A productivity hack I always use is booking a meeting with my manager a week in advance to share with him a presentation he requested from me. What’s the hack you ask? It is the fact that I most probably have not started working on the presentation yet. This meeting is how I make my commitment to finish the presentation in one week abiding. It keeps me accountable. If I wait to book the meeting until I finish the presentation, doing the presentation will simply drag and the task will take longer as I personally experienced in the task and according to Parkinson’s Law which states: “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion”.
Accountability is such a powerful tool towards achieving our goals, we all need it in some areas of our lives more than others. I usually need accountability in doing tasks requested by others while I need less accountability in tasks I initiate. This all made so much sense when I discovered I have the Questioner tendency according to Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies Quiz.
On the other hand, I noticed that many of my friends simply deliver any work or family task on time just because they were asked and people depend on them. Those same people find it hard to commit to going to the gym 3 times a week because no one is counting on them to do it. According to Gretchen’s quiz those friends are Obligers. Obligers need to create accountability systems for their personal goals or else they will keep feeling bad why they are not making any progress. Accountability could come in many forms such as a personal coach or a trainer, a work-out buddy to go with to the gym or whatever activity they want to commit to.
I believe this quiz is really helpful. Please note the word tendencies in the quiz title. Nothing is set in stone, knowing what you tend to do will help you make better choices and install the proper systems to support you. I enjoyed reading The Four Tendencies book. Fairly simple and packed with examples.
Do the quiz and share with me your tendency in the comments or by email bardees @ bardeessmairat.com.