A Personal Whiteboard Is the Best Productivity Investment I Have Made in a While
Something so simple, yet so effective
I wake up every morning to the sight of my own handwriting. My whiteboard faces my bed with my workout plan from the previous day. When I’m feeling like The Rock, I have my workout plan set-up for the next day. Unfortunately, it was not one of those days, but I digress. Typically, students will buy whiteboards for their dorms or their rooms while they’re in university to help them organize what they need to do, or write some quick notes, so they don’t forget later on. I didn’t own one during my time in college, but I do now, and I use it every day. It’s nice to see something written down in front of you. I don’t have anything crazy. The content on my board ranges from workouts, quotes that I enjoy, life plans, water tally (I need something to remind me to drink my water throughout the day), and sometimes random thoughts. An object so simple, but so important in my daily routine.
Outside of my vision board, my whiteboard is the next thing that I see almost every hour of my day. Obviously, boards play an exciting part in my life. It’s the first thing I see when I get out of bed, I walk by it every time I leave my room, and I see it every time I go to my closet — it’s on my closet door. It’s nice to have notes on your phone or set up our calendars on our computers, but there’s a different satisfaction when you physically write something down. When I make a mistake, I have to use an eraser or my hands. I don’t particularly like using my hands, but sometimes you really have to erase that mistake. The act of writing on a board brings me back to my grade school days, showing the teacher our math answers. In the simplest of ways, writing on a whiteboard is just fun.
Having a whiteboard in my room has really leveled up my at-home workouts. The exercises are organized and thought of prior to the start. I can write down the amount of each exercise that will be done that day (reps or time) and it allows me to track progress during my workouts in a quick and easy manner. The next level of productivity that my whiteboard brings me is plain motivation. Words of affirmation and inspiration are laid out across the blank space.
“Aim to be ambitious, it doesn’t matter how ridiculous your goals sound. People may laugh now, but what happens when we speak our goals into existence? Remember their response and let that fuel you.”
This is the current quote that I have across the board and it can change throughout the week, but typically I’ll keep it there until the weekend. A few words can remind me of my daily intentions and keep me on track and productive with whatever I'm doing and sometimes you need those words to help you get through your last set or get through that last-minute of your ab workout.
I’m not consistent when it comes to writing in a journal every day. I have stints where it’s part of my daily routine every morning; I write what I’m thankful for and what to achieve. I’ll do that for a few days straight, and somehow, that part of my routine gets lost in the wind. I recognize that my board can be used as my journal. I’ll have one main goal that I want to achieve for the day, and I see it. I’m reminded of what I need to do because it’s out in the open and not hidden between some pages. The words stare at me until I’m able to cross it out with a marker or erase it forever. It’s also a good conversation starter when people see what’s written on there while I’m in a zoom meeting. Somehow there’s a certain feeling people get when they see a whiteboard; at least when I see one, I think about how productive it is to use one in any context. Hopefully, that’s the feeling that others get when they see my disorganized board in the background.
