I have recently put into practice the concept of ‘90 minutes’ block work. When I used to be a student I often worked for long hours without any breaks and then later having a job I often did the same. There were many days when I felt worn out and drained. Sure, I achieved most of the goals I set but often it was not easy to focus, and I was not very efficient using my time. In addition, the tiredness was always present. Does it mean that we always need to feel exhausted at the end of the day because it justifies that we worked hard? Does it come like a by-product of hard work? I don’t think so.
Recently, I adopted a different working pattern and have changed how I work. I have started to work in 90-minute blocks with some short breaks in between. On average, I aim for at least four of those blocks per day and these hours are highly effective. I am achieving results and primarily, I don’t feel tired at all at the end of the day but energised. I first read about the concept of 90 minutes in the book Build Your Business in 90 minutes a Day by Nigel Botterill and Martin Gladdish. This book is not just about setting up your business but adopting different habits and renegotiating the relationship you have with time.
What these 90-minute blocks helped me with is having concrete goals set for each of them and clear deadlines by when I want to have the work finished. I stick with the deadlines because as one of the sayings goes ‘done is better than perfect’. I am more focused moving from one task to another without spending a day on something that I could have achieved more effectively with a different pattern and structure. This is me – it works for me and that’s why I will keep it up. If you are looking for a different study/work structure in respect to time, try it as it might work for you. If not, keep looking for something that suits you and helps you to achieve what you want.
Of course, I have ‘off’ days when things don’t go according to plan but what matters here is allowing for these to happen too and not beating yourself up. However, what is equally important (if not more!) is how quickly you bounce back and re-create your structure. Keep working and moving forwards.
As Botterill and Gladdish note in their book:
Every deliberate step you take, however tiny,
towards your biggest, brightest, boldest goals
gives you the right to call yourself successful.
Commit first and then remain consistent, so you create good habits allowing you to keep up the good work you do. From time to time pause and reflect to see if any further design work or tweaks are needed.
The question is: Do your daily habits work for you and are they bringing you the results you want? If yes, great! If not, what can you change?
Make time for what matters to you.