Productivity isn’t simply about getting more things done. It’s about getting the right things done.
How do we discover the right things that count and the ones that really make a difference? We get help and biblical advice with Matt Perman, author of What’s Best Next: How The Gospel Transforms The Way You Get Things Done.
We start with this question: “What does God want me to do?” and then learn how to be more productive doing it. Matt says the biggest myth in discussing this concept is that we can think of productivity at all without having God in the equation. Alongside that is another myth – that we just have to become better managers. Matt says to truly succeed in this realm, we have to also learn how to lead ourselves.
In an interesting aside though, Matt says that most effective leaders don’t naturally behave in effective ways. It’s a skill to be learned – one that we can learn as well.
“If you get your life to get set up how you want it, without God, it leads to a dead end”. -Matt Perman
If we want to lead an eternally productive life, we absolutely have to include God.
Matt notes that we need to focus on the ‘why’. ‘Why do I do what I do?’ In so doing, we orient ourselves to do the right things for the correct reasons.
He gives us an acronym for productivity – P.O.D.
- Plan – Make used of lists & ‘to dos’.
- Organize – Find a starting place for implementing more organization in your life. Don’t expect to become incredibly organized right away!
- Do – Start accomplishing the tasks before you!
At its heart, productivity is all about equipping ourselves to become more productive according to God’s purpose.
