What makes parents so productive?

Paul Graham’s recent tweet about productivity and parenting caught my attention.

I’m one of those parents. My productivity has increased after starting a family—and I’m not alone.

There are a lot of parents just like me. You may be one of them. If you’re not, you can be.

We’re not exceptions.

Productivity is a choice—whether or not you’re a parent. Being a parent just adds a few more constraints to work through. In fact, some of the best entrepreneurs work within constraints, like having little money or few people. Constraints can be a good thing: you learn to do more with less.

Focus is one aspect of productivity, as Graham rightly points out. But there are several others that enable parents, including this one, to be productive.

1. Priorities are crystal clear.

I always thought I had my priorities straight. But I really didn’t—until Hayden arrived. Then, my priorities became clear very quickly.

I solidified these priorities by taking out my journal and writing my answer to this question: what matters most?

It’s such a simple, but powerful exercise that’ll help you identify your priorities. Or they may help you re-evaluate them.

That’s what happened to me.

It became obvious what deserved my time, attention, and energy—and, equally important, what didn’t. Projects and opportunities I thought were important before Hayden’s birth no longer mattered.

Getting clear about your priorities will also help you to filter tasks, projects, and opportunities.

Before adding something new to my plate, I evaluate it through the lens of my established priorities. If a task or project won’t help me with a priority, then it’s a low chance that I’ll take it on. Deciding not to do something is one of the best ways to manage your productivity.

2. The 80/20 rule takes effect.

When faced with a laundry list of tasks, think about which ones will provide the most return and work on those. Instead of trying to do everything, choose a few things that’ll have an impact.

3. Time is valuable.

Time management has taken on a new meaning as a parent. There’s so little time to myself—especially with an eleven-month-old in the house. So I’ve learned to be both efficient and effective. There’s no time for fluff.

I’m also sensitive to Parkinson’s Law: “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.”

I used to give myself big chunks of time to complete writing and programming tasks. And, true to Parkinson’s law, I filled them. In fact, I often felt that I needed more time. In retrospect, I think I was filling time just to fill time.

Now I have slivers of time in the morning, before Hayden wakes up, and during his naps. Even though I have a fraction of the time I had a year ago I’m getting more done.

I’m not a superhero.

Instead, I realize how valuable time is and relentlessly apply the 80/20 rule to everything. I’ve also become less of a perfectionist.

4. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

Pre-baby I tried to perfect everything, from blog posts to side projects to practice programming problems.

My perfectionistic ways came to a halt once Hayden was born. There simply isn’t enough time to perfect everything. So I have to decide what’s worth agonizing over and what’s not. So far, few things really are.

There’s a time and place for perfection. But what I’ve learned is that most things don’t require it. Besides, perfection can prevent getting things done and out the door.

5. Energy management matters.

Managing my energy is essential as a parent who aims to be productive.

Exercise is how I manage my energy. Although it takes time to exercise, I get far more done when I get my workout in. When I feel good physically, I do better mentally. So I make working out a priority. Even a small deposit of 15 or 20 minutes makes a huge difference.

6. Just say “no.”

It seems simple to decline a business opportunity or social engagement. It even sounds simple to say “no” to a television show.

But saying “no” is hard to do in practice—at least it was for me initially.

Once I began declining opportunities, big or small, I had more time. I also felt liberated because I began working on projects and pursuing opportunities that I really enjoy.

Quality vs Quantity

The number of things I get done each day as a stay-at-home mom has decreased. I can’t fit everything in, and I don’t try to. I accept that less will get done.

However, this has worked to my benefit.

I no longer focus on quantity: the number of hours I work, the number of emails I respond to, the number of random tasks I attend to during the day, and so on.

Instead I focus on quality. The stuff that moves the needle. The stuff that matters most. Put another way, I try to do a few things really well. As a result, important things get done in relatively short order.

This is an important mindshift change to make to increase productivity. This, too, is a choice.

Once you choose to be productive, then it’s just a matter of being disciplined with your habits and time to enable productivity to thrive. This isn’t a strategy for parents. It’s one for anyone who’s looking to get stuff done.

I write about entrepreneurship and parenting on my newsletter, Entrepreneurial Parent, which is where this post was originally published.