Sometimes when something is sitting in front of our faces, we don’t necessarily see the wisdom in it. We take it for granted, and that results in the inability to see the good. Yet sometimes, the wise thing to do is the exact opposite of what we would think instinctively. Check out the two tips below to see if they can help you – whether they’re obvious or not.

Sleep, Sleep, Sleep

This is definitely obvious: a sleepy brain gets much less done in a day. Research says that not getting enough sleep at night can even lead to eating disorders and the inability to make good decisions. When you do get enough sleep at night, research also says that it’s easier to learn new things, easier to focus, and find your creative streak. Of course, all of these things give you a major productivity boost.

Don’t Have an Assistant

Your first instinct may be to say “what are you talking about?” but hear us out. Google founders Larry Page and Sergei Brin started their company with an assistant. They both agreed she was helpful in many ways, but they complained about two big things: they were scheduled into too many meetings, and people requested more time off when they had to go through the assistant. When they moved her into a different position in the company and stopped having an assistant altogether, they found that employees worked longer and didn’t request nearly half of the time off as they did before. Not to mention, they were able to focus more on their task of making Google big and less on the task of trying to avoid meetings as much as they could.