Having a productive environment can be difficult. Think for a moment. How often do you wake up and grab your phone first thing in the morning? Maybe you scroll through Tiktok for half an hour. What about breakfast? Do you eat in the morning, or do you not have time? How about soda? Do you drink a lot of water, or is it easier to just grab a coke from beside your desk and chug it while you play games?
These things might seem benign, but the reality is they are a part of your environment. Some habits are formed from the environment we voluntarily or involuntarily subject ourselves to. If you are looking to improve yourself and things around you, then an environmental change might be easier than a mental one.
As always, I am not an expert, nor is this article a substitute for professional guidance. An abusive environment and serious mental health issues are no joking matter and should be treated the same as any other bodily injury. However, for the average joe looking to get the most out of his day, here are tips for a productive environment.
Pick Your Objective Beforehand
It’s no secret that the only way to achieve a goal is to actually have a goal. The same applies to your surroundings! If you want to improve things around you, you’ll need an objective to focus on. It can be simple or complicated, really.
Some people just want to wake up earlier. If that’s the case, then you’ll want to set things up so you are more likely to wake up. Other people want to overhaul their lives completely. There, you will have to change a great number of things around you before that is achieved. However, you need to know the goal.
I recommend writing out what it is you hope to achieve by making a productive environment. Whether it be something related to your work life, health, or schooling, write what you want to be able to do.
Then, write and research different ways that can be achieved by changing your environment. For example, if I want to wake early, I will set an alarm that cannot be turned off until I run in place for a minute. That’s both fitness and waking early in one!
Make your Environment the Path of Least Resistance
Another tip is to create a productive environment so that the things you want to do are the path of least resistance. A great number of people want to change themselves. They make all kinds of plans, lists, and ideas. However, after they put everything into motion, they fail to adhere to anything they planned.
Adherence is one of the hardest parts of changing one’s lifestyle. Even when directed by professionals, people fail to adhere. So, one way to improve adherence to all sorts of habits and routines is to craft a productive environment where the path to your goal is the path of least resistance.
If you want to eat less junk food, don’t leave the junk food on the counter where it’s easier to grab. Better yet, don’t buy it at all!
That means you will have to go further out of your way to break your adherence. To watch less TV, try putting the remote in an annoying place, or turn your whole TV around. Make it more of a hassle NOT to commit than it is to commit.
Start Somewhere, Anywhere, but Start
Crafting a productive environment can sometimes be like cleaning your room or a garage. You walk in the door, look at the mess, and walk right back out.
Why?
We walk out because we don’t want to deal with the mess, of course. More than that, though, we don’t know where to even start!
Without knowing specifics on every situation, it is hard to make blanket recommendations. However, a good rule of thumb is to start on the smallest manageable task you’re comfortable with. For example, cleaning the oil stains, mud, and rat pellets might be a daunting task. Picking up the wrench at your feet might be easy.
It’s the same with building a productive environment. Your life might be incredibly chaotic, and knowing the best place to start can be difficult. There is no end to the ways chaos can manifest itself in our environment as well, from general clutter to genuine health hazards. Yet, there is likely a tiny place you can start with and tidy up.
Once you’ve chosen a spot and cleaned, it’s also true that your environment will be slightly cleaner. You’ll have made progress, and your vision will become clearer and more focused. Every small step helps to narrow in on the goal and creates more opportunities to find places where improvement can be made.
Life-Long Process
Crafting a productive environment is neither a simple nor a short undertaking. It’s a life-long process. The benefits an improved environment has on mental health and productivity are worth the effort, though. Small steps and a goal will help to guide the process, and the process will make achieving other goals easier through the path of least resistance.
If you don’t believe it, give it a try for a month and see what you manage to achieve. Your environment might be more important than you think!
Let us know your thoughts and tips about creating a productive environment.
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