Both personal and workplace productivity involve getting the most out of your available time and resources. However, while workplace metrics such as profits, growth, and career advancement are easy to measure, judging personal success can be challenging.

That’s why so many people have difficulty maintaining personal productivity when the results are gradual or not immediately apparent or when it’s easy to give up and fall back into patterns of procrastination and inefficiency.

By following these 7 simple steps, you can build your productivity in measurable ways while improving your mental well-being.

1. Let yourself relax
Because we spend so many of our waking hours at work,¹ it’s easy to fall trap to the fast-paced, high-pressure state of mind. Even during non-work hours, many people worry that there are more important things they should be doing, and simple activities such as watching TV or taking a walk may feel counterproductive. To improve your personal productivity, try to escape this pattern of thinking. Everyone needs time to relax, and occasional “unproductive” activities are essential to a more fulfilling life.

2. Start things
Often, the first step toward a significant personal accomplishment is the most difficult one. For example, if you are considering a home-improvement project or a creative task, the size and scope of the overall project may determine whether it is worth pursuing. But rather than focusing on the overall project, break the job into smaller milestones and focus on that first step. Making the milestones more manageable may be all that is needed to taking the first step.

3. Invest in yourself
Though sometimes hard to measure, personal investments can be even more powerful than financial investments. Short-term activities such as enjoying a work of art, learning a new skill, travelling, meeting new people, or reading a thought-provoking book may not seem significant in the moment but, in the long run, these experiences will expand your mental faculties and deepen your interactions with the world in more ways than one.

4. Forget work
It would be unrealistic to suggest that everyone should completely put work out of their minds during non-work hours, but it can’t hurt to give yourself at least an hour or two every day during which you spend none of your mental energies on work-related matters. In fact, getting your mind off of work for a short time every day can be energizing and help give you a fresh perspective when you do return to work.

5. Identify derailers
We all have things that distract us and take us off course, sometimes destroying all the progress we’ve made on a given task. For example, maybe your sweet tooth interferes with your health goals, or perhaps television and web-surfing prevents you from reading more intellectually-stimulating books. It can be difficult to completely avoid these derailers, but recognizing them is the first step to changing your habits and becoming more personally productive.

6. Set two categories for your goals
Separate your goals into two categories. A longer-term category for goals that allow for unbounded dreams and aspirations and another for shorter-term goals that allow for growth and accomplishments. Most of us tend to treat our goals in the same way, lumping the practical with the impractical. As people, we need both types of goals to fulfill our potential. Separating these two categories allows you to better prioritize what really matters to you. It also helps to break up larger goals into smaller milestones.

7. Get some rest
For many of us, weekends are reserved for recuperating and catching up on the sleep missed during the week but, unfortunately, it rarely works out that way. We tend to use weekends as yet another opportunity to keep busy and catch up for the week. However, it may be much healthier to think of the weekend or days off as a relaxing reward for your hard work. Rather than continuing to push yourself, try to give your body and mind the rest and relaxation it deserves.

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