Ever feel like you’re pushing through your day at the wrong time? Like no matter how hard you try, you’re just not hitting your stride?
You’re not alone—most people don’t realize they have natural energy peaks, and they end up working against their body’s natural rhythm.
When you find your most productive time of day, everything changes. You stop struggling through tasks and start flowing through them. It’s not about working harder. It’s about working with your A-game in mind. I will provide you three perspectives so you can pick what’s best for you.
I start with Cal Newport.
Find Your Most Productive Time
Let’s break down how to do it, inspired by the principles of Cal Newport’s deep work philosophy—where focus and timing go hand in hand to get your best work done.
Step 1: Track Your Energy Levels
The first step in finding your most productive time is tracking your energy throughout the day. It sounds simple, but most people don’t pay attention to how their energy fluctuates. Keep a log for a week. Start noting down when you feel energized, when you hit that post-lunch slump, and when you feel most alert.
Are you an early bird who thrives at dawn, or do you come alive in the late afternoon?
By tracking your energy, you’ll start seeing patterns. And those patterns will tell you when you’re primed for your most important work.
Step 2: Match Your Tasks to Your Energy Peaks
Once you’ve pinpointed your energy peaks, the next step is to align your most important tasks with those times. If you’re sharpest at 10 a.m., that’s when you should be tackling deep work—creative problem-solving, strategy, writing, or any task that requires maximum brainpower.
Don’t waste your peak time on emails or meetings. Use it for the stuff that really matters. As Cal Newport emphasizes in his deep work approach, shallow tasks drain your focus. Reserve the shallow work—emails, admin, routine tasks—for your energy dips. Use those low-energy moments for things that don’t require your A-Game.
Step 3: Experiment with Time Blocking
Cal Newport is a big believer in time blocking, and it’s a game-changer for finding your productive groove. Set specific blocks of time for deep work when you know your energy is at its highest. It could be a two-hour window in the morning, or maybe you work best in shorter, intense bursts.
The key here? Protect that time like gold. Eliminate distractions, turn off notifications, and get into the zone. Time blocking helps you create a structure around your most productive hours, ensuring you’re always in sync with your energy.
Step 4: Don’t Fight Your Body’s Natural Rhythm
Stop trying to force productivity at the wrong time of day. If your energy tanks in the afternoon, don’t push through it with caffeine and grit. Instead, schedule low-energy tasks, take a break, or do something that requires less mental effort.
Flow with your body’s natural rhythm, not against it. You’ll find that you’re not only more productive, but also less stressed and more creative when you work with your energy instead of battling it.
Step 5: Stay Consistent, But Flexible
As you start designing your day around your most productive hours, consistency is key. Stick to the schedule you’ve created, but also be flexible. Life happens. Some days your energy might spike earlier or later, and that’s okay. The goal is to optimize your day as much as possible, but still roll with the punches when needed.
Step 6: Use Technology (But Not Too Much)
While it’s tempting to use every productivity app under the sun, Cal Newport is a big advocate for limiting tech distractions. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use tools to track your productivity or schedule your deep work sessions—it just means you should use them intentionally.
Try tools like RescueTime to see where your time is going, or a simple time-tracking journal if you prefer analog. The less time you spend managing your tools, the more time you’ll have for deep, focused work.
Tony Schawartz and Nir Eyal
There are similarities to their way of working. Mine is different too. What’s important are the principles behind managing our most productive hours.
Energy Management (And Why It’s Better Than Time Management)
We’ve been getting it wrong for years. It’s not time that’s our most valuable resource—it’s energy.
That’s Tony Schwartz’s big idea.
He’s the guy behind The Power of Full Engagement and the founder of The Energy Project. And his message is simple: time is finite, but energy is renewable.
If you can manage your energy, you can work better, longer, and with more focus.
Let’s break it down.
1. Work in Sprints, Not Marathons
Schwartz doesn’t believe in powering through long hours. Instead, he promotes working in 90-minute sprints. Why 90 minutes? Because that’s about how long we can focus before our energy dips.
Your brain is a muscle. After a burst of hard work, it needs rest to recover and recharge. Schwartz says that after 90 minutes of deep focus, you should take a break to refuel. It’s not lazy—it’s how you keep performing at a high level.
Try this: Set a timer for 90 minutes. Focus on your most important task. When the timer goes off, take a 15-minute break to recharge—go for a walk, grab a snack, anything that restores your energy.
2. Manage Four Types of Energy
Schwartz identifies four types of energy that fuel our performance: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. Most people just focus on physical energy—sleep, diet, exercise—but Schwartz says that’s only part of the equation.
- Physical Energy: This is your foundation. Sleep well, eat right, and move your body. If you’re not taking care of yourself physically, everything else falls apart.
- Emotional Energy: Stay positive. Your mood affects your energy levels. When you’re emotionally drained, your productivity tanks. Build emotional resilience by managing stress and focusing on what makes you happy.
- Mental Energy: This is all about focus. Eliminate distractions and focus on one task at a time. Multitasking drains your mental energy faster than anything else.
- Spiritual Energy: This is the deeper stuff. What’s your purpose? What drives you? When your work aligns with your values, you feel energized. Schwartz says spiritual energy is the fuel that keeps you going long-term.
