The Productivity Trap That’s Keeping You Stuck

‘Simply In Letters’

Most people think productivity is about doing more. I believed it too.

I used to wear busyness like a badge, juggling a dozen projects, racing from one Zoom to the next, stacking my to-do list sky-high. 

Yet every evening, I’d crash onto the couch feeling both exhausted and unaccomplished.

Here’s a startling fact: the average knowledge worker spends 60% of their day on low-value “busy work” that moves the needle barely an inch. 

We fool ourselves into thinking that if we just add “one more task,” we’ll somehow break through the barrier to real progress. 

But all it does is bury us deeper in noise.

Imagine sprinting on a treadmill that keeps speeding up. You’re working harder and harder, but you’re not going anywhere new. 

That’s the Productivity Trap: overcommitment, endless checklists, shallow wins that vanish by tomorrow.

What if productivity wasn’t about piling on more tasks? 

What if the real breakthrough came from cutting away everything that doesn’t matter, and using intelligent systems (hello, AI!) to automate the grunt work?

Today, you’ll discover:

• Why “doing more” is a lie that keeps you stuck. 

• A fresh mindset shift - from to-do lists to laser clarity.

• The Clarity + Automation Framework, your secret weapon against overwhelm.

• Five concrete steps (the Subtraction Sequence) to audit, eliminate, and automate your way to focus.

Get ready to unlearn the hustle-hard myth, subtract the noise, and reclaim hours every week, so you can spend your time creating impact, not spinning wheels.

Why “Doing More” Keeps You Stuck

We’ve all fallen for it: productivity equals busyness. More tasks checked off means more progress, right? 

Wrong.

We stack tasks like building blocks. Blog posts, social videos, and sales calls, believing each new block brings us closer to the summit. 

But what happens when your wall keeps growing and you never actually climb it? 

You burn out.

Checking boxes feels good in the moment. A dopamine hit each time you scribble a line through “create Instagram Story.” But how many of those boxes actually drive revenue, growth, or genuine influence? 

Most don’t.

Meet Sarah, a 24-year-old content creator. She committed to 30 daily content ideas, convinced that output was king. 

By week two, she was posting nonstop, reels, carousels, tweets, and still saw zero lift in engagement. 

She burned out, lost momentum, and questioned her entire path.

Contrasting with Sarah’s story, Alex, a solopreneur, hit his own wall. He ditched his endless checklist and embraced a new formula, clarity + automation. 

Alex doubled his content reach by focusing on his top 20% high-impact tasks and offloading the rest to AI tools in half the time. No extra hours. Just smarter work.

The “Aha!” Moment Productivity isn’t additive. It’s subtractive. 

You don’t level up by piling on. You level up by cutting away the excess until only the essential remains.

Enter the Clarity + Automation Framework: 

Clarity + Automation is more than a catchy name. It’s your roadmap out of the Productivity Trap:

1. Gain crystal-clear focus on what truly moves the needle.

2. Automate or eliminate the rest.

When you pair radical clarity with targeted automation, you remove the noise, reclaim your time, and get back to the work that actually matters. 

Whether that’s landing dream clients, crafting breakthrough ideas, or simply enjoying a weekend without your phone glued to your hand.

The Subtraction Sequence - 5 Steps to Unclutter Your Work

You waste hours each week on tasks AI could handle. Here’s how to subtract the noise.

Step 1: Audit & Eliminate - Identify your top 20% noisy tasks that deliver 0–5% of your results. 

Spend one hour listing every recurring task you do in a week. Highlight the ones that feel most…meh.

Endless to-do bundles that never move the needle.

Dropping these frees up entire afternoons you thought you’d never get back.

Step 2: Categorize for Clarity

Delete, Defer, Automate, Focus.

• Delete: Tasks that don’t need doing (unsubscribe, unattach).

• Defer: Tasks worth doing later (batch ’em weekly).

• Automate: Tasks AI or simple tools can run (scheduling, drafting emails).

• Focus: Tasks only you can do (strategy, creative work).

Pinpointing your true priorities, everything else vanishes.

Step 3: Map Your Workflow for Automation

Sketch your end-to-end process. Identify repeatable steps.

Example: Content Repurposing Pipeline

1. Draft newsletter →

2. AI summarizes into bullet points →

3. Turn bullets into tweets, LinkedIn posts, and IG carousels automatically.

Copy-and-paste fatigue, platform overwhelm.

One idea = five pieces of content, ready to publish.

Step 4: Deploy AI Assistants

Integrate 2–3 AI tools - chatbots for customer queries, template generators for outreach, and meeting schedulers.

AI isn’t a silver bullet, but it is your best subcontractor for low-value labor.

Use a chatbot to answer FAQs so you never type the same reply twice.

Repetitive admin tasks that eat your brain cells.

Free brain power to ideate, strategize, and create.

Step 5: Launch Weekly Subtraction Sprints

Block one hour every Friday for audit + removal of creeping noise.

Think of it as trimming a bonsai - small, regular cuts for a stronger, cleaner shape.

Accumulated clutter that sneaks back.

A perpetually optimized workflow that evolves with your goals.

You now have a simple, repeatable playbook to break free from the Productivity Trap. Subtract ruthlessly. Automate strategically. Focus relentlessly.

What’s next? Start your first Subtraction Sprint this Friday. Notice how much lighter your week feels. 

Then celebrate the extra hours you’ve reclaimed because true productivity is doing less, better.

I’m also excited to share that I’m starting the build on a special project (completely free) that will guide you step-by-step through your first Subtraction Sprint and beyond. It’ll be ready to download in the coming weeks, so keep an eye on your inbox.

Thank you for reading and for being part of this journey. 

If you’d like a sneak peek at future topics or want to weigh in before they go live here, join me on X @thenoahdriscoll. Your feedback shapes every issue.

Stay focused, keep subtracting, and here’s to doing less. Better.

- Noah

P.S. - I appreciate you taking the time to read the whole letter. My goal is to become more efficient at writing these so I can provide the most information for you or someone you share it with. My efforts don’t stop here, as I mentioned my X account above (@thenoahdriscoll), I have a Substack account as well that I will build up to start writing shorter, more frequent letters that you guys are welcome to subscribe to as well. You can find me @simplynoahdriscoll.