Are you someone who is often busy and does more things than most people, but still getting less or average results?
I've been there.
"Busyness does not equal productivity. It is not about doing more but doing more of what matter most." — Craig Groeschel
In our fast-paced world, many people believe that working harder means getting more done and getting more done means being productive and producing effective results. However, this assumption can be misleading and a paradox in itself. Doing more tasks doesn't equal productivity or effectivity. Rather, it often becomes counterproductive and ultimately results in diminished focus, substandard quality of work or output, imprudent use of time and resources that lead to poor or average results, and eventually burnout. Instead of just filling our schedules with activities, we should prioritize meaningful work that aligns with our goals—doing things that matter.
The goal is not to be busy, doing more tasks in less time. But the goal is to manage our priorities wisely, planning ahead, and doing more of the things that matter with purpose and intention. In other words, it's not about getting more done for less, but getting only the right ones done more. By focusing on quality rather than quantity, we can achieve better results and foster a more sustainable approach to reach our goals. Ultimately, it’s about working smarter, not just harder. This 2025, scratch out your New Year's Resolutions that don't stick. But stick to habits that will propel you to achieve your goals and experience your most productive year yet.
What Are Reasons Why Doing More Does Not Always Equal Productivity?
In this blog post, learn why doing more does not always equal productivity, and how we can make better use of our time and energy doing more of the things that matter most. Here are some reasons why:
Reason #1: Increased Quantity of Work Does Not Equal Increased Quality of Work
My senior high school to early college years were the start of my busiest years I thought so far. As a dentistry student, we were busy with piles of schoolwork, readings, and exams for weeks on end. It was also the time I truly decided to follow Jesus and serve in our local church, went through the process and eventually became a department head, handling a team, and a leader handling some of the youth in our church, while serving in most services as part of the music team and the media team, as we were a pioneering church back then. There was so much to do and because I love God and loved what I was doing for Him, I want to make the most out of my day, every single day, even to the point of exhaustion. To me, a productive day looked like getting more tasks done in less time, that even taking a short nap felt like a crime. I would juggle multiple tasks at once, thinking that as long as I was doing something, there was progress. My idea of productivity created the illusion that getting more done means I was efficient and made good use of my time and energy for the day. Although, I wasn't making any real progress and not getting satisfactory results aligned to the goals I want to achieve.
Neurobiology research suggests that the ideal length of time for concentrated work is around 90 minutes, which aligns with our brain's natural ultradian cycles. As defined, "Ultradian cycles are biological rhythms that occur multiple times within a 24-hour period, in contrast to circadian rhythms which follow a roughly 24-hour cycle. These 90-minute ultradian cycles govern various physiological processes, including hormone secretion, heart rate, and most importantly for productivity, our ability to focus and concentrate." Studies suggest that our brain can sustain focus for approximately 90 minutes before requiring a break. Attempting to extend focus beyond this timeframe may conflict with our natural biological rhythms, potentially reducing productivity and increasing the risk of burnout.
There's also the concept of The Law of Diminishing Returns. It is an economic principle that applies to our daily lives in pursuit of productivity. According to PennState, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, it states, "The law of diminishing marginal returns is a theory in economics that predicts that after some optimal level of capacity is reached, adding an additional factor of production will actually result in smaller increases in output." In simpler terms, this means that after a certain point, putting in more effort, resources, or time into a task doesn't lead to a proportional increase in results. For example, if you increase the workforce in a factory without expanding the facilities, each additional worker will contribute less to the overall production because they may get in each other’s way or there may not be enough resources to effectively utilize them. In the context of productivity, this means that working longer hours or attempting to get more tasks done in less time may initially boost output, but eventually, the additional effort will lead to smaller gains or even negative results, such as burnout or reduced quality of work. More time spent or more work done, doesn't always lead to proportionally better outcomes.
With these studies and concepts, it all boils down to quality over quantity. All those years, I was doing more but actually achieving less. Multitasking is not always wrong. In fact, having the ability to multitask is a valuable skill when used in the right context. However, overloading ourselves with tasks can divide our attention and diminish our focus on specific, individual tasks, that may eventually lead to poor or average quality results. Doing more than we can handle can stretch us and allow us to grow, but constantly overworking ourselves with imprudent use of our time and mismanaged priorities not aligned to our goals can lead to mental and physical exhaustion that will reduce our overall productivity—it can affect our mood and overall health in the long run, stifle our creativity, decrease our performance, and decline the quality of our outputs.
"Never confuse activity with productivity." — Rick Warren
Reason #2: Busy Work Does Not Equal Meaningful and Purposeful Work
As I moved forward in my journey, and as the years went by, I just got busier and busier. It was never "my busiest year yet", but year after year, it always has been "my busiest year so far". The only difference is that back then, I was busy doing more, trying to get more done. Now, that I have learned from my previous experiences, I am still busy and have a lot of things I need done. But with wisdom, purpose, and intention, I now manage my priorities with precision and carefully planning ahead, using my time, energy, and resources wisely, doing more of what matters most and only doing the right things aligned to my goals.
