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If we were all a bit like Ultron then we could just put our silly human emotions aside and be productive beasts.

However, we have emotion, psychology and the complexity of being human to deal with.

I’ve been agitated with myself time and time again for not being as productive as I’d like. But I have found some tricks and biohacks that work for me to improve my productivity that just might help you too.

 

What Is Biohacking?

Biohacking is an open-ended term that generally means a set of actions are being taken to enhance one’s health and fitness. Through the use of supplements, technology, lifestyle, nutrition, environmental changes and noise.

It can be taken to the extreme of spending $250,000 on things to biohack the body or just simply making changes on one’s diet.

It started in Silicon Valley, California with popular biohackers like Dave Aspey and Time Ferriss.

When it comes to productivity there are dozens of things that can be done to biohack one’s self for ultimate output.

 

How Biohacking My Productivity Has Helped Me

Let’s quickly rewind to when I was in high school. Back when Napolean Dynomite, The Punisher and I, Robot were coming out in theatres.

“How Much Do You Want To Bet I Can Throw This Football Over Them Mountains?” – Uncle Rico, Napolean Dynamite

I thought I was lazy because I never did my homework, didn’t know how to work hard and only wanted to play street hockey after school.

Then as I grew throughout my career doing sales jobs, personal training and running my own business I understood the power of productivity.

Being more productive has allowed me to develop deep confidence in myself and my capabilities.

I know myself and what I must do to be productive.

And it all starts with the body…

 

Make Sure Your Ladder Is On The Right Wall Before Climbing

Before we talk about the strategies of productivity it’s important to discuss any root causes of a lack of productivity.

It could be that you just need strategies to be more productive. How to get better at lists. How to take on the big tasks first.

But it could also mean you’re just not as engaged in that activity as you are in other areas of life.

For example, I wasn’t just lazy and useless in high school. I just didn’t really care about school.

But I LOVED playing street hockey after school. I was there every day and organized my friends to play too. And I worked my butt off in the gym to get stronger and faster.

As Stephen Covey says:

“If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.” – Stephen Covey

 

My Top Biohacks For Optimizing Productivity

Here are the top ways I biohack my productivity.

1. Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is, by far, the best thing I do for productivity.

This is because I don’t have food in my stomach draining me of mental resources.

When we eat a meal our body has to divert resources (enzymes, glucose, acid production…etc) towards our gut. That all takes energy which detracts from our overall mental acuity, focus, and memory.

Intermittent fasting has other benefits but the biggest one I get from it is the focus.

 

2. Black Coffee Fasted

Yes, I know how obvious coffee is for productivity. But what I’m saying is that I drink black coffee in a fasted state. That’s a different level of focus and productivity.

The reason I say “black” coffee is because if it’s black it won’t take you out of a fasted state. Any calories, even a small amount of creamer, could take you out of the fasted state. Therefore reducing the overall benefits you get from it. And possibly causing gut distress.

 

3. Work Environment

Your physical work environment has a huge impact on your mental state for productivity.

This is because we humans evolved to be aware of what’s around us.

For example, let’s go back a few thousand years. People had to be aware of their surroundings in case an animal threat came at them.

In today’s world, we don’t face lions while we’re working but our psychology and nervous system haven’t caught up yet.

For example:

If you’re in an environment that’s stressful then your mental resources will be going towards fending off perceived threats versus focused productivity.

Or if you’re work environment that you also relax in you’ll be sending mixed signals to your brain. Therefore wanting to play rather than work.

 

Throughout the pandemic, I mostly worked from home. And it was okay for a bit. But since I was working in my house my brain didn’t always get the message that it was time to be productive.

So what I like to do to be most productive is work in coffee shops. That’s where I am right now as I write this. At a Starbucks in St. Petersurg, FL.

There’s something about the environment of a coffee shop that’s put me in the zone. Maybe seeing everyone else working inspires me to kick butt too. Or the smell of coffee in the air is giving me a secondary caffeine “high.” LOL.

 

4. Standing Desk

The standing desk is an adjustable desk that goes up and down so you can sit or stand.

If I’m working at home I like to use my standing desk. When I stand I have more focus because my body isn’t getting the signal to relax; like it might if I was sitting.

Standing tells the brain to keep alert.

I don’t stand for 10 hours a day but I like to mix it up between sitting and standing to keep things dynamic.

 

5. Gut Health

Your gut health plays a big role in mood and mental focus.

This is because of the gut-brain-axis. The gut-brain-axis is a bidirectional communication channel between your gut and your brain via the vagus nerve.

More and more evidence is coming out around the gut’s influence on our nervous system.

An agitated gut can cause brain fog, a lack of focus and depression.

I’ve had a lot of experience dealing with poor gut health. Such as IBS, inflammatory bowel disease, leaky gut and a bad gut microbiome.

This is one of the reasons I use intermittent fasting to create higher levels of productivity. Simply because I’m not causing gut distress through digestion.

I do everything I can to create good gut health to ensure I’m at my mental best.

 

6. Sound

Sound is another big player in enhancing productivity. It’s similar to the work environment reason but more specific.

Music has an influence on our mood. So I use that to my advantage.

I’ll listen to instrumental house music or use a web app called Noisli. This music/noise gets me personally most focused and “in the zone.”

Noisli creates different sounds of nature, coffee shops and other environmental noises to help people be productive.

 

7. Sleep

Getting better sleep will help you be more focused and productive.

I decided to mention it here because as obvious as it is people tend to neglect probably the biggest factor towards general well-being and productivity.

Not sure if this is as much a biohack as it is just good to do for everything in our lives.

To get better sleep I’ll keep it cooler in the house. I also read a physical book before bed and avoid electronic screens because the blue light can disrupt our sleep. And I do deep breathing to relax my body.

 

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