Zen and the Art of Ninja Productivity
By Mary Jaksch
A short while ago, my friend Leo Babauta of Zen Habits recorded an interview with me about productivity for his great new book, The Little Guide to Un-Procrastination.
It brought home to me how much my long-time practice and teaching of Zen has boosted my productivity. Leo says Im one of the most productive people he knows. But the funny thing is that there are some small pockets in my life where Im also the worlds worst procrastinator. More about that below
What is productivity?
Being productive means being able to create something with ease, steadiness, and joy.
In order to be productive, we need all our energy to be channeled. Think of a stream: when it flows freely, the water rushes along right from the mountains to the sea. But if you build dams, divert the course of the stream, or choke it with rubble, the stream will have to use a lot of energy to circumvent or overcome the barriers in its way.
We all have access to the pure stream of creativity.
The problem is that many people throw up barriers that impede their natural productivity. The outcome can be stress, procrastination, and grief for lost dreams.
Yes, those lost dreams Have you got dreams and even plans somewhere in the back of your mind that youve never realized? I bet you have. Its sad when we miss out on bringing our brainchildren into life. But its never too late to get pregnant with a great idea and give birth to a new brainchild!
So, lets get cracking and take a look at how to crank up your productivity. But first a warning: if youre looking for tips about dire stuff like making priority lists, or getting up a 3AM, you better read something else. ! My ninja recipe for productivity is Zen inspired and is not about GETTING THINGS DONE.
The ninja thing
As many of you know, Im a 4th Dan Blackbelt in karate in active training. One of the first things a martial artist learns, is that its better to go with a an opponents energy, than to push against it. For example, if someone throws a punch at you, you can use your opponents forward energy to your advantage if you avoid or deflect the punch. And, once youre more experienced, you learn to drop the idea of opponent, or of self and other.
In terms of productivity, many books (but thankfully not Leos) espouse the use of inner force to conquer the nasty enemy of procrastination. Honestly, I dont think it works. The Ninja approach of working with your inner opposing energy instead of against it is much more, well, productive.
How to stop self-doubts killing your productivity
Most people spend a lot of their creative energy fighting negative thoughts. These thoughts can range from downright ugly (Youre a loser!) to fearful (What if I fail?). Such thoughts can be deflating. Youre all pumped up to create something and then those niggly, nasty self-doubts start attacking your confidence. Heres a simple way to work with them:
Whenever you notice self-doubts in your mind, imagine a little green gremlin sitting on your left shoulder, whispering those nasty messages into your ear. Gently and calmly brush the gremlin off your shoulder with your right hand and say politely, Not now, thank you! (It will look as if you are brushing a piece of lint off your shoulder).
This may sound bizarre but it works! The reason why it works is because it helps you to become aware of your negative messages. Often, these kind of doubts were implanted in us early on by parents, caregivers, or teachers. They are so deeply embedded that we are seduced into thinking that they are THE TRUTH about who you are, instead ! of habit ual thought patterns that were originally someone elses idea.
Thats where the Zen thing comes in. Through the practice of meditation, you learn to observe the mind, and to let go of prefabricated ideas of who you are. It frees you.
Connect with your core life force
The ancient Chinese called the core life force Chi or Ki. They imagined it coursing through the body along certain paths or meridians. I think they really knew something. In order to be more productive, you need to connect with the life force at the core of your being.
How to do it?
The ability to mobilize our life force is hardwired into each one of us. Just think about the amazing feats of survival human beings are capable of when life is threatened. What if you could harness that primal energy at will?
Two ancient pathways to accessing and releasing your primal energy are meditation, and mindful exercise. In my own experience, for example, my productivity has increased significantly since returning to karate training a year ago. And of course my Zen practice underlies everything I do.
Life is short
Do you notice how fast and faster days, weeks, months, and years roll by? I remind myself of that every single day in order to appreciate the fleeting delights of each moment. The calm reflection that life is short is a great motivator for me. I have so many ideas I want to bring to fruition! Now is all I have. Tomorrow may not happen for me. Who knows?
If there is something you want to create, dont wait until later in life! Start the journey of a 1000 miles today just with one tiny step: collect ideas; start making a plan; get excited.
The passion thing
Im passionate about what I do! Thats why Im so productive. I think passion is an expression ! of the l ife-force I was talking about earlier. When were passionate about what were doing, were fired up, and our energy is at our disposal.
Do more of what you love
If you look at your life, what percentage of your waking time is filled with activities you are passionate about? In my life, most of my waking time is spent doing things I love. I love being creative, so most parts of my work are also fun.
It pays to think carefully about your life. Are you enjoying it? Most of the time? Some of the time?
If youre not enjoying your life, you need to change something fundamental about how you live. One of the changes can be to do more of what you love. But there is also another pathway, and that is exactly the opposite:
Love more of what you do
Lets face it, in every project there are areas of work that are simply a drag. For example, I wake up to a deluge of emails with requests for help, niggles, comments, and so on, that all need to be answered. It takes me about 4 hours to hit them all on the head (the emails, not the people ). I used to feel resentful about this because mornings are my best writing time.
However, Ive now changed the way I approach this task. I think of each interaction as an opportunity for connection. And because I love connecting with others the task that felt like a drag has now become meaningful.
Maybe you too can think about draggy tasks in a new way that infuses them with meaning.
Why everyone procrastinates and its OK
There are some tasks that stay a drag no matter how you look at them. And thats were we tend to procrastinate. For example, I hate anything to do with accounting and tax. Mainly because I dont really understand it, and that causes some fear. So, thats an area where Im the worlds worst procrastinator. I tend to leave business letters unopened for as long as possible. Oh, the tales my friends could tell
If you have an area of procrastination like that, you ! need to call in the troops. For example, Ive got a bookkeeper who collects my tax info electronically and then liaises with my accountant. Ive asked her to ring me every three month and arrange a visit to collect all my statements. In this way, Ive put a fail-safe system in place. Because that system is in place, I can forget about tax stuff most of the time because it takes care of itself more or less automatically.
So, if you tend to procrastinate in one particular area, call for help. Partner with someone who will remind you of deadlines and prod you kindly if you dont deliver.
Does minimalist productivity work?
Some productivity gurus suggest paring down your activities in order to focus your energy on just one thing. Sounds good, eh? But its crap advice. The moment you start paring down, your whole energy flow can become disrupted. My advice is contrary: do too much! When you take on a bit too much, it heightens your productivity. Of course you have to be careful, because its important not to get overwhelmed.
How to overcome overwhelm
Do you sometimes get into a spin because there are just too many things you should be doing? Im sure you do. It happens to me too at times. We feel overwhelmed when we hold too many different threads in our mind at one time. Here is how to deal with overwhelm:
Step 1: Wear an elastic wristband.
Step 2: Jot down all the tasks you are holding in your head.
Step 3: Focus on the task at hand.
Step 4: Whenever your mind slides off to other tasks, change the wristband to the other arm and refocus on your task at hand.
Step 5: Repeat as necessary.
Why productivity is important
Productivity is not really about producing something or being valuable its simply about having more joy in life. When you create something whatever it may be youll feel alive, and the joy of creation will pervade all areas of life.!
I f you want to learn more about how to be productive, I heartily recommend Leo Babautas new book, The Little Guide to Un-Procrastination Its awesome! Leo shows how to emerge from the doldrums and crank up productivity in a way thats both entertaining and inspiring. And youll get the interview with me as well..
What are your thoughts on productivity?
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Zen and the Art of Ninja Productivity