It's never about doing everything. I've learned that the hard way. It doesn't matter if you know or can do a lot of things. A jack-of-all-trades perhaps. Although it is a valuable skill, we are only human, and we have limitations. Because I know and can confidently say, in the most modest and humble way possible, that I believe I know and can do a lot of stuff. I can write, I can sing, I can play multiple instruments, I can drive a car and a motorcycle, and a lot more I need not mention. I'm not as good as most people, but I can. However, just because I can doesn't mean I can exhaust my brain all day and expect to write something in a snap. It takes days of studying and preparing, and even years of personal growth and development. Just because I can sing or play instruments doesn't mean I'd sound good or play properly when I have a sore throat or have injured my arms. Just because I can drive a vehicle doesn't mean I can drive without my glasses or while I'm running on 1 hour of sleep for the day. My point is you can only do so much. It's never about doing everything or doing more and getting more done but doing more of what matters—what aligns to our goals, our purpose, and our vision.
You can be busy doing a lot of things, but the "busy work" you do does not always equal to work that produces meaningful progress and purposeful results that can contribute to achieving your goals.
“It is not enough to be busy. The question is: What are we busy about?” — Henry David Thoreau
Reason #3: Counterproductivity Results in Losses, Wastage, and Eventual Burnout
In our attempt to be productive by trying to do more and getting more things done in less time, it's actually more counterproductive in the long run and will cost us our time, energy, and resources for unnecessary work, no real and meaningful progress, and ultimately poor or average results or outputs. When tasks are approached ineffectively this way, often times it takes longer to complete them and will slow down your progress because of potential mistakes that require you to repeat them or subpar quality of outputs that will cause long term repercussions. And so, this results in a waste of valuable time and efforts, losses in finances, loss of trust and damaged reputation, mental and physical exhaustion, leading to burnout.
Fortunately, I have never gotten to point of experiencing a burnout. Although, I was at the brink of losing it way too many times because of unwise, inefficient, and imprudent use of my time and energy in an attempt to do more for less—a warped idea of productivity. I loved what I was doing with my life, but it was my body that was not having it, and it was my health that could not keep up with me. If I went on with it, I would've still loved to do what I was doing but I would literally lose the ability to do so. Because again, we are just but human and we all have limitations. There are times where we break the limits with our God-given gift and ability to rise above what's beyond us. But there is also wisdom that this life is a valuable yet fleeting gift that we were given a chance and privilege to live once, and that our body—our whole being—has purpose to fulfill.
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” — Stephen Covey
Some ways to make better use of your time and energy doing more of the things that matter most:
Set clear vision and goals. When we have clear vision and goals, we can begin to manage our priorities, our time, and our energy toward things that are aligned to it. We can begin to remove the unnecessary and declutter our lives to do the things that matter and that are aligned to our purpose.
Plan ahead with purpose, intention, and clarity. Failing to plan is planning to fail. Know the urgent, the important, and those that are not, in your scheduled tasks. Pre-plan your schedule ahead of time and write it down with clarity. Avoid vague plans like, "I'll do it tomorrow.", or vague answers to invites such as, "I'll try, or I'll see if my schedule opens up." When you plan, plan ahead with clarity. What will you do, what time and day will you do it, and all the necessary details to keep you on track with your goals. A person with vision is a person with clarity. You can say 'yes' to invites that are aligned to your vision. And you can say with a respectful but firm 'no' to decline when it doesn't add value to you or the person and does not align with you. A person with vision cannot just be spontaneously snatched of their time, because they already have their schedules planned ahead of time, and they are able to recognize what adds value and what aligns with them.
Have the right people alongside you. Be surrounded with people who are visionaries. Surround yourself with people whom you want to be for you will become who you spend the most time with. Have a mentor. Have people that can speak over your life. Learn from people. You are not alone, and we all start somewhere. That's why it's important to have the right support system to help you, guide you, and encourage you.
“To do two things at once is to do neither.” ― Publius Syrus
Each of us has a fair share of 24 hours a day, 7 days in a week, and 12 months equal to 365 days in a year. It's our responsibility to use it wisely with purpose and intention for our life is just but a gift and a privilege from above. So, we must become good stewards of our time, our resources, and our whole lives. Make everyday count! Be productive, not just by doing more or getting more done, but doing more of what matters most and getting the right things done!
May this blog post help you be more productive this year by doing more of what matters to you. Do share your heart and thoughts in the comments. See you on the next blog post!
Sending love,
Coleene.
Read the previous blog post: Living With Purpose and Intentionality: Principles to Make Each Day Count as If It Were the Last
So good! Working more doesn't mean you are doing a purposeful work but it is doing the activity that matters more. 💯