What if I said you could purchase a computer that never became obsolete, could process information faster than any computer on the market, never required you to install an update, can make you lots of money, and best of all, is completely free?!

You’d probably say, “Sign me up! Where do I get this magic machine?”

Well, the good news is, you already have it.

It’s your brain.

It’s the best computer money can buy. But to get the most out of it, just like with any computer, you have to know how to use it effectively. You have to know how the software works, what’s compatible and what’s not, what makes it run the fastest? How long it can go before it burns out.

The best computer money can buy…

Your brain is brilliant. It has the capacity to create words and sentences and stories and worlds out of nothing. The problem is, most of us don’t use our brain to its fullest potential because we’re trying to do too much with it at once. We’re constantly distracting ourselves and letting ourselves be distracted.

Essentially, we’re filling up our brain with malware and processor-consuming programs that we don’t actually need and it’s slowing down our computer’s ability to run the programs we do need. Like our creativity.

Which is why, in this post, I’m going to give you 3 tips for boosting the processing power of your creative brain so you can Write more in less time, feel less distracted, and generally get more out of your day.

Tip 1: Write First

What’s the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning? Or even the first thing you do when you sit down at your desk?

If you’re anything like I used to be, the answer is probably something like, “Look at my Phone,” or “Check my email” or “Check Social Media.”

If you, by chance, said “Write,” then congrats, you can skip to Tip 2.

If you said anything else BUT write, then stay with me for a moment, I’ve got a truth bomb to drop.

Whatever you do first in the morning is the thing that will get the best processing power of your brain computer. It’s the program that’s going to run the fastest.

So, now let me rephrase the question: “What task is most important to you every day?”

If you said, “checking email” or “checking social media,” then go right ahead and keep on doing that first.

But if you said “writing” or “pursuing my passion” or anything else relating to your creativity, then it’s time to re-prioritize your morning.

Because those other programs–email and social media and anything not related to writing–those are giant attention-stealing programs. And not just when you’re using them. They have a tendency to run in the background all day, sapping up your mental energy, processing power, and creativity one gigahertz at a time.

When was the last time you felt more motivated to write after checking email or social media?

Exactly.

When you write first, you’re not only telling the universe that this is where your priorities lie and this is what’s most important to you, you’re also allowing your brain to put the most attention and processing power toward that task. The result? You’ll write better words. You’ll write_more_ words. And you’ll feel rejuvenated after. Not drained.

This simple shift in my morning routine changed everything for me. Instead of forcing myself to write every day and procrastinating endlessly with meaningless tasks that didn’t serve me, I wrote easily, I wrote consistently, and I wrote a lot. Since applying this tip, I now write the equivalent of 4 books per year, every single year (writing only 2-3 hours a day). Just by putting my writing first.

Tip 2: Hide Your Phone

It’s no big surprise that phones have severely damaged our productivity. How can they not? They’re constantly dinging, lighting up, vibrating, playing the latest Billboard top 20 hit, or whatever else phones do these days. And don’t get me started on those little red number badges on the corner of the apps (20 unread messages?! 10 overdue tasks!? 765 apps to update?!) GahI It makes me break out into sweat just thinking about it!

And yet, we still cling onto those phones like we’re drowning and they’re the liferafts. But when it comes to creativity, they’re more like weights strapped to our ankles than life rafts. In other words, they’re sinking it.

But here’s the good news: You don’t need your phone to write. (I know, mind blown, right?) But seriously, what does your phone do for you when you’re writing? Probably not much. So get rid of it. I don’t mean, like, throw it in a lake or something, I’m not that dramatic. Just hide it. Get it out of sight. Out of sight, out of mind!

Even having it there on silent mode is a temptation. “I’ll just check this one little thing and then I’ll write.” But we all know “one little thing” on the phone is never one little thing. It usually turns into 10 little things which turn into 20 seemingly big things and before you know it, your writing time is up and you have 7 words on the page.

Whenever I write, my phone is always hidden in an entirely different room. Away from temptation’s reach.

If you’re the kind of person who likes to write with music or white noise, then try putting your phone in Airplane mode while you write, or listen to your preferred soundtrack on your computer instead. Or if possible, try to track down an old phone or Mp3 player (without all of your normal apps on it) and use that for your writing sessions. This is actually what I do. I have an old, retired phone that sits on my desk. It has my favorite white noise app stored on it and NOTHING else. In fact, I call it my Productivity phone.

Tip 3: Clear Your Workspace

If you’ve been working on a project for a while (or you do other work in your writing space), I’m guessing your desk might be a little cluttered right now. Post-it notes, index cards, outlines, protein bar wrappers, bills to be paid, books to read, notes about that work presentation you still have to review. Whatever the case may be, I’m a firm believer that a clear workspace equals a clear mind. And a clear mind is a productive mind.

Your mind is going to mirror the space around it. And your writing is going to reflect that. So, if you’re pushing aside to-go containers and stacking up dirty coffee mugs just to get to your computer every day, your mind is not going to give you the kind of output you’re capable of.

On the other hand, if you sit down each morning to a clean, tidy, refreshing workspace, your mind is going to feel clean, tidy, and refreshed. And it’s going to give you better words, and allow you to work for longer stretches of time without fatiguing.

Try clearing and cleaning your workspace every night before you go to bed (or at the end of each work session). This doesn’t have to be a full-on deep clean with scrub brushes and spray bottles. Just clear away junk, move all the books and papers, and dirty cups and anything that doesn’t relate to your current writing project! Your “Tomorrow Self” (the one who sits down to write with that fresh, new powered-up brain computer) will thank you for the distraction-free creativity oasis.

So, those are my 3 tips for boosting the processing power of your creative brain. These tips are not rocket science. And they’re not that hard to do. They just take a little dedication and the willingness to change old habits that aren’t serving you. When you start doing these things daily, after a month, if you’re anything like me, you’ll look back at your “old ways” and think, “How did I get any writing done at all?”

And that is an amazing feeling.

Get More Productivity Hacks for Writers

These tips are taken straight from my online course, Productivity Hacks for Writers by Jessica Brody, available to stream on-demand in the Writing Mastery Academy (where you can get unlimited access to all of my writing courses, live webinars, the Writing Mastery community, and more). Use coupon code IAWRITER at checkout to get 50% off your first month (regular price $15/month). No contract. Cancel anytime.