4. Time Under Tension: 3 Steps for Getting Started and Remaining Motivated
Like many mothers, I have been trying to shed post-pregnancy weight for years. Okay, let me be honest, I have thought about it since I had my first child, but I only started doing something about it 1.5 years ago after my second child, who is now 2 years old. In my on-going weight loss journey, I was introduced to time under tension (TUT) strength workouts. TUT workouts force you to do controlled, slow and repetitive movements so that your muscles work harder, until ultimately, you build endurance, strength and growth. For instance, instead of attempting to do 10 squats in 60 seconds, a TUT workout would have you do 5 and hold yourself in squat position for a few seconds longer before standing up.
Similar to TUT, if you want to build the strength, endurance and growth that is required to get started and remain motivated on your productivity journey, you will need to stay in control, go slow and start small, and be repetitive but not boring. These are my three steps to getting started and remaining motivated:
1. Stay in Control
“I will work on the presentation when I get the chance today.”
“I’m not sure if I will have time, but I will see what I can do.”
“I will see how the day goes and follow up with you.”
These are phrases that people say in various ways that reflect what you may feel right now — “I really don’t have control over my own time.”
To some degree, this is true. There is a lot of unpredictability in each day, and of course, in life in general. Yet, does life’s unpredictability mean that we don’t have any control over our time?
Not exactly.
You can feel in control of your time by planning for the knowns while leaving room for the unknowns.
We have no control over the unknowns of life because they’re exactly that — unknown.
But we can plan for the knowns because we know when they will happen and/or how much of our time they will consume. For example, most of us probably don’t have the flexibility to control our work schedule, yet we can determine, through weekly and daily goals, how we will work and what we will work on. Also, we have greater control over non-working hours. We can plan for this time as well. This may be as simple as scheduling time for self-care, family time or your personal hobbies.
Be intentional and set weekly goals. Plan for each week based on those goals. Your calendar and to-do or task systems will help you with this planning.
If you fail to plan, you are leaving your productivity to chance and luck. And chances are you will certainly get frustrated.
2. Go slow and start small
In our excitement for results, we sometimes want to go from only walking level ground to climbing Mount Everest.
Your exercise clothes are collecting dust (no judgement, that was me). Now, you’re inspired and excited. You’ve identified physical wellness as a core value, so you’re determined to exercise 1-hour every day.
You have struggled to meet deadlines, but now that you’re on this journey you want to set a goal to get things done a week before it’s due.
This approach will not work. You cannot go from zero to 100. You will grow frustrated with your lack of results, and your inner saboteurs will lead you to quit.
Go big or go home is NOT our mantra for a more productive and fruitful life. We are going to go slow and start small because, in the end, slow and steady does win the race.
Small, consistent efforts can lead to big results.
If you want to go from coach potato to athlete, can your small effort be just putting on your exercise clothes every day for one week?
If you chronically miss deadlines, your initial small effort may be to submit materials on their due date, rather than any earlier.
Once your small efforts become real habits, then you can begin to increase the duration and intensity of your efforts.
3. Be repetitive but not boring
Repetition is key to building endurance, and if we are going to remain motivated on this journey, we need endurance.
However, many of us don’t like routines when it comes to productivity, because we are afraid we will get bored with doing the same thing over and over again.
Yet, we are all creatures of habit. You wake up around the same time each day, eat or skip breakfast depending on your preferences, take the same route to work every day, work around the same set hours each day, return home, eat dinner and go to bed around the same time. One day is not that different from the next. But some people’s days are planned and repetitive, while others are disorganized and repetitive.
We want a planned and purposeful routine that is tied to our habits and values without getting bored.
How can we prevent boredom with our planned routines?
Consider switching up the order of your morning or nightly routines, still ensuring that you get them done.
Change your environment. Do you have to work in the same office or cubicle every day? Can you work from home? Can you work in a coffee shop? If you must be in the office, can you move to a conference room with a window for a few hours when needed?
Spend some time working alongside an accountability or work partner. Sometimes the mere presence of another human being who is also focused on a task is what we need to stay motivated. When I am jogging outside, I am more likely to push further when I see other joggers on the trail.
Building muscle is hard work. It requires time and some tension. Similarly, your journey will seem hard in the beginning. There will be significant tension or friction as you get started. Your motivation will ebb and flow. To successfully get started and remain on the course of this values-centered productivity journey, you will need to stay in control of your time, go slow and start small and be repetitive, but not boring. This will lead to the endurance, strength and growth that you need to thrive on this journey.