We’re nearing the end of the year, which means we’re already beginning to turn our attention to the next year, aren’t we? Now for most of us, that means we’re evaluating the year that was, and starting to determine, how can we do better in the year ahead? In this edition of 3 Minute Thursdays, I want to give you three quick productivity tips that I think will actually make a difference. You can watch it in Facebook or YouTube formats, or read the transcript below.
Transcript
We’re nearing the end of the year, which means we’re already beginning to turn our attention to the next year, aren’t we? Now for most of us, that means we’re evaluating the year that was, and starting to determine, how can we do better in the year ahead? In this edition of 3 Minute Thursdays, I want to give you three quick productivity tips that I think will actually make a difference. We’ll get three minutes on the clock, and we will get to it.
The first tip is this. Do not expect quick fixes. See, most of us look back and we see all kinds of missed opportunities, we see so much lazy living in the year that went by, and so the temptation we face is to look for some kind of a quick fix. Something that requires very little effort but makes a huge difference, as if life ever works like that. Just imagine your house is shakey, it’s falling down. You know you can’t just go and slap a new coat of paint over it, right? As if that will fix it. You can’t just tape over the cracks. You’ve got to dig down, you’ve got to reinforce the foundation, you’ve got to address the source of the problem. When it comes to productivity, that’s exactly what we need to do. We need to put some time, we need to put some effort into it. So why don’t you determine you’ll set aside some time to really consider what it means to be productive. To consider how you’ll grow in your productivity in the year ahead.
Here’s a second tip. Make your productivity about more than yourself. You see, when we consider being productive, we tend to have a lot of self-focus. What did I do? What did I accomplish in the year that went by? And as I think ahead, what are my goals? How can I have the kind of life that I want to have? It is far, far better to turn productivity away from yourself and to direct it, first to God, and then to other people. In other words, productivity is not first about doing what benefits you, but doing what benefits other people. It’s not first about gaining your self-recognition but gaining God recognition. The truly productive and satisfying life is one that’s directed to the good of others and to the glory of God. There’s far more satisfaction in that life than a life of doing what’s good for you and a life that’s ultimately about glorifying yourself.
Tip number three. Understand that productivity is best understood in terms of investment. As we evaluate the last year, we may measure success in terms of the number of things we accomplished, or even the size of the projects we completed. But there’s a better way to understand productivity. To do that, we need to see productivity as an investment. To see it in those terms. It’s not asking about what we did, or what we will do, but about where we made our investments. And where we’ll invest in the year ahead. Productivity is about investing, about making the best investment of my gifts, of my talents, of my time, of my energy, even of my enthusiasm. It’s about investing all of that in what’s good for others and what brings glory to God. Not just about using the eight or ten hours I commit every day to a job. Put it all together and we’ve got this.
Take some time as this year draws to a close, to consider this. In the year ahead, how can you use your gifts and your talents and your time and your energy and your enthusiasm in a way that does good to others and that brings glory to God. Consider that question, answer it in a satisfying way, and you’ll be well on your way to a truly productive year. That’s another edition of 3 Minute Thursdays, I hope you found it helpful and I’ll see you again really soon.
