I am not a member of the 5 AM club, nor do I train for the next triathlon. But in the past two+ years, I managed to increase my productivity dramatically (OK, so the bar was set kind of low).

Are my suggestions mind-blowing? Hardly. Will reading about them shake you to your core? Unlikely.

Can implementing them change the trajectory of your life?

You bet it can!

So here’s my productivity tip number one:

1. Sleep.

• It may feel like an indulgence, but it’s an investment.

• Getting enough of it is the foundation of all things fabulous.

• Figure out how much sleep you really need. Most of us underestimate it by a couple of hours.

2. Meditation.

You might have heard of it before. It’s that thing that tastes a bit like cucumber water and is about observing - in a detached way -your thoughts and feelings arise. Which, over time, helps you shrink your amygdala, which equals shrinking your procrastination.

However, the trick is to not read or think about meditation but to sit your butt on the cushion and do it consistently.

3. Using a timer. A beep here, a beep there. It may sound like a random beep to an untrained ear, but for me, it’s the lifeline. As someone who can daydream all day, I need something that yanks me into action.

• For work -I set a timer ( a Pomodoro timer for neatly packed 25 mins sessions), which helps me focus on the task.

• When I clean, I set a timer. It's shocking how much you can get done in 5 minutes.

• I set a timer when I procrastinate. Do I want to spend another 20 minutes lifting kettlebells or doing my taxes? Unlikely. But I CAN start with 2 minutes.

4. Implementation Intentions are about taking vague ideas and pinning them to your mental board (and your calendar). The formula is simple:

"If.... then..." plan.

I usually replace IF with WHEN.

It’s about making whatever needs to get done a ‚dentist appointment’. So instead of declarations like: „I want to write more often!” you tell yourself: „Tomorrow when the clock strikes 9.30, I will write for 25 minutes straight"(after a good night’s sleep, meditation, and setting my timer - it’s a breeze! ).

That’s all, kids! Until the next one.

*I have 3 mins 27 s left. What should I do?