11 Ways Stay Productive Don’t Get Enough Sleep

You might be among many people around the world including workaholics, new parents, etc., who have the same problem. You do not get enough sleep, but still, you need to be active and productive. Less sleep always hinders productivity; you cannot stay active and perform all the tasks quickly and efficiently if you feel sleepy. It is not that you do not get a chance to sleep, but the desire to stay productive is the reason you do not sleep well. It is true; drinking six cups of coffee will not do any good for your health. It will never provide you with the energy that you need. So why not look for an alternative? Here are the eleven ways in which you can perform every task actively even if you do not get enough sleep.

1. Have A Focused Conversation

The idea behind being active and productive is always to stay attentive and get distracted. As soon as you have thought that you did not have a proper sleep, your mind will start sending signals to the entire body that it needs rest and thus affect productivity. Therefore make sure that you distract yourself. The first method is to talk to the people. Make sure that you participate in long, interesting conversations. It will get you focused. Once you get distracted from your sleep and are focused, have a look at the to-do list. Make sure that you have a conversation with your friend between tasks. This way you will have an active day.

2. Turn The Lights And Exercise

The Suprachiasmatic nuclei are the cells behind the eyes. These are also known as the natural eye clocks. When your eyes see a bright light, these cells charge up and send a wake-up call to the entire body via the brain. It is why you feel active and up in an instant when you wake up in the light rather than in the dark. Now that you understand the importance of light you need to get some exercise at least three to four hours before you go to bed with the lights turned on full bright. This way your body will gain more energy from the exercise and the light. It will thus provide you with extra energy to be more productive.

3. Drink Ice-Cold Water

If you do not want to drink ice-cold water, then just cold water will do. Try to avoid coffee during the day and instead, drink a cup of cold water. It is not only important that you have a cold glass of water during the day but whenever you get up. Drink a glass of cold water empty stomach in the morning; the doctors say that it kick-starts the body. It not only provides the body cells water but also fuels and nourishes the organs with fresh water. Never take too much coffee when you are dehydrated. Many people think that drinking tea or coffee will lessen their thirst; it may reduce the desire for water but will make you lazy. So, drink cold water instead.

4. Smell The Coffee

The research tells us that you can stimulate the brain by smelling coffee. So, you do not need to drink coffee, just smell it. It also makes the mood happier. More happiness means you will be more productive. So, instead of drinking coffee in your office, you can keep the coffee beans and smell them now and then when you feel tired or sleepy.

5. Write

To stay productive, you need to stay focused and distracted from the sleep deprivation feeling. One of the excellent ways to do that is to take out a pen and start writing. You can write whatever you want. If you are free at the office and start feeling sleepy, don’t do pilates, instead, take a pen and write your thoughts. Concentrate on something that you need to resolve or want to do or whatever you like. You can even prepare a to-do list. When I don’t have anything to do or write on the mini board in the office, I just write whatever comes to mind. I write the very first thought that comes to mind, and then I connect it with another and write that down. It goes on until I know what I need to do and how will I do it. It works wonders. It will keep you busy and productive even when you haven’t got enough sleep.

6. Pick Another Subject

If you wish to complete an assignment that is due tonight but you feel sleepy and tired and cannot focus then shift your focus. Do something else. Do something that you will perform quickly and get you in the right mood and swing to do that assignment that you think is boring. Once you complete that other task quickly, it will provide you confidence. You can use that confidence to do that tedious work.

7. Get Some Music In The Background

It is true that the slow and soothing music can make you sleepy. If you choose the wrong kind of music in the background, it might work as a good-night poem from your mom rather than make you active and productive. It doesn’t mean that you play jazz-rock in your office, but the instrumental-type music will focus you on the task at hand. The background noise is a stimulant for the brain. It makes you more productive.

8. Break The Bigger Tasks

I remember when I was a kid, and I had to memorize a long answer, it was tiring, and I felt sleepy considering that I already had a hard night studying. What I did was I broke that long answer into short ones and then memorized it. I found it easy and quick and it was also not boring. So, you can break the large tasks into smaller ones. Once you finish the small task, it will give you motivation. Another aspect is that when you think of the more important work your mind starts to back off. You may believe it is impossible to complete that large heap of papers. But once you break them into pieces, it will be easy, and you will complete that task in no time at all. Thus you will be more productive.

9. Do Not Use The Cell Phone

The smaller distractions such as a mobile phone can hinder productivity at a large scale. For example, if you complete a task in an hour without checking your phone, it will take one and a half hours to do the same task if you keep on checking your cell phone. Therefore, it is important that you do not get distracted by the cell phones. Your time is precious; do not waste it by checking Facebook or Twitter notifications. Especially when you are sleep-deprived, it will take even longer to complete the task.

10. Stand

If you feel sleepy, stand up and start walking. See what’s going on around; see if you can notice anything interesting. If you keep sitting the body will be at rest, you may fall asleep. When you move it means you are not resting, thus increasing your productivity.

11. Do Something Creative

The last thing that you can do to be more productive is to do something creative. Carry out and finish the creative assignments first. These assignments will get you into a good mood as you will enjoy performing these creative tasks. It gives you energy and thus allows you to carry out other duties efficiently. Once you finish a creative task, it will not make the next boring task so dull. You just completed something enjoyable; you will not be quickly bored by another lame task.

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