Best Productivity Tip: Disable Your Inner-Critic

There was a challenge at instigatorblog to write your best productivity tip and link to other tips you felt were helpful.

My best tip is to...

Turn off your inner-critic for the first pass: When you are writing or sketching or designing something, let yourself do a quick first pass at it without criticizing it. Let your mind wander and be free. Once you have a complete rough, it's much easier to go back and edit something toward perfection than it is to try and create something perfect the first time through.

Don't be paralyzed by perfection!

After you've written your first draft, let your critic go crazy on it until it is good enough.

I wrote about a metaphor for this idea, the one I use, in The Two Faces of Creativity, Orson and Ed.

Here are links to some more great productivity tips.

Unplug! From Daily Blog Tips
Close all rear exits and escape doors. From Blog Blurs
Have fun! Kiss2

If you have a productivity tip, write about it in your journal and contribute to this great group writing project! Click on the picture above to find out how to participate.

Comments

[Karin H.]

Hi David

Great tip and one I know works very well. Only thing is I should use it more often and freely to keep those 'doubting' gremlins at bay.

Thanks for the link also

Karin H. (Keep It Simple Sweetheart, specially in business)

[David Wahl]

Thanks Karen!

I appreciate you checking out my blog and encourage everyone to check out yours.

[Robyn]

Since I had to squelch my negative inner voice, I know whereof you speak. I selected yours to include on the post I just wrote for Ben's meme. Thumbs up for a grat post, David.

[David Wahl]

Thank you!

I just subscribed to your blog, can't wait to check it out.