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Episode 95 | BATCHING


Bruce Lee said that If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of.

...and so today I’m going to quickly cover a concept and working practice that will allow you to get more done in less time. It’ll be of no surprise to you but Batching is simply the act of grouping tasks together, so you do them all at once, instead of switching between tasks that take place in areas.


A typical example of this from my life would be when I have to resize a whole load of photographs I used to do this using a macro program which I’d create in an old version of Photoshop but since Adobe decided to rent their software rather than sell it, I moved over to affinity. The great thing about that programme is that I can batch process with pretty much two clicks and it does most of the work for me.


Another example is processing video on a selects timeline…


And another would be creating this podcast…


Or marketing it.


Batching is simply much more productive because it forces you to plan things out and it stops you from jumping back and forward between unconnected tasks. This means that your mind can be more focused unless the task is very repetitive – and you may have to do it in smaller batches –


Time batching might make sense for you if:

  • You struggle to concentrate on a single task.

  • You need to eliminate distractions to make meaningful progress.

  • Your work environment is full of interruptions.

  • You repeat similar tasks on a regular basis.


But it might not be ideal if:


  • Your work is highly variable and tasks are often very different from each other (this will make it hard to batch.)

  • Your work doesn’t require deep focus or uninterrupted periods of work.

  • You get back on task quickly after interruptions.

  • You enjoy switching tasks to bring variety to your day.


A follow on to this basic concept is - Time batching – where you set aside a specific amount of time to batch for - It is effective because it builds structure and boundaries around blocks of time so that you can dive deep into specific tasks without interruptions that break up your workflow.


And there are typically two types of tasks you can batch:


Shallow tasks which require lower levels of productive energy, ideal for short work sprints.


And Deep tasks which require high levels of productive energy, minimal distraction, high focus for longer periods of time.

Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort. Paul J. Meyer Unquote

By batching and blocking off set periods of time for tasks, you can achieve a state of flow, which is a mental state where you work efficiently and make meaningful progress toward a goal.


You can batch dealing with emails and other communications, images like I do for this show, Editing, brainstorming, cleaning, really just about anything that you know how to do and that has a simple series of actions, but note that this system is less good when you are tired or when dealing with very complex things or when you are dealing with new tasks or problems and you have to learn


This has be the second test episode that I’ve put together in this shorter format and I hope you’ve found it interesting. Taking on these smaller concepts and getting the point across quickly is my aim here. If I can master and improve upon this format I will commit to producing another 50 episodes following on from episode 100 and release one a week from now on.


As a call to action, I’d love to hear your feedback on this episode. You can contact me via Twitter @filmproprodpod, Facebook @filmproproductivity, or directly via the contact page on filmproproductivity.com.


In the next episode I will be talking about Batching - that’s The act of grouping tasks together, instead of switching between them.



I’ll end with these words from Rick Warren who said If you want your life to have impact, focus it! Stop dabbling. Stop trying to do it all. Do less. Prune away even good activities and do only that which matters most. Never confuse activity with productivity. You can be busy without a purpose, but what's the point?



Now take control of your own destiny, keep on shootin’ and join me next time on FILM PRO PRODUCTIVITY AND SUCCESS!


• The music you can hear right now is Adventures by A Himitsu

• You can view the show notes for this episode on the official website filmproproductivity.com

• You can follow my personal account on Twitter and Instagram @fight_director or follow the show on Twitter @filmproprodpod or on Facebook @Filmproproductivity

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Thanks: A Himitsu Music: Adventures by A Himitsu

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