3. Take Strategic Breaks
Schwartz is all about strategic recovery. Most of us think productivity means working non-stop, but Schwartz argues the opposite: if you want to perform at your peak, you need to schedule breaks.
Think athletes. They don’t train at full intensity 24/7. They rest, recover, and then come back stronger. Schwartz says we need to do the same in our work. When you take breaks, you’re not slacking—you’re refueling.
Try this: Every 90 minutes, take a 10-15 minute break. Walk around, stretch, or meditate. And don’t forget to take longer breaks throughout the day—lunch away from your desk, an evening walk to decompress.
4. Prioritize Sleep
Schwartz is serious about sleep. Forget the hustle culture’s “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” mindset. Schwartz’s research shows that sleep is the foundation of high performance. If you’re not well-rested, your energy tanks, your focus fades, and your productivity nosedives.
Tip: Try to get 7-8 hours of sleep each night, and don’t skimp. Treat it like an investment in your productivity.
5. Align Your Work with Purpose
One of Schwartz’s core beliefs is that purpose drives energy. When your work is meaningful—when it aligns with your core values—it fuels you. You’re more engaged, more focused, and more motivated to push through challenges.
Ask yourself: Why am I doing this? Does this work align with what matters to me? The more your work connects to your deeper purpose, the more energy you’ll have to give it your best.
Tony Schwartz’s approach isn’t about squeezing more hours into your day. It’s about managing your energy so that the hours you do work are more effective.
You don’t need to grind yourself into the ground. Work in sprints, manage your energy holistically, and take care of yourself. That’s how you play your A-Game, day in and day out.
Remember:
- Work in 90-minute bursts, then take a break.
- Manage physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual energy.
- Sleep like it’s your secret weapon.
- Align your work with a deeper sense of purpose.
That’s the Tony Schwartz way—and it’s how you unlock sustainable, high performance.
How to Become Indistractable (According to Nir Eyal)
Ever feel like you’re constantly fighting distractions? Notifications, emails, meetings, social media—it never stops. You’re not alone. Nir Eyal has made a career out of studying why we get distracted and, more importantly, how to stop it.
His book Indistractable breaks it all down into simple, actionable steps. Here’s a quick guide to his ideas:
Step 1: Understand What’s Really Distracting You
Distraction isn’t just about your phone buzzing or your inbox filling up. According to Eyal, distraction starts in your head. It’s usually a way to avoid uncomfortable feelings—boredom, stress, anxiety. When you reach for your phone or check social media, it’s not because you lack willpower, it’s because you’re trying to escape discomfort.
Action: The next time you feel the urge to check your phone, pause. Ask yourself: What am I trying to avoid? Recognizing the root cause of your distraction is the first step to overcoming it.
Step 2: Time Blocking (But With a Twist)
Eyal is a big fan of time blocking, but he takes it one step further. He recommends scheduling everything, not just your work tasks. Time block your meetings, email, gym sessions, even time with family and friends. Why? Because if you don’t schedule your time, someone else will.
Action: Open your calendar and plan your entire day. Every hour. Eyal says this level of detail ensures that you’re in control of your time, not your distractions.
Step 3: Learn to Manage External Triggers
Notifications? Buzzing phone? Slack messages? These are the external triggers that pull you away from what you’re doing. Eyal isn’t saying to cut these out completely, but you need to manage them. Turn off unnecessary notifications. Let people know when you’re in “focus mode.”
Action: Go to your phone’s settings and turn off notifications for anything that isn’t urgent. You can also schedule specific times to check messages and emails instead of letting them disrupt your day.
Step 4: Make Time for Traction
Traction is the opposite of distraction. It’s the time you spend deliberately moving toward your goals. Eyal says the key to becoming indistractable is to fill your day with traction activities—whether they’re work tasks, hobbies, or quality time with family.
Action: Look at your time-blocked schedule. Ask yourself: Are these activities moving me toward what I really want? If not, adjust. The goal is to fill your day with purposeful actions that lead to progress.
Step 5: Create Pacts With Yourself
Eyal talks about making “precommitments” to prevent distraction before it happens. This could be as simple as using website blockers during deep work or setting a time limit on social media apps. It’s all about building guardrails that keep you on track.
Action: Try using a tool like Freedom or StayFocusd to block distracting sites during focus hours. Make a pact with yourself that when you’re working, you’re all in.
Distraction is everywhere. But according to Nir Eyal, the power to beat it is in your hands. You don’t need more willpower—you need a system. Understand why you’re getting distracted, schedule your time, manage your triggers, and stay focused on traction. Do this, and you’ll become indistractable.
It’s time to take control. Start today.
Stop Pushing, Start Flowing
Finding your most productive time of day isn’t about cramming more into your schedule. It’s about maximizing your energy and aligning your most important tasks with when you’re at your best. The truth is, you can work fewer hours and get more done—if you’re doing the right work at the right time.
By tuning into your energy levels, blocking your time, and focusing when you’re sharpest, you’ll hit your A-Game more consistently. Stop fighting your natural rhythm and start working smarter, not harder.
It’s time to stop pushing through the wrong times and start flowing through the right ones. Your most productive hours are waiting—you just need to find them.
