Ever wonder how unicorn founders and the who’s who of online entrepreneurship, digital marketing, the tech industry, and startup community got to where they are right now?
Productivity junkies like you may be curious – what’s their time management secret? How can they run the world and still find time to run, play video games, and finish 50 books a year?
Well, this article will let the cat out of the bag. It’s time to let you in on the secrets of some of the most successful entrepreneurs of today.
Without much further ado, here are the productivity hacks from the top entrepreneurs of today’s modern world:
Mark Zuckerberg
This guy needs no introduction – unless you’ve been hiding under the rock and never used Facebook.
But in case you have, Mark Zuckerberg is the founder of Facebook. (For more information, watch the movie The Social Network.)
Aside from his belief of not wasting time deciding which clothes to wear (hence the omnipresent gray t-shirt), Mark believes that the key to maximum productivity is – wait for it – momentum.
He borrows that famous tagline – just do it. Getting started fires up productivity because merely kicking something off will eventually spur momentum.
“I think a simple rule of business is, if you do the things that are easier first, then you can actually make a lot of progress,” he says.
What follows is grit, which is key in any business success. Soldier on despite the parts that are not too exciting, because building a company can have one too many curveballs.
Mark is also a big fan of goal-setting. He’s known for setting crazy targets every year, like coding his own AI house butler named Jarvis, reading a book every fortnight, and learning Mandarin. Keeping to goals like these takes a lot of laser focus and discipline.
So if you want to create your own version of Zuck, learn to recalibrate your reality and push your comfort zone! Remember, you’re not alone – there are tools and apps to help you with it!
Neil Patel
Neil Patel is a New York Times bestselling author. He’s recognized as one of the biggest experts on digital marketing and SEO. The Wall Street Journal calls him a top influencer on the web, Forbes says he is one of the top 10 marketers, and Entrepreneur Magazine says he created one of the 100 most brilliant companies. He was recognized as a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 30 by President Obama and a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 35 by the United Nations.
Neil believes in breaking down big tasks into smaller ones.
“In most cases, with a lot of these tasks or goals you need to accomplish, it’s not stuff you can achieve in a day. If you look among businesses and entrepreneurs, and even people working a 9 to 5 for someone else, the goals and objectives you’re given usually can’t be done in a day. What I do is break those things down into daily tidbits that I need to do to get them done. That way I know I’m progressing further,” he explains in an interview with Startups.co.
Neil’s really on to something here. He’s talking about this incredibly effective method called the Pomodoro technique, which entails tapering off one giant task into smaller ones called “pomodoros.” The pomodoros will be completed in intervals of 25 minutes, divided by 5-minute breaks in between.
We’re sure Neil’s talking about the Pomodoro technique because he’s also a big fan of breaktimes. In fact, he believes that workplace productivity can be achieved by insisting breaks among employees.
If you want to live by this rule but constantly find yourself forgetting to take a break, don’t fret. PRO TIP: use break reminders!
Tim Ferriss
Tim Ferriss has been listed as one of Fast Company‘s “Most Innovative Business People” and one of Fortune‘s “40 under 40.” He is an early-stage technology investor/advisor (Uber, Facebook, Shopify, Duolingo, Alibaba, and 50+ others) and the author of five #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers, including The 4-Hour Workweek and Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers.
According to his book “Tools of Titans,” one of his key productivity tricks is this:
“Write down the 3 to 5 things – and no more – that are making you the most anxious or uncomfortable. They’re often things that have been punted from one day’s to-do list to the next, to the next, to the next, and so on. Most important usually equals most uncomfortable, with some chance of rejection or conflict.
Block out at 2 to 3 hours to focus on ONE of them for today. Let the rest of the urgent but less important stuff slide. It will still be there tomorrow. TO BE CLEAR: Block out at 2 to 3 HOURS to focus on ONE of them for today. This is ONE BLOCK OF TIME. Cobbling together 10 minutes here and there to add up to 120 minutes does not work. No phone calls or social media allowed.”
Some serial entrepreneurs and startup junkies attest to this. University professor Bryan Guido Hassin refers to this block of time as “airplane days,” after noticing that some of his best works were done on a long-haul flight. On the plane, there are no distractions – no phone calls, no email, no social media.
Sounds like an ordeal? Not really. It’s so much easier with website blockers because you don’t have to rely on sheer willpower. If you feel like you’re going to crack anytime soon, just turn OFF your online distractions and keep your website blockers ON!
Marie Forleo
Marie Forleo is an online entrepreneur, writer, and philanthropist best known for her online training programs on MarieTV.
Marie believes that you can be more productive by planning the day out the night before. “It’s so simple but hardly anybody does it,” she explains. It only takes four minutes to think through what needs to be done for the next day. Estimate the amount of time you need to spend on each task.
We agree. Setting up a schedule for the next day can’t be any easier. With Focus plans, you can set up a schedule, activate a plan, and never have to worry about forgetting them. Sticking to your schedule can be as easy as using a FocusMe scheduler.
