The Productivity Box
Why swearing by it will swear you off distractions
Let’s cut the crap and talk about something that’ll actually up your productivity. It’s not a miracle pill or a magic spell (I wish). It’s a box. Yeah, you heard that right—a fucking box.
Before you roll your eyes and scroll away, give me a minute to break down why this isn’t just any box. This is "The Productivity Box," and it automates a number of simple focus techniques, combining them to massively boost your ability to knuckle down and get things done.
Let’s review those techniques, roll them together and automate them with NFC tags (I include the exact Shortcuts automation I use), and get you moving on making your own.
The Magic of Confinement
We’re all slaves to the ping of our phones. A text, an email, or God forbid, a notification that your ex liked a photo of yours from 2014. Enter The Productivity Box. This little hero sits on your desk, hiding your phone from sight, letting you focus on shit that actually matters.
Out of sight is truly out of mind (read more here). A study from the University of Texas at Austin found that the mere presence of your smartphone reduces cognitive capacity and impairs cognitive functioning, even if it’s turned off and face down. So, shoving that little dopamine machine into the box isn’t just a neat trick; it’s a scientifically-verified brain booster.
I wrote a whole article on hiding your phone from yourself to underline how much this stupidly simple technique truly works.
Automating the Pomodoro Technique
If you’ve never heard of the Pomodoro Technique, you probaby don’t subscribe to my newsletter because I wrote an article on it 2 weeks ago. Basically it’s the practice of breaking your work into 25-minute chunks of focus time followed by a 5-minute break. Simple yet shockingly effective and backed up by science.
But remembering to set those timers can be a pain. The Productivity Box automates this with a built-in timer for 30 and 45 minutes—the first ding tells you to take a breather, and the second to get back to the grind. Plus, it kicks your phone into "Do Not Disturb" mode, so goodbye, annoying notifications.
I also add in a little bonus on mine: I have it pull up and automatically start playing my focus playlist.
How does this all automate? With the use of NFC tags.
NFC: Not Fucking Complicated
Inside this magical box I placed an NFC (Near Field Communication) sticker, which is tech speak for a little tag that your phone can talk to without needing to launch an app. You put your phone in, and the NFC tag triggers a custom automation. In this instance, the start of your focus session—no buttons required. I cannot underline how helpful this is enough. By using an NFC tag and not having to go into your phone to set things up saves you from any accidental distractions (like 23 minutes of Instagram scrolling).
If you’ve ever used “tap to pay” it’s basically the same idea.
Beware - after I bought a roll of 50 NFC tags I started using them all over the apartment to automate a stupid amount of things.
Here’s the exact “Shortcuts” sequence I use:
DIY Your Way to Productivity
Here’s the kicker: you can make this badass box yourself for next to nothing. Grab any box you like (I use a UV sanitizing box because it adds an extra "you can’t take your phone out now" factor due to the UV light which will DESTROY your eyes). Slap an NFC sticker inside, set up your phone to respond to it with timers, “do not disturb”, and your favorite focus playlist, and voila—you’re ready to kick procrastination’s ass.
This Shit Works
Personally, when I started using The Productivity Box, not only did my output increase (dramatically) but my energy stayed more consistent throughout the day—no more 3 p.m. slumps.
Along those lines, I (mostly) stopped mindlessly snacking because I wasn’t burning out and looking to munch as an excuse to take a break. If you have trouble maintaining your blood sugar, there’s even more reason to start using this routine: studies show getting up and moving around a little every half hour helps maintain even blood sugar and lets your body’s insulin work more effectively.
So, if you’re tired of productivity hacks that don’t work and want to give this a try, hit me up with your results. I’d love to hear how The Productivity Box is helping you avoid the pitfalls of distraction and maybe even help you shed a few pounds 👀.
Want to build your own?
Check out these links to UV sanitation boxes and NFC stickers on Amazon and start your journey to becoming a focus wizard.
