As a student who works, has a daughter, and wife I know what's it like to get stressed.  I also know whats it like to get behind on work.  Sometimes it just piles up, this happens whether you are diligent or not.  I have a few tips to help you get through those tough times, but you will need a six pack or some other motivational item.

Preparation

Your first and most important task is to develop a list of all the things you need to do.  This will allow you to gain perspective about the true scope of your task.  It makes a huge difference to know if you have ten hours, twenty hours, or a week total.  The next thing you need to do is organize your list by due date, if you have many things due on the same date order them by difficulty, easiest tasks first. ( Note to reader: These rules do not apply to everyone, please surgeons do not use easiest first.)  You will also need to go to the store and get whatever motivates you.  For me it's a six pack of the finest Bud Light that money can buy.  Your motivation will be waiting for you, when you finish for the day.  This alleviates a lot of the stress involved in doing tons of work cause you have something to look forward too.

Taking Care of Business

Now that you are prepared comes the easy part right, not really.  Organizing and getting your work done is made much easier when you organize and give yourself a clear line of sight.   This is helpful, because it removes one more distraction from your work.  When you are ready to start working you need to find a distraction free environment.  When I am working. I spend my time in the office, some don't have that luxury. You may need to hole up in the bedroom, garage, shed, or local coffee place.  Do what it takes to remove distractions, your sanity will thank you.  From earlier you have organized your tasks by due date and then whats easiest.  It is extremely helpful to do the easy tasks first, every task you finish lifts a bit of weight off your shoulders and gives you a sense of accomplishment.  Getting a large amount of work done is all about momentum,  once you get the ball rolling it's easy to keep it going.

Let's take a break


The hardest part of this whole process for most people is to continue working once they have started.  This is because most people cannot relax in a productive way.  When you are doing huge multi hour work jams, you need to take a break at least every hour, for about 10 minutes.  Do not, Do not, Do not under any circumstance turn on your television, pick up a video game, or lie on a bed during this time.  Productive uses of your break include getting more supplies like water,coffee, or a banana.  You could also spend that ten minutes on the phone talking to a friend or your wife.  This would also be an excellent time to take a walk around the block or do a few push-ups.  When you take your breaks make sure it's something you can do in the time you allotted and something you don't mind quitting within ten or fifteen minutes.

Let's Celebrate

The final step to an extremely productive day is to celebrate.  These working sessions are seldom fun and always cause a person tons of stress.  So, when you finish it is time to bring out your motivation item.  I prefer a six pack, some people like ice cream, or a great movie.  Whatever it is you love it is now time to enjoy it.   Celebrating and treating yourself helps you to remove stress and associate hard work with positive feelings.  This makes it much easier to have another work jam or just to keep up on your work in the first place.

When you get stressed and overly busy. Get productive with a 6 pack.

written by Jon