But lately, I have realised the fact that I am not able to find time to upskill/leetcode. Any suggestions of what can I add/remove from my schedule might help.

Thank you!

MY DAILY SCHEDULE AS A REMOTE SOFTWARE DEVELOPER

⏰ MORNING ROUTINE
02:00 - 09:30 | Sleep (7.5 hours)
09:30 - 10:00 | Meditation
10:00 - 11:30 | Gym Workout

💻 WORK BLOCK 1
11:30 - 14:30 | Office Work

🍱 BREAK TIME
14:30 - 15:00 | Lunch
15:00 - 15:30 | Power Nap

💻 WORK BLOCK 2
15:30 - 18:30 | Office Work

🌅 EVENING ROUTINE
18:30 - 21:30 | Family Time / Personal Tasks
21:30 - 22:00 | Dinner
22:00 - 23:00 | Badminton
23:00 - 00:00 | Family Time

💼 LATE NIGHT
00:00 - 02:00 | Business Development

so basically i need a scheduling app to book appointments that multiple people can view and edit. nothing else. i dont need all the other nonsense that some apps have. anyone know of any?