Note: This article is based on the work of Tyler Trevooren, who tells us about his experience with achieving a balance between productivity and creativity.
"What is this?" I ask myself this question as I read and scrutinize timelines. I make hundreds of dollars an hour doing my job, but I only make a few dollars doing this.
This is my new hobby, knowing the amount of money I earn with time for the different things I do. I use a timetable to find out the time period that each work I do takes; I can refer to it to find out which work is more profitable, but the interesting thing is that this business audit process had a great impact on the various aspects of my life, and unfortunately, this effect was not positive at all.
It's not just about work. After all, I feel like I am wasting my time doing a number of things, like watching movies with my wife, walking the dogs, or even going to see my friends. When you want to increase your wages, it doesn't happen in a flash. There are several concessions to be made.
But the thing I didn't notice when I started this experiment was that I was getting myself into a thought spiral in my subconscious, which was to make my time governed by money. If I don't make money by doing a certain thing, then that thing is not worth my time. Have you ever fallen into the same intellectual and psychological dilemma? That is, the more you earn, the more stressed you feel. Although the effect should be the opposite, don't worry; you are not the only one, and here are some solutions to this dilemma.
How do high wages increase your stress?
When people talk about stress related to money matters, they mean that they don't have enough money, but according to a simple and interesting study, the opposite is also true. The more money you make, the more anxious and stressed you will feel.
It sounds strange, but it makes sense if you think about the effort your brain takes to create certain thought patterns, even if they are not correct. Without paying attention to the way you associate money and time, your brain will have a hard time differentiating between the hours you spend working or thinking about work and the hours you spend thinking or doing fun, non-work-related things.
When you focus on increasing your hourly wages, your brain will think about it. Whether you're doing a difficult work-related task or watching the sunset, you measure the value of your time with the money you earn. So, by watching the sunset, will you earn $100 an hour? Thinking this way makes you demand that you get back to work.
Where does creativity stem from?
The problem, of course, is that there are several things that make you work to the best of your ability, and they are valuable things, such as social relationships, leisure time, and watching the sunset. You cannot link them to money, as these things will spark creativity in you and make your work better.
In order to better understand this idea, ask yourself: “Would a creative artist draw their masterpiece only professionally? Or do they need to spend time thinking about the idea they will draw as well? Or will the accountant make more money if they only check the tables? Or do they have to understand what customers want? In both cases, they will earn money for doing one task, but the other task will make them more creative and skilled at doing the first task.
Reformat your business in a way that makes you more creative to make more money.
I have learned this myself. If I want to earn more money, I must pay attention to the way I spend my time. I have to improve the way I spend my time in order to make my tasks more productive, but at the same time I have to do some other things to keep my creativity and my happiness, two things that are difficult to balance.
Two things that help me create that balance
1. Observe working hours
To do this, you need to set and stick to your working hours. It is easy to say but difficult to do when you do your own work. For me, setting and sticking to my working hours is essential so that I do not work during hours that I am supposed to do other things. This arrangement helps my mind not to associate the concept of productivity with only working time.
2. Organize break time during your day
Whatever number of working hours you set for yourself, be sure to set rest hours to allow yourself to do different activities. For me, these breaks are exercise in the morning or taking the dog for a short walk, and a break to pay some taxes in the afternoon. It gives me a chance during the day to think about work, not just do it.
In conclusion
I haven't figured out this balancing problem yet, and I'm still trying to understand and discover new ways to improve the balance between productivity and creativity.
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