We're bound to associate productivity with positivity. It means we're crushing our to-do list and making the most of our day. We aren't wasting time, but what happens when our obsession with getting things done goes too far? We fall into the trap of toxic productivity. What is toxic productivity? Toxic productivity happens when productivity goes wrong.

There are days when we make dozens of choices that could have been better. We can berate ourselves for being wrong so often. But if we're honest, we have to admit that we're also right a lot of the time.

We have bad days where we wake up on the wrong side of the bed without a clear head. Begin a conversation with a loved one about something we should have said at a more opportune time. We put sugar on our breakfast burritos by mistake. 

Successful people build habits, not just goals. Some people believe. Some researchers think the desire drives us. But there's a surprising amount of controversy in the literature, some back and forth in the science. About how likely people are to work without goals. 

How do habits and goals interact? What is involved in getting someone to get up in the morning and exercise first? Is that a habit? A goal, or willpower. How do these things interact? It's probably a little bit of all of them. 

We often feel we have to keep going, keep moving forward, and keep working harder to get things done. But, in these times, more than others, we need to remember to breathe — to inhale and exhale calmly every chance we get. 

We start to equate hard with better and easy with lazy, but what, if overworking, is why you're not getting anywhere? What if there was another way to reach your goals, and what if you've been thinking about productivity all wrong?

You're overthinking it.

We're bombarded by decisions every day, over 35 000 per day!

The world is a confusing place. We're all individual human beings with our own set of wants and needs, but there are more options out in the world than ever before! It can be hard to decide what's right for you when everything looks so good - which brings me back around full circle: too many choices? Too little time?!

Look around, and it won't take long to get a clear picture of how most of the world views productivity. Laziness is the enemy, procrastination is a sin and getting things done only comes through hard work. Yet, I see these bags under my eyes because I don't sleep.

What if we had another way to reach our goals? What if we've been thinking about productivity all wrong? How can we flip our hustle mindset, pursue meaningful goals, and how might we be able to make our work and life just a little bit more effortless. For example, we often make life much harder than it needs to be.