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The Unexpected Key to Boosting Your Productivity | The Way We Work, a TED series

Ever wished you could stop procrastinating and just be as efficient as a machine? Since you’re a human, that’s not going to happen — but that’s OK, says entrepreneur Dan Shipper. Here’s how you can use awareness, observation and experimentation to clear your own way to getting more done. The Way We Work is a…

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Ever wished you could stop procrastinating and just be as efficient as a machine? Since you’re a human, that’s not going to happen — but that’s OK, says entrepreneur Dan Shipper. Here’s how you can use awareness, observation and experimentation to clear your own way to getting more done.

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41 Comments

41 Comments

  1. Namulema zulaika

    March 29, 2023 at 10:32 am

    Now that you have found your way onto the world, enjoy the bright side, knowing that difficulties, too, deepen your wisdom. Your uniqueness is something to be grateful for. You have knowledge no one else can have. Thank all the aspects of your life that have made you-you. That person who is unabashedly stepping forward on their own path with positivity.

  2. CultFollower

    March 29, 2023 at 10:32 am

    First to boost my comment productivity!

  3. Huyse Justin

    March 29, 2023 at 10:39 am

    The wisest thing that should be on everyone’s mind currently should be to invest in different streams of income that doesn’t depend on the govt. Especially with the current economic crisis around the world. This is still a good time to invest in Gold, Silver and digital currencies (BTC,ETH…….)

    • Linda Marie Boney

      March 29, 2023 at 11:03 am

      12926

    • Kevin Grady

      March 29, 2023 at 11:06 am

      This is the kind of information that we don’t get from most YouTubers I wil get in touch with her right now.

    • Karen clare

      March 29, 2023 at 11:08 am

      Most people do not realize that trading is the best step to growing more income. I got to know this after I came across Mrs Evelyn Ruth Reis $

    • S. O

      March 29, 2023 at 11:09 am

      I’m happy for your achievement in such short period of time, trading with her. She must be a very sincere woman..

    • Laynr

      March 29, 2023 at 11:10 am

      ​@Reed Edwards FINRA AGENT YOU SAID, OKAY SHE MUST BE TRUSTED ACROSS THE STATES 🇺🇸

  4. DH

    March 29, 2023 at 10:44 am

    So much today is about productivity and efficiency. How about boosting compassion and trust? We are caught up in a technological mindset, and it is destroying our lives.

    • DH

      March 29, 2023 at 11:02 am

      @Alex Kukresh That’s fair. As a philosopher of technology, it is just so difficult to find balance in the “advice” given to people these days about how to live. Have been teaching, recently, Shannon Vallor on the ways in which the “examined life” (e.g. Socrates, Aristotle, Buddhism, Confucianism) has a long tradition of looking at values and virtues that are different than those celebrated today (efficiency, productivity, etc.).

    • ArtsyMegz_On_Etsy

      March 29, 2023 at 11:25 am

      Yes, I agree! Especially for autistic people like me who get burned out more easily (and then getting let go because the boss could see how exhausted I was). They didn’t care about ME personally, but cared a lot more about the fact that I wasn’t able to hold down 2 job positions at the same time. I was just like, “Okay, if you’re only going to have one person run the hotel buffet all by themselves, then at least don’t give them a second job position (cleaning 10 other areas in the hotel after trying to clean everything quickly at the buffet). If workplaces want to ensure food safety, then they have to give their employees enough time to take certain food appliances apart (to clean all of the parts), take all of the fridge and freezer temperatures multiple times a day, and not feel too rushed to take the temperature of the foods before sending them out to the buffet; and having time to properly prepare food for the next day, without being so rushed that you miss important steps (such as writing food labels for each and every food item to tell you the dates on which they are made, and when they expire). That was the last time I ever wanted to work for someone. Because that definitely wasn’t the only workplace that expected me hold down 2 (sometimes 3) job positions at the same time. I wish that businesses would at least admit that they need to hire a janitor; even if it is just a part-time janitor.

    • DH

      March 29, 2023 at 11:54 am

      @ArtsyMegz_On_Etsy Love your reply. If we look at productivity gains vs. the average worker salary and security over the past 3 decades, we see a growing chasm. That is not just about economic domination, but about a range of values which cannot flourish without another kind of ethics. You deserve better. Workers deserve better. Other values need to make a comeback in how we talk about work (compassion, patience, generosity, humility). Otherwise, it’s just about “productivity” and “getting things done.”

    • ArtsyMegz_On_Etsy

      March 29, 2023 at 1:00 pm

      @DH  Yes. And employers need to take autism seriously, and not just dismiss the reasons why someone is struggling. If an employer can clearly see that the employee is exhausted almost everyday, throughout most of their shift (and if previous workers had to leave the job position due to high stress, a limited amount of time to complete tasks, and a growing list of tasks to complete (the employer just keeps adding on), they should consider and take seriously the fact that it might not be humanly possible to successfully perform in that job position (or should I say 2 or 3 job positions at the same time).

    • A Person

      March 29, 2023 at 5:25 pm

      Nice comment

  5. Ben Hopkins

    March 29, 2023 at 11:09 am

    It really hits home how far wrong we’ve gone as a culture in the west when people like this dude start saying they’ve felt “guilty and ashamed” for not being more like a machine

  6. Luke Serna

    March 29, 2023 at 11:16 am

    Good little CAPITALIST PROPAGANDIST

  7. Mohammed ismail Haroun

    March 29, 2023 at 11:22 am

    So encourage for the learn

  8. Culinary Physics

    March 29, 2023 at 11:25 am

    I love the idea of using awareness, observation and experimentation to boost productivity. It’s refreshing to hear that it’s okay to not be as efficient as a machine and that we can still find our own way to getting things done.

