Brewing Productivity: My Coffee Break Technique for Task Mastery
Discover how to turn your coffee breaks into productive power hours. Learn the simple yet effective “coffee break technique” to tackle small tasks efficiently and stay on top of your to-do list.
You need to read this before you go for your next coffee break. Yes! This technique has helped me tackle small tasks efficiently, freeing up my schedule for more complex tasks.
Our daily to-do lists comprise of tasks of varying complexity and categories. I have a habit of noting down the estimated time required to complete each task and its urgency.
The Rule of Seven: Limiting My To-Do List
This is another personal trick I have followed for years. My rule of seven states that at no point should I add more than seven pending tasks to my to-do list.
Once I add seven tasks to my list, I don’t add another before I strike off each of the previous seven. Striking off means I’ve completed, rescheduled, delegated, or deleted the task.
Read my blog to know about the four task quadrants of The Eisenhower Matrix.
The rule of seven is a personal preference. Seven is my date of birth 🙂
You may choose a smaller or a higher number. I would recommend keeping it nine or less. Single digits somehow have a magical impact. Try it yourself for a few days and let me know in the comments.
You can get a copy of the template I use. I take a print of the sheet and write down my tasks with a pen. Again, a personal preference. You may choose to use it as an online template.
My Coffee Break Technique
I start my day early to take advantage of the quiet morning hours.
Morning hours are when I am most productive and there are fewer distractions. I start with the most urgent and complex task in my to-do list.
Every time I have an urge to take a break — a quick loo break, a cup of coffee or my mid-day lunch break; I do one of the following:
I review my pending tasks which are down to six and:
- I check which task can be completed if I delay my break for 5 minutes
- Which task can be completed if I can shorten my break by 5 minutes
These could be tasks like sending a follow-up email to a prospect, sending an invoice to a client, making a quick call, scheduling or publishing social media posts etc.
And voila — I bring down the count by one and happily earn my break!
So, there you have it — my coffee break technique! It’s a simple yet effective way to boost productivity and stay on top of your to-do list.
I encourage you to give it a try and see how it works for you. Share your experiences in the comments below. If you have any questions or want to learn more, feel free to ask!
