Why Being 'Productive' Is Ruining Your Success

Check email. Slack message. Zoom call. Update Trello. Check email again.

You feel exhausted at 5 PM. You feel “productive.” But what did you actually create?

Motion vs. Action

Author James Clear distinguishes between two states:

• Motion: Planning, strategizing, researching. It feels like work, but produces no result.
• Action: The behavior that delivers an outcome.

Writing a blog post outline is Motion. Publishing the post is Action. Researching diet plans is Motion. Eating a healthy meal is Action.

We love Motion because it allows us to feel like we are progressing without the risk of failure. But you can be in motion forever and never succeed. Stop preparing. Start doing.