👋 Hey there!
🚅 This is issue #29 of The Double E Bullet where I share two bullets of things to help you elevate your entrepreneurial journey so you work smart, not hard.
If you’ve been following me for a while now, you would know that I am a sucker for all things productivity. I mean… who doesn’t love a good hack, right? Obviously, the reason you’re subscribing to this bullet is that you want to spend your time wisely and not be a slave to your desk.
Because we all know how it is with entrepreneurs and their 80-hour workweeks….
BULLET ONE
📝 The Habit System 📝
And that is exactly why I’m starting off with these tips.
In fact, these tips (and apps) were exactly the things that I learned on my own journey, so I could balance work and personal life.
Having a habit system in place allowed me to have routines and rituals that kept me going no matter what.
I also divided this into two: one I do in the morning after getting out of bed and before getting to work, and the other after doing work and before going to bed. Ready?
Day Start System – This is a set of habits that I execute at the start of my day, as soon as I’m out of bed, and before I begin work.
- Remove distractions. It can be so easy to get distracted these days, and if you’re not careful, you could find yourself, one hour later, mindlessly scrolling through your social media feeds. If you could leave your phone in another room and/or remove the apps that easily distract you, and then just leave the browsing on your desktop or laptop, you could be off to a great start.
- Exercise or meditate. Self-care is such a necessity these days. Spend time to move your muscles, even if it’s just 5, 10, or 20 minutes each day. Or spend a few minutes each day to sit and relax, let go of all the worry and tension in your body, and be mindful of yourself and your surroundings. Do this for the next few days and your body, mind, and spirit will thank you for it.
- Write a journal. Writing is powerful… students retain information more easily when they take notes, and somehow, it’s a lot easier to achieve goals when you put them into writing. So write everything down… your grocery list, to-do list, goals, plans… If you have nothing else to write about, start a gratitude journal and write down the things you are grateful for, daily.
Day Shutdown System – This is a set of habits that I execute after I’ve finished work.
Pro tip: Set an alarm on your phone to remind you to log off. I have a repeating alarm set for weekdays to go off at 5:30 pm. Having an alarm serves as a physical trigger to remind me that I need to start shutting down and not get further into emails and calls.
- Spend time with your loved ones. Even Vin Diesel understands the importance of family and a lot of us entrepreneurs often forget to make them a priority once we’re in the thick of work. You don’t have to make a grand gesture all the time… simply spending an hour or two every day with them – fully present – can already make a difference. I use a combination of Focus Modes and the Downtime feature on my iOS devices to help with this. Focus modes like Do Not Disturb allow me to block all incoming notifications for a certain period of time and Downtime restricts access to attention-demanding applications like email & Slack.
- Read a book. Entrepreneurs should never stop learning, so stop using those books as a prop on your nightstand and challenge yourself to read a chapter or two each day. Reading could help you wind down and replace your Facebook-scrolling habit in bed. It can be a physical book or a digital version; if you’re opting for digital books as I do, I’d recommend getting a specific reading device like a Kindle and not using your phone/tablet to help avoid being distracted.
Hate reading? I have a video version explaining this exact system. Watch it here.
BULLET TWO
📝 GoodNotes 📝
I love a good note-taking app and this app is exactly what that’s for.
GoodNotes is pretty much your notebook on steroids – you can write and draw like you would with a regular pen and paper. However, that’s where the similarities end.
With this digital notebook, you can create stunning visuals to come with your notes… and use just one pen to achieve that. It’s a great way to take a creative break from your 80-hour workweek.
The app also comes with handwriting recognition and OCR technology, making your entire library of digital notes searchable. Just imagine how much easier it would be to search for ideas, topics, notes, that you’ve written down previously. This would have been extremely helpful preparing for finals back in college, amiright?
You can use GoodNotes to start your journaling habit… or you can use it to write your to-do lists, checklists, other personal or work-related lists, or even just for doodling.
If you’re the pen-and-paper kind of person – this might just be a great app for you!
🧨 DHIREN’S UPDATES 🧨
Since we’re already on the topic of creating habits and journaling… here’s something for you!
Writing in my journal is something I now do on a weekly basis. It wasn’t always easy and, in the beginning, I definitely struggled with what to write about. However, once you start asking yourself the right questions, you’ll soon find yourself unable to keep up with the things you want to write about.
Doing a weekly journaling session has had a profound effect on the outcome of my own productivity and happiness and I highly suggest you get in the habit, too.
If you’re unsure where to start, you can use the simple structure that I use and let me know how that goes for you.
Check out the video below 👇
Or you can also download this resource I created with prompts for your next journaling session. You’re welcome! 😉
Speaking of mindfulness and note-taking… did you know that today is Nametag Day? Celebrate this day not just by calling people by the names of their tags but also by connecting with them and learning more about themselves, their families, and their communities.
Happy Nametag Day!