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As a recovering workaholic, whenever the pressure is on it is always tempting for me just to work harder, longer and stronger! The problem with this is that the more I work, the more likely it is I’ll end up burnt out and broken down (again)!

Being effortlessly productive is a much better option for both your stress levels and your creative problem solving capacity.

Here’s a few ways to achieve this zone whenever you need to…

The art of ‘action without action’

Lao Tse, an ancient Chinese philosopher practiced Wu Wei – the art of ‘action without action’. Sounds confusing, it’s simple!
The idea of this practice is to get the conscious mind out of the way, so that your creative source can work its magic!

When you put your body into the ‘exercise high’ state, you are effectively practicing Wu Wei!

Many business people don’t find the time for exercise because they don’t understand the benefits. Anytime I am ‘stuck’ or can’t think clearly, I take the dog for a walk. Inevitably, the creativity will flow and I will solve my challenge with ease. The useful thoughts seem to just rise to the top!

Creative daydreaming is another way to practice Wu Wei.

A little hammock time, or time spent just listening to the bamboo rustling in the breeze can free up your mind to create results effortlessly.

Listening to peaceful music is another great way to free up your mind chatter and let the good stuff out!

Set Your Intention

If you are into nanna naps or lucid dreaming, you can also harness your creativity by allowing the sleep state to work on your challenge whilst you are resting – just set your intention! Take note of the insights and ideas which arise immediately upon waking – these are the keys to ‘doing without doing’!

When you are engaged in effortless action, you are ‘in the zone’ or in the flow state. This is where information, opportunities and possibilities arrive out of nowhere, in ways you couldn’t possibly imagine if you were trying hard.

I have a list of at least 50 ‘actions’ which can put me into this precious creative zone.

Make Your Own List

The more easily you can achieve this state, the less stressed and the more productive you will be!!

Over the past week we’ve been experimenting with setting priorities.

Each morning we discuss or email our top 3 essential priorities for the day so that we can be more focused on what matters and more accountable for achieving results.

Here’s what’s been noticed so far:

• We each always have more than 3!
• If there is one ‘biggie’ on the list everything else falls out the window.
• Some things seem to spill over day after day.
• A lot of things get done which aren’t even on the list!!
• We are still working crazy hours.

Something’s not quite working here!! Do any of these challenges sound familiar? In the interests of achieving more outcomes that matter, let’s fine tune the strategy…

• Delegate more. Between the PA, Marketing Assistant, and hiring a cleaner, we could be doing a lot less stuff that chews time for little strategic result!
• Set timeframes for each item – once the allotted time is up, its time to move on – finished or not! (This sure makes you think about how realistic your expectations are!)
• Put aside one hour a day to do ’10 minute jobs’ – this gets a heap of the essential smaller things done each day.
• Strike a better balance between the strategic and the operational – both matter!
• Include more downtime – we’re not productive when we’re tired!

Do you have any other ideas which really work for you?