A New Approach to Unlocking Sustainable Productivity
In the bustling world of manufacturing, it’s hard to achieve peak productivity without succumbing to burnout or feeling like you’re always putting out fires! But there’s a key to unlocking productivity while still maintaining a sustainable mindset: mindfulness!
Learn more on a recent episode of the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast featuring guest Sarah Ohanesian! In her career as a chief marketing officer, Sarah saw the real-time consequences of stress and overwhelm. This lead her to become a professional keynote speaker and productivity consultant, with a mission of helping busy, career-driven professionals fight burnout, find their work-life balance, and increase happiness at work. Drawing on her own background, Sarah offered many actionable insights on how to harness mindfulness and find stronger, healthier productivity.
Busyness vs. Productivity: Knowing the Difference
There’s a big difference between busyness and productivity, and learning to differentiate between the two can be a game-changer for your schedule and mindset. If your days as a leader are filled with chaos or it feels like you’re always jumping around putting out fires, you’re being busy, not productive. You might put in a full—and stressful—day at work, but when you’re busy attending to problems, you don’t have the time to focus on productive, sustainable solutions for your organization and team.
A productive day, on the other hand, is one packed with purposeful tasks. When you’re being productive, everything on your schedule serves a purpose and helps you get closer to finding impactful, sustainable, and long-term outcomes.
The COAT Framework
In the podcast, Sarah introduces her COAT framework. By applying this framework into their own busy lives, leaders can shift their mindset away from “firefighting” mode and find more productive, less stressful ways to use their valuable time.
- Clarify: Understand and articulate the purpose behind each task.
- Organize: Consolidate tasks into one reliable system.
- Act: Schedule tasks into your daily calendar, thus making deliberate choices about your priorities.
- Take Time: Allow for rest and recovery to maintain sustained productivity.
By following the steps in Sarah’s COAT framework, you can take a pause to reflect and identify the true problem, rather than jumping right into a stressful situation that might actually end up taking precious time out of your busy day.
Be Realistic with Your Time
To practice mindfulness and find more productivity, be realistic about your goals. Instead of overpromising or setting goals you know will put extra stress on yourself and your team, aim to realistic goals.
To do this, take a moment to pause and reflect. Think about what you want to achieve and how it can realistically be achieved, then come up with a plan to put those ideas into action. By setting realistic goals, you can set yourself up for greater success and find sustainable results, all without comprising your own schedule or mental well-being.
Learn More on the Podcast
Hear more tips of mindfulness, time-management, and more with Sarah Ohanesian on the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast! You can listen to her episode here.