There are plenty of things we’d like to tell our 18-year old selves, and being productive often ranks highly on this list. One of the most commonly cited regrets amongst adults today is not learning how to be productive from a young age. As a parent, you should try to push your child towards a more productive lifestyle, so why not start with productivity for teens?
Why should your teen learn about productivity
Productivity is more than just an action. It’s a habit, and some would say even a way of life. With all habits, mastering productivity often takes time and effort. This means you’re much better off learning about productivity as a teen. As such, you would be able to slowly master the art of being productive by the time you’re an adult.
Productivity for teens isn’t just in preparation for adulthood. Teens have plenty of responsibilities and concerns to juggle. Growing up isn’t easy, and your kids have to learn to manage school, extracurriculars, a social life and lofty ambitions. All of this could be overwhelming without proper time management. However, by learning how to be productive, your teen could effectively manage these responsibilities. As a result, your teen could avoid the common anxiety and stress of growing up, thus focusing on succeeding in life instead.
Productivity tip #1 Teens need sleep
Let’s start things off easy — and what’s easier than sleep? Teens find it difficult to sleep on time, whether it’s because of schoolwork or social involvements. Even if they get to bed by 11pm, they could easily end up scrolling through social media until 3 in the morning. The subsequent sleep deprivation has terrible effects on their moods, focus and ability to absorb information. All of these factors point to the fact that sleepy teens cannot be productive teens. Instead, encourage your teen to sleep on time. The benefits of this are endless and extend far beyond productivity.
Productivity tip #2 Remember to plan
If you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail. Planning your time could actually be liberating as a teen. Here’s how to go about it. Ask your teen to list down all tasks for the day, week and month. This goes beyond academic work. If your teen is trying out for a leadership role, training for a competition or even pursuing a hobby, list all these tasks down. Next, together with your teen, segregate time into blocks. Slot these activities and their various milestones into the different time blocks. This way, everything is in bite-sized chunks. Your teen can then be productive and work through these tasks step by step.
Productivity tip #3 Give your teen a productivity tool
Everyone could use some help with their productivity, and teens are no exception. Giving your teen a productivity tool is a great way to make time management a fun, interesting process. A Timeqube, for example, is a colorful cube that changes color with the passing of time. It’s a fun, funky timer to help you get your teen interested in time management and productivity. Use a Timeqube with a range of time management techniques for the best results. It’s an affordable and quirky way to make productivity enjoyable for your teen, so why not give it a try today?
