With all the technological advancements of the last 70 years, we’d be right to expect accelerated productivity.
The reality is not only has productivity not increased, it has slowed down.
It makes no sense in a world where any teenager with a smartphone has access to more information that the President of the US had before 1995.
We live in a world where the travel of information to millions is not only possible, it is done in milliseconds
So why are we not seeing massive productivity leaps?
Well, it’s not technology, it’s not industry, it’s our brains.
See, our brains haven’t changed at all in the last 70 years, and beyond. While technology has accelerated, our brains are still operating on software to keep us alive in the wild.
Our brains have been around in their most modern form for over 40,000 years. And our brains are crazy powerful, more so than and fancy technology.
As they evolved for survival, our brains discovered some important things and created operating rules to live (and survive) by because despite what you have heard, our brain has one very simple, very clear job: Keep us alive
See, you’re not lazy, broken or doing something wrong. Your brain is operating by design
If you’re stuck settling for something you don’t really want, don’t beat yourself up about it. We evolved to avoid the unknown since for our predecessors the unknown meant entering an unknown cave to be faced by a deadly predator, or picking a new berry that could well be poisonous. PASS.
If you’re not doing the things you said you would do when you said you would do them then you’re brain is super smart, opting for the double win here. When we don’t do things we’re conserving energy. Really useful when we lived in the wild, less so in the comfort of our four walled homes with access to food delivery and constant media entertainment. Want to know what else we avoid by not doing things? Failing. And failure throughout our evolution was really dangerous. If you failed to find shelter, or failed in a fight with a predator, that was the end for you. With our brains one priority keeping us alive (not getting you the promotion), it makes sense that our brain thinks doing less is the optimal strategy
Caring about what other people think of you isn’t weird, it’s actually how we are wired. We survived in tribes, we are programmed to care what other people think of us so we don’t get booted out. Likelihood of survival alone in the wild? Zero.So yes, you know logically no one’s paying as much attention to you as you think, but who cares about logic when our lives are on the line?! Not our brains.
See, around 95% of our thoughts are subconscious, which is really saying they are automated through how we are wired. We have 60,000 words a day, way too many to monitor.
Add to this that we believe everything our brains tell us, and were never taught otherwise…
So, what does this have to do with productivity? Everything.
Technology can give you the tools to create your dream business, but that requires stepping into the unknown, using energy AND continuing through failure.
Technology can connect us to millions of people, but we’re not going to speak up if we’re so afraid of what others will think of us.
And the fanciest apps, alarms and calendar alerts can all be snoozed or cancelled.
It’s not a coincidence that industry titans and leading athletes invest in their brain. No, not just consuming information, but literally working with coaches to train their brains out of this outdated software and into programming for 2021.
There are only three things to focus on that will accelerate your productivity x500 (and that is being modest).
- Training your brain: redirecting its’ current programming of negativity bias + self focus which creates an inner critic that keeps you playing small
- Making quick decisions and implementing on them: becoming a ninja decision maker that drops the “right or wrong” story and keeps moving
- Mastering fear of failure: using fear as fuel and failure as the best learning
Our brains are wildly smart, but they are also a tool for us, just like our hands. And we have never been taught how to operate them.
Once you learn how to train your brain you become unstoppable.
See, even Sarah Blakely and Jeff Bezos have human brains, so we know they can be overrun to create optimal success.
Commit to investing and training in your brain, today, by asking yourself this:
What is one thing you can implement immediately?
About me:
Reformed hustler turned time hacker. Taking on the 40 hours work week and the story that “things take time.” We achieve more by doing less, managing our brains, making ninja decisions and mastering fear and failure. Anti Busy + Anti Hustle.
Creator of Time Hackers, a coaching community where time has nothing to do with clocks and calendars.
Coaching clients to optimize their time and 50x their productivity without burnout
Also podcast host to a top mental health podcast, F*CK Anxiety & Get Sh*t Done
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