Productivity Tip:

Become Your Own Anthropologist

It’s easy to blindly chase productivity hacks, but what’s more important is understanding how they work for you. So instead, try observing yourself like an anthropologist!

Take “field notes” of your habits, energy levels, and triggers—what times of day you feel most focused, what routines improve (or sabotage) your well-being, and how different environments affect your mindset.

Any important or interesting observation, jot it down immediately so it doesn’t get lost. This helps you “become a more active observer of your own life,” says Anne-Laure Le Cunff at Ness Labs.

She has a great post about it here. Check it out and give it a try!

Routine Breakdown

Sophie Paterson, Interior Designer

Skincare, Saunas & Strength Training with an Interior Designer

Sophie Paterson says she’s started waking up at 5 am after listening to a podcast with Robin Sharma. “I never thought I’d be someone who’d wake up voluntarily at 5 am. But what he said that really resonates with me is that you’re not getting less sleep, you’re just shifting the downtime that you have […] to the beginning of the day.” After waking, she:

The Routine:

• Drinks water and does her skincare routine before getting dressed for a workout.
• Works out in their home gym, alternating between full-body weight training and Peloton workouts. “I think it’s really important as you get older, especially now in my 40s, to do weights. But I don’t do that every day,” she says.
• Drinks coffee (decaf). “It’s such a treat to have coffee after my workout.”
• Uses an infrared sauna blanket for 20 minutes (the “best part” of her day) while relaxing and listening to a podcast. “I choose one that gets me into the frame of mind I want to be in for that day.”
• Gets dressed before her kids wake up.

Why it works:

• Waking early has allowed Sophie to cut out the habit of doom scrolling on her phone at night and replace it with productive “me” time while her kids are still asleep.
• Sophie is right, strength training is important as we age. One study of 400,000 women found that those who do strength training 2-3 days a week are more likely to live longer and have a lower risk of death from heart disease.
• Infrared sauna blankets may increase blood flow, alleviate muscle pain, and help you sweat out toxins. 

“The 5 am thing has honestly been such a revolution for me,” says Sophie. “I feel like I have so much more time in the morning now and I feel a lot more productive.” 5 am starts may not be for everyone, but getting up a little earlier can certainly be a game-changer. What time do you get up in the mornings?