Do you want to read books faster and absorb more information? Do you long to produce more, work longer with less fatigue, and be a beast of a machine? Some say the secret is taking a cold shower in the morning, while others swear by to-do lists, pomodoros, or going to the gym. The best speedreaders love timers. Working out your eye muscles may also make jumping to the next line faster when you read books.
But actually, there’s one technique that’s better than all of these and will give you super productivity powers. What’s better is that I won’t even demand the low price of $19.95 for it. Instead, I’ll tell you the secret for free: slow down.
Slow down? Yes, that’s right. To be honest, the quest for mechanizing productivity is misguided. I even tremendously dislike the word “productivity”. And I guarantee that while all those special techniques people write about these days will make you more efficient in the short run, they will also rob you of your creative soul. If you really want to express yourself effortlessly in this world, forget about productivity and just live.
That’s because if you focus on productivity, all you are actually doing is pushing yourself in a certain direction on mechanical tracks, instead of actually accessing the true power of your beautiful mind.
The truth is, the fully-functioning and free mind doesn’t want to be pushed. So does that mean the best thing to do is just lie down on the beach and become a surfer?
Well, sort of. By detaching yourself from the obsession for productivity, you’ll actually begin to regain the true creative spirit that comprises your entire existence. When you are fully detached from productivity and efficiency, you will be naturally efficient. When you stop trying to force yourself to read faster, you will enjoy reading more and the entire essence of what you read will be infused in your being.
Birds don’t worry about productivity, and neither should you. Photo © Jason Polak
In short, when you discard your erroneous ways of maximizing productivity, you will produce effortlessly when it is natural to do so. You will also rest when it is natural to do so, and go through life without unnaturally forcing yourself. It’s true that you won’t always produce when you want to, but the goal of life should not be endless production. Instead, the ideal is not to force your mind like a machine, but to let it explore with your basic curiosity about the world.
So, I give you this advice: take a break from what you are doing. Do less for a while. Savour what you do and give yourself permission to explore. When your body wants to chill, don’t force caffeine down your throat and work ten more hours. Sit down and look at the birds and the flowers and the clouds.
Today’s world is based on taking a person’s natural ability and forcing it to produces what the system needs until the soul burns out. Modern global capitalism doesn’t care about you because it can rinse and repeat with a new soul. But you can go against that. You must go against that. At first, this new way of operating may be scary and even painful, but in the long run you will be a happier person.
Over time, once you completely eliminate the desire to be productive and efficient, you will just make things naturally. And this natural process will not be forced, and it will be more meaningful, more creative, and more powerful than anything you could do by following a list of ten steps to be more productive. And after you follow my advice, if you’re still not being very productive in what you are doing, then your body is telling you that you are doing the wrong thing!
Just return to your natural state, forget timers, forget pomodoros, forget to-do lists, forget productivity, and let your natural function return!