  9. Adam Knott

    March 29, 2023 at 11:40 am

    I dont need to be more productive though, I just want to relax. Society already hyperfocuses on productivity as if it makes life better but it doesnt

    • Nathan Manousos

      March 29, 2023 at 12:04 pm

      You should look for a video titled “The unexpected key to boosting your relaxation”

    • Himal Shrestha

      March 29, 2023 at 1:06 pm

      If you had that insight while watching this video, great! Self awareness is key. However if not, I’d suggest not clicking on the video titled “how to boost productivity” if that’s the opposite of what you need and you’re looking to relax.

    • Adam Knott

      March 29, 2023 at 1:21 pm

      @Himal Shrestha I haven’t been able to bring myself to watch it yet. The title really just puts me off. It could be a great video for all I know but yeah, the constant push for working hard and being productive in our society puts me in a bad mood to the point of not wanting to watch stuff like this. Is it worth the watch?

    • Adam Knott

      March 29, 2023 at 1:22 pm

      @Nathan Manousos youre probably right. Too bad we cant just solve the worlds problems in a day, then you and I could just chill out for the rest of our livez

    • Suzana Valenca

      March 29, 2023 at 1:45 pm

      I think they used the word “productivity” because it’s such a buzz word nowadays. His ideas are great for just normal everyday work too even if you don’t need to get more done.

  10. philippe brehier

    March 29, 2023 at 11:42 am

    Be careful !
    Don’t boost your productivity too much, the planet can’t take it anymore.

  11. Hilco Klinkert

    March 29, 2023 at 11:54 am

    Great message, great delivery!

  12. Marina

    March 29, 2023 at 12:33 pm

    This is amazing! At first I thought it will be another hack that helps only short term something like ‘how to suck it up’.

  13. agr0nianTV

    March 29, 2023 at 12:46 pm

    Taped your mouth shut while sleeping and the sun lamp thing? Why would you do either of those?

  14. agr0nianTV

    March 29, 2023 at 12:55 pm

    Honestly my issues are more baseline: Procrastination and Discipline. I find it extremely hard to start something (even things I know I enjoy) and then I’ll get completely distracted while working after all YouTube is always 1 click away. Don’t even get me started on taking short breaks they never work as with naps once I take one hours just disappear. Finally there’s Uno Mas Syndrome, with anything I enjoy it’s always just one more just one more over and over again.

    • Narco Zero

      March 29, 2023 at 3:42 pm

      Well that’s step one. You have identified the problem. Step two now : observe.

      I was in the same loop you describe for about 5 years. But trust me, if you observe without judgment and try to find out WHY you procrastinate, you can get to the root of the problem and start fixing it.

      For me the first step was to admit i had an addiction to video games and videos. Then i started observing. Why ? And i found that (as with most addictions) i was running from anxiety.

      So i got help. From a therapist. And i started to treat myself with more kindness. Being pround to accomplish even a small thing for some « productive » people, because i knew it was a huge thing for me.

      And also accepting that it takes time, and that i am not a machine.

      Anyway all of that to say, there is hope my friend. You juste need to start small.
      No smaller than that.

    • Rithmy

      March 29, 2023 at 3:59 pm

      You are a human. Humans are fucking adaptable. Its like their best card in the deck. But now we have a problem here: We should not only adapt to our world. For true adaptation we need to change our environment to fit us. This change is a decision. Decisions are hard. But with time we learn what decisions are important and which are not.

      Idk what exactly you struggle with. And perhaps not even you yourself will ever know. But you can try to find. And often times trying is enough. Serious trying. Like you really were spending some time for that problem. But don’t be harsh. Don’t say: “I did not even want to try it, im such a doofus”, better spend that time to think at least one sentence long about the problem. Be kind to yourself: Your reaction to your problem shows alreaady how important it is to you. You already do your best by observing it. Try and see.

  15. Artmhdesign

    March 29, 2023 at 1:00 pm

    ‘Being on top of your inbox’… why would thát be a goal of anybody in the first place..? That sounds really machine like. Why are you so obsessed with email..? It sounds crazy.

  16. Yash Bagal

    March 29, 2023 at 1:08 pm

    Go Dan!

  17. Aniket Dey

    March 29, 2023 at 1:20 pm

    Of all the examples one could have given why choose the inbox issue.

  18. Suzana Valenca

    March 29, 2023 at 1:43 pm

    This is the best way to think about productivity and just work itself. There is no point in shame and trying to act like a machine. Embracing our emotions is the only sure way to grow in any aspect of life

  19. Alex Emelianov

    March 29, 2023 at 2:05 pm

    Pauses are there for a reason. Don’t edit them out from the video orelseyousoundlikethis.

  20. DH Wardani

    March 29, 2023 at 2:07 pm

    Actual NPC behavior

  21. Lex Merrill

    March 29, 2023 at 2:54 pm

    Nothing new here

  22. Anthony Beckwith

    March 29, 2023 at 3:58 pm

    you can spend all your time trying to dissect a problem or you can go out there and try a different solution

  23. Sourav

    March 29, 2023 at 4:09 pm

    Happy Ram Navami 🚩🇮🇳

  24. 공에 요미🐕

    March 29, 2023 at 8:59 pm

    The way he boosted his productivity on messy email inbox was by getting a hand from his assistant? I expected more creative and self-solving idea. Although his main idea inspires us enough to learn, his supporting experience sounds a bit disappointing to me.

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