What is your daily workflow like?

[Conor]

I'm hoping to get a good discussion going here. I'm not necessarily looking for replies along the lines of "I wake up at 9am and then I have breakfast". I'm interested to know what sort of "life hacks" you employ in your daily business activities. How do you achieve optimum levels of productivity?

For example:

I start my working day by checking emails. I use Gmail because I don't have any reason not to. I can easily search for archived emails if I need to, and I'm not at risk of losing anything if I ever format my PC, which happens more often than one would expect. I have my external accounts synced with one main Gmail account and I have filters set up to show me the important stuff and keep the fluff out of my inbox.

I then start work on whichever project takes highest priority on my to-do list. I use the Momentum extension for Chrome (https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/momentum/laookkfknpbbblfpciffpaejjkokdgca?hl=en) to help me keep track of what I need to do that day.

I have a basic Quotation/Invoicing template set up in Google Docs that I modify and save as a PDF when billing new clients: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zANYBLo1DVvIqz_Q9ZtlQxpgRAw8Q6AXK8y3w8bVSGA/edit

I use a customised spreadsheet to keep track of my earnings: https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/get-conors-work-tracking-spreadsheet-earnings-calculator.890790/

When I'm ready to take on more work, I activate Distill (https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/distill-web-monitor/inlikjemeeknofckkjolnjbpehgadgge?hl=en) and let it monitor a selection of websites I've subscribed to. When a new lead pops up, I reply to it and cross my fingers. I wrote about the full procedure a while ago over here: https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/conors-guide-to-generating-leads-online.838904/

And that's basically it. Nothing super complicated, but it's a system that works well for me. I'm interested to hear what works for you.

 

[W9go]

i am sleeping quite long and then i see what i like to do ...

 

[Conor]

i am sleeping quite long and then i see what i like to do ...

Living the dream I see

 

[traffgan]

Wake up: 7:30.
Leave to work: 8: 00
Get to work: 9:15
Start work: 9: 30
Take break for 1 hour.
Finish work: 7: 00
Get home 8:30
Eat..
Sleep at: 10:30
and repeat..

 

[rafark]

One thing that has improved my performance is that I no longer turn off my iMac. I used to turn in on and off every time I used it, but now I just simply put it to sleep. It's way faster to come back, I can return to work with the applications exactly the way I left them and I read that it uses the same energy as if it were off.

 

[Conor]

One thing that has improved my performance is that I no longer turn off my iMac. I used to turn in on and off every time I used it, but now I just simply put it to sleep. It's way faster to come back, I can return to work with the applications exactly the way I left them and I read that it uses the same energy as if it were off.

I often do that too, but I've found that the computer starts to seem slower after running for long periods of time. I occasionally reboot it, just to let updates happen and for it to "start fresh" in a way.

 

[bartosimpsonio]

I use Asana for todo lists.

Spreadsheets for almost everything that can be put into a list. I use libreoffice.

Educated myself to only check email only 2 or 3 times a day max.

Got off of all popular phone messaging apps and groups. Family and friends call me if they need (sometimes).

I should work out more, but my day usually includes 1hr walk.

Dunno if this is what you expected but that's mostly all I got.

 

[SkyrocketSEO]

I wake up and think to myself how happy I am cause I dont have to go to work with all those sad fucks out there.
Then I check random sites, then I go out, then I come back, enjoy time with family. etc...pretty standard

 

[Deleted member 969102]

Week Day:

6:30am-7am - Wake up. Get showered and dressed.
6:50/7:20am-8am - Work. Just emails, checking articles and some IG to bridge the gap between work hours.
8am-4pm - School.
4pm-dinner - Emails and light work (Similar to when I wake up)
Dinner-8pm - IG
8pm-11pm - Writing / Site management
11pm-1am - IG

Weekend:

9/10/11am to 1pm - Light work.
1pm-6pm(sometimes swaps with the next time slot) - Teenager shit.
6pm-8pm - IG
8pm-11pm - Site things
11pm-1am - Writing
1am - 2/3am - Light work

I type up an Evernote every night before I sleep. Really good way to keep thoughts organized as you can sync it across multiple devices.

I've also been trailing using a different system for different projects so there is no temptation to slack in one area.

 

[Jomasdf]

My daily rythm has taken a 180 and is probably not optimal in any way.

Wake up at 10.00 and heads off to work.
Arrive home at 17.00~
Do school stuff/several other programming tasks that has to be done.
Go to bed 04.00~~
Repeat.

 

[Conor]

I type up an Evernote every night before I sleep. Really good way to keep thoughts organized as you can sync it across multiple devices.

I like this. I use Google Keep to do something similar. Though it's not every night, I'll sometimes have a seemingly brilliant idea that I can quickly jot down on my phone and then review the next morning. I have a secondary monitor on my desk at home that I use only for Google Keep and my earnings spreadsheet. It's currently full with dozens of notes I've compiled over the past few months.

 

[Jomasdf]

I like this. I use Google Keep to do something similar. Though it's not every night, I'll sometimes have a seemingly brilliant idea that I can quickly jot down on my phone and then review the next morning. I have a secondary monitor on my desk at home that I use only for Google Keep and my earnings spreadsheet. It's currently full with dozens of notes I've compiled over the past few months.

One of my best purchases ever has been my white board. I just write up whatever small thing I can think of and it really has helped out a lot. Writing stuff by hand makes me remember it easier.

 

[Reaver]

I like this. I use Google Keep to do something similar. Though it's not every night, I'll sometimes have a seemingly brilliant idea that I can quickly jot down on my phone and then review the next morning. I have a secondary monitor on my desk at home that I use only for Google Keep and my earnings spreadsheet. It's currently full with dozens of notes I've compiled over the past few months.

I use Google Keep to do the exact same thing. I even use the checklist feature to plan out the articles I have to write.

I find that I work faster if I work in intervals of 25 minutes with a 5 minute break between them. My work load is usually only 4-5 hours per day, unless I just feel like I want to do more work.

I also go to the gym every morning so I can have the energy to actually focus on my workload. I used to be super lethargic and want to sleep all day, but exercise and organization really helped me stop wasting so much time.

I also pop in and out of a private networking group on my breaks. We dick around, but mostly we bounce ideas off of each other and share knowledge. They're a very helpful group, and it sort of gives me a feeling of being in a work environment without actually going to work.

 

[Sherb]

I find that I work faster if I work in intervals of 25 minutes with a 5 minute break between them. My work load is usually only 4-5 hours per day, unless I just feel like I want to do more work.

Pomodoro, mo'fucka!

 

[Conor]

I also pop in and out of a private networking group on my breaks. We dick around, but mostly we bounce ideas off of each other and share knowledge. They're a very helpful group, and it sort of gives me a feeling of being in a work environment without actually going to work.

I've been contemplating doing something similar for a while now. I'm not a fan of Skype or Skype Groups at all, so it's been a struggle trying to find local people in a similar industry to me, with whom I can interact and bounce ideas off of in person. I'm fortunate however, to share an apartment with my brother, who does similar work to me. It's always great to be able to get a second opinion, or just annoy someone when you're having a slow day.