5 Key Things Nozbe Cannot Do for Your Productivity

Have you ever purchased a piece of exercise equipment and never actually used it? What about a great household tool, and then let it collect dust?

Those are painful questions. I feel your pain…because I’ve done both.

These questions also make us smile. Why is that? Because most of us can relate. We start with good intentions, then somehow the service, product, gadget, etc, doesn’t make a big enough difference for us to continue using it.

The ironic thing is — the gadget or product never caused the issue in the first place.

Our team recently began using Nozbe and found this out first hand.

Let me correct that…I found this out first hand…about myself.

When you sign up for a productivity tool like Nozbe, you find that there are many things the tool cannot do for you. Here’s a few:

Productivity

 1. It cannot help you decide what’s important.
It’s easy is to create a list of tasks. What’s much harder is to define which of those takes precedence over the other.

Although Nozbe can certainly help you to arrange and organize your tasks and projects, it takes your input and oversight to prioritize and execute.

2. It cannot force you to do your work.
Nozbe, just like the metaphorical treadmill or exercise bike, can’t force you to do your work. We like to think that if we buy a product, service or tool that the act of buying it will force or motivate us to do the work. That is simply not true.

3. It cannot set up your routine for you.
A large list of tasks is nothing more than a large list of tasks. You will quickly become overwhelmed with any new tool if you don’t set up a routine for how to use it and commit to that routine.

One thing that I have found to be helpful when I am feeling overwhelmed by my list of to-dos is to knock out one or two easy things that will only take a few minutes. Then, I attack something that I’m not looking forward to doing. Once I finish the less exciting task the list is not only shorter, but it’s also not as daunting…because “the worst” is over.

4. It cannot help you unless you actually use it.
Just like an exercise bike, it may feel good to own it and see it sitting there, but if you don’t use it, it is not helping you. It’s actually hurting you.

It may make you feel good to take an initial step in the right direction. But if it’s not followed by a second and third step, it’s actually a step in the wrong direction. And not only is it a step in the wrong direction, but it can cause you to feel even more overwhelmed because you know it’s there and you are failing to use it.

5. It cannot do the work for you.
The tool that you purchase cannot do the work for you. Don’t get me wrong. The tool will help you to do your work and possibly reduce your work in some areas. But the hard work still must happen.

When we started using Nozbe, I immediately set it all up and had everything in place. I quickly began using it with excitement; however just as quickly as I started, I faded.

Remember, the tools you use cannot do the work for you. Click To Tweet

The tool may reduce the work required. It may make you faster. But it won’t replace the hard work you actually have to put in…yourself.

What tools are you currently using? What mistakes have you made along the way, and how did you address those missteps?

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