Are you really being productive, or are you just busy?

How the continual prioritisation of ‘short term wins’ keeps us stuck and limits our meaningful progress.

It’s no wonder many of us stay stuck in the loop of busy-ness; we’re rewarded both internally and externally for the short-term wins that come when we tick off the ‘to-do’ list. But, at what cost?

At the cost of deeper, more creative and meaningful work that actually moves us further towards our goals (short term) and vision (long term).

The busy-ness trap: why we get stuck

Being busy is rewarding in a few ways: there’s internal reward and external. Let’s break that down.

Internal reward: When we focus on ticking off our to-do lists, or clearing out our inbox entirely we’re reward immediately with small hits of dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical created in the ‘reward centre’ of our brain, and give us an immediate spike in positive mood, the same thing happens when we scroll through a few funny memes on Instagram or snack on a few squares of chocolate. Our brain gives us a small burst of ‘Oh this feels good.’

External reward: In western-cultures especially we have long venerated ‘hustle culture’ and felt lazy or unworthy when we rest or slow down. As such when we’re busy we’re often rewarded by those around us with pseudo-status and praise what we ‘must be important’ or doing something important, if we’re always on the move. In the workplace, people who’re seen to be busy are often viewed as (mistakenly!) being more productive and getting things done.

Because of these internal and external rewards we become wired to repeat the behaviours that give us this immediate pay back meaning that we get stuck in the busy-ness of doing the ‘things’ without really considering if they’re the right things to do.

Busy-ness ≠ Productivity

Don't mistake your time management struggles with priority management — focusing on the former, without the latter is simply being busy, not productive.

In new research by Atlassian from the ‘State if Teams 2024’ report they found

65% of knowledge workers believe it’s more important to focus on 'short-term wins', such as clearing their inbox, than to work on top priorities.

It’s important we get clear on the difference between being busy and being productive. This helps us gain clarity and insight into where we’re spending our resources (time, energy and money) and where we need to redistribute these accordingly to actually get results.

Busy-ness = the continuous act of doing tasks, without intentional consideration of whether they contribute to in the bigger picture.

Productivity = investment of resources (time, energy, money) into completing milestones that move us further towards our goals (short term) and vision (long term).

The clear difference between the two is clarity around what needs to be done to move forward, and intentionally create the time and space to focus on these priorities.

How do we shift from busy-ness to productivity?

Whether you’re struggling to gain traction towards your goals personally, or your workplace seemingly can’t meet it’s objectives and targets, to shift from busy-ness to productivity requires three key ingredients: time, reflection and realignment. Here’s how to do this practically at an individual, team and leadership level.

For individuals: Slow down, step back and get clear on what the actual priorities are. Your priorities need to stem from your goal, and your goals need to map onto your bigger vision. For example '“I want to be financially independent and have the time to work on projects that are meaningful to me and still enjoy time for joy with my families, and hobbies.'“

Goals that map to this vision might include:

Working on high-value projects professionally that allow you to contribute meaningfully, and only work four days per week.

Every weekend free to spend taking your children to sporting matches.

One day a week to pursue your hobby that is uninterrupted by work or family commitments.

To achieve these goals you then need to get ruthless with how your time and energy is allocated every day, every week and every month. If what you’re doing doesn’t contribute to these goals or it’s simply a request from someone else - it’s not a priority and it’s not productive, it’s busy-ness. Cut it, keep your boundaries firm and stay on track by removing distractions.

Check in with yourself regularly and ask

‘Is what I’m doing right not contributing directly to my goals, or not?’. If no, realign to something that does.

For teams: Spend time getting clarity on what your objectives are every quarter, and how these map onto your company mission and vision.

Allow every member of the team to respectively and candidly questions ‘Why are we doing things?’ to give rise to discussion and insight around what is being prioritised and why, and course-correct accordingly to get laser-focused on the most critical tasks.

For Leaders: Stop expecting people to be always on, always contactable. Respect people's finite time and energy, and allow them to create boundaries that protect this so they can do their best work.

Model this behaviour in yourself, too. Demonstrating to your team that intentionality, focus and clarity are prized over busy-ness, quick wins and constant contact.