While the idea of turning to an app most associated with endless doomscrolling to improve productivity might seem counterintuitive, TikTok has become a popular source for efficiency inspiration.
A search for “productivity hacks” on TikTok brings up more than 83.5 million posts, with many creators racking up more than a million views breaking down the buzziest methods.
Laura Whaley, a Vancouver-based content creator with 3.9 million followers on TikTok, calls herself “your virtual work bestie.” Ms. Whaley began sharing videos about in November 2020 and the posts quickly gained traction. Now, the creator – who comes from a corporate background – shares鈥痙aily videos walking viewers through workplace scenarios like how to set boundaries at work, navigate tricky conversations with employers and balance workload.
Ms. Whaley says she isn’t surprised that people are turning to TikTok for productivity help; they want the same thing people seek from social media in general: to feel seen and understood.
“The overall theme is relatability,” Ms. Whaley says. “You envision yourself through the screen when you see someone going through their [work routine].”
While content about how people live and work might seem “kind of boring” on the surface, “that’s the content I think really resonates with people because it feels very close to their day-to-day life.”
‘Set the tone’ for your work day
When it comes to productivity hacks, Ms. Whaley says that while a lot of the methods popping up on your For You Page can be helpful, it’s important to consider what may work specifically for your personal strengths and preferred work style.
“I don’t think that just because a productivity tip or hack works really well for someone, that it’s going to land the same for you,” she says. Ms. Whaley subscribes to the popular tactic, which refers to the morning hours before you start your work day.
“The rule of thumb is I work for myself, or on myself, before I work for anybody else,” she says.
That might mean starting the day doing something that will support her productivity throughout the day, such as moving her body. “When my alarm goes off, [it’s] non-negotiable – I’m getting up, I’m making sure I have at least two hours before my work day starts,” Ms. Whaley says. “When you open a laptop right away, you haven’t given yourself time to even wake up. So for me, [the routine] sets the tone for the rest of the day and that helps me be productive.”
Ms. Whaley also does , which means dividing every part of her day into sections, with each dedicated to a specific task. She says it’s a way to protect her time, control how it’s used and ensure she has a complete idea of what her workload is; that way, she can either take on or refuse new projects as they come along.
A ‘low dopamine’ morning
Calgary-based therapist and content creator Simone Saunders subscribes to a similar productivity technique she calls a which she shares with her more than 500,000 followers on TikTok. Ms. Saunders has ADHD (attention deficit鈥痟yperactivity disorder) and says the routine helps her maintain focus.
“For [people with] ADHD brains, they tend to constantly seek out stimulation rather than prioritizing things that are objectively the most important,” Ms. Saunders says. “I find that if I start my morning off really stimulated, it typically derails my day or it sends me down the road for a day where I’m highly distracted.”
To avoid an early-morning dopamine rush, Ms. Saunders will delay high-stimulation activities and kick off her day with a low-dopamine household task such as doing laundry.
“I hate doing laundry, but if I’m up in the morning and I don’t touch my phone and my brain doesn’t have anything to compare the activity to, it’s much easier for me to say, ‘Okay, I’m going to do my laundry right now, I’m going to make my bed, I’m going to go for a walk.’”
Ms. Saunders notes that her low-dopamine morning routine isn’t necessarily about being more productive.
“It’s about the fact that I do need to get my laundry done and I know I feel better when I have clothes that I can choose from, but it’s hard for me to do it at different times in the day,” she says. “So [this is] how I can make myself feel well later on.”
While most people have to work in order to live, “I would say that feeling well should be the ultimate goal,” she says.
To optimize our ability to work effectively while prioritizing our physical and mental health, Ms. Saunders suggests we might need to reframe our thinking around productivity from, ‘How much can I get done?’ to ‘How can I best set myself up for personal success?’
Intrigued? More TikTok productivity hacks to try:
: Set a timer for 25 minutes. Do deep, focused work until the timer goes off. Take a five-minute break. Do this four more times, then take a longer, 15-30 minute break.
: Set a timer for one hour each day to tackle the tasks that you’ve been avoiding because of anxiety.
: Often employed by people with ADHD, body doubling is the practice of doing tasks in the presence of another person (in-person or virtually) to stay motivated and focused.
: Set a timer for five minutes. Start doing a task you’ve been putting off, committing only to those five minutes. Often, once you get into a flow state, you will end up continuing that task to completion.
