Accountabilibuddies | Do you need a 'productivity nanny' for 2021?

Productivity is something of an ethereal concept. As all professionals will be acutely aware, some days, the stars simply do not align for getting in the right headspace to complete large quantities of work, whilst other days, what could have taken hours takes just minutes.

There is a myriad of factors at play; a good night’s sleep, diet, wellbeing and anxiety, volume of tasks to complete and daunting upcoming projects can all have a massive effect, as can elements such as lighting, aural input and even screen brightness.

And, of course, since the pandemic struck and changed professional life to a drastic degree, getting into the right mindset to be productive has gotten that much harder, as the toll of the COVID-19 illness sets in. People are working remotely, which means that all of those honed elements in the workplace, and even the mindset that comes with entering an office, are gone.

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However, there is one factor that seems to affect productivity more than any other. That is accountability. Essentially, the thinking here is that, without someone to keep you accountable, without solid deadlines and expectations, it’s too easy when busy to push tasks back, and eventually simply avoid doing them altogether.