February Epiphany
The shortest month can be the most productive
Only 29 days this month. February is the month where it either flies by or drags on like a Midwest winter.
This year, we got a little lucky due to the leap year. So, we have 29 days instead of 28.
While sitting at my desk, not quite ready for the work day to start, I realized something. Having less days in the month is going to push me to try harder to get more done.
Even though February is shorter by a couple days, it can still be just as productive as the other months. Here is my logic:
Personally, I tend to work better with tight deadlines. I work at an office job for 8+ hours a day and after all the life stuff that needs to be done, I don’t have a ton of time to write. To fix this, I push myself to write on my lunch break at work. This means I am writing an article for Medium in 1 hour.
I make myself write the entire article in that 1 hour time. This encourages me to work more efficiently and avoid distractions. That added pressure is exactly what I need to get my writing done.
If I don’t put that time constraint on myself, I will have a bunch of internet tabs open and my brain will be all over the place.
Now, I do sometimes make exceptions to getting the article done in the hour. If I feel like it isn’t great quality, or if I feel like it’s missing something, I will come back to it that evening or the next day. But for the most part, I try to write and publish it within the hour.
Also, if you have been toying with starting a new process with your writing this month, or anything else in your life, why not start in February? Those missing days might help you feel not so pressured to stick with the change if you end up not liking it. Or, if you do like the change, you can tweak it more and continue to try it in March, which has 31 days!
February feels similar to my writing process. It is a shorter month by a day or 2. So, if on February 29, I am close to accomplishing a goal I wanted to complete for that month, but I start to get lazy, I don’t have another day to fall back on.
In my opinion, if February is a successful and productive month, it can create momentum to carry you into March and the months beyond.
Just knowing I have less days this month makes me want to work harder and get even more done this month. Sometimes having less time can bring out the best in your productivity.
Here’s to a productive and successful February!
