I love productivity. So much so that I’ll work hours at improving my productivity and never get a lick of work done! I’m sure I’m not the only one either. So in taking steps towards getting more done each day and constantly moving towards my goals here are some changes I’ve made in my life to help me get more out of the day.
- Deleted all games off my computer. While I don’t play games much I do like to jump in now and then and blow off some steam. I’m done with that for now. Time is money.
- Limit IM/Chat. Again, I’m not big on the chat. It’s great for making connections and friends so I hop on now and then to stay “visible”, but I don’t linger.
- Email is my bitch, not the other way around. I check my emails at regular times during the day and don’t let it distract me from getting my work done.
- The phone is from the devil. I know a lot of people think the phone is the best way to get things done and sometimes that’s true. But largely phone calls are counter productive. Verbal communication is open to interpration, memory and just generally easy to get wires crossed. Email is much better and creates a trail of what’s been said and decided. It also allows both parties to fire off a batch of emails and then get back to work instead of spending who knows how long trying to hash something out on the phone.
- Limiting time on time wasting web sites. It’s easy to get lost in Facebook or Twitter or any number of social / media sharing sites. I check most of these only once or twice a week and just do Twitter a few times a day. Social networking is a big part of getting your name out there so it has to be part of your process but don’t let it get in the way of getting things done.
- No more TV unless I’m on the Treadmill. Killing two birds with one stone I save myself several hours per week! The only shows I watch off the Treadmill is Heroes and Dexter because I have friends & family come over for those.
- I love forums. They are one of the best places to meet people, network and learn valuable information. But they can also be a time sink if you don’t manage them properly. Like email and chat schedule times to do your forum rounds.
That’s just some quick things I’ve done to take back my day. I’ve always been pretty good about most of those things but now that I’m trying to do even more it’s time to kick it up a notch. I find working on projects is as fun, if not more, than most of the things that distract me anyway. Granted, I deliberately take breaks for short bursts of time to avoid burn out. You’ve got to. I just go off and read or just leave the house for a bit, nice dinner with Aeryn or anything that give my mind a break.
Anyone got any other good tips for getting more done? I’m sure I’ve left off several.
[tags]Productivity, Getting Things Done[/tags]
Something I started doing is rewarding myself for completing certain milestones on my todo list. So when I accomplish tasks 1-4, I get to make a forum run. Something I try to do is get out at least twice a month on an exploration day with my camera. I love taking pictures and finding new places to see so what I will do is try to get as much done during the week that I get to take friday afternoon’s off and give myself that treat. I’m big on the reward system.
I’ve never tried a reward system but I like the idea. I may have add that to the mix, make a game of things!
I actually started doing the reward system when I wanted to lose weight. It was often tied into buying something, but hey, whatever works. Sometimes knowing you SHOULD do things isn’t always enough reason to get yourself to do it. I wish it was!
Amen to that! I did use a little reward action when I was losing weight too (mainly new clothes, but that’s kind of a given, lol). Motivation is another issue entirely though it’s very close to being productive for obvious reasons.
Hey Chris,
As the single most productive and organized person I have ever met, what are your thoughts on Getting Things Done (GTD) by David Allen? I’m finishing up the book and am starting to implement and wondered if you (or anyone else) has any thoughts on it? It’s all about lists, so I thought you might dig it.
I read it a few years ago and loved most of it. I don’t follow everything he suggests, but the basic concept of having a trusted system to capture everything and get it out of your head is perfect. My productivity style is largely based on stuff I learned from that book. Doing a end of day brain dump, capturing everything, doing things that take less than 2 minutes and the weekly review are all very important. My system is far from perfect and it’s been a while since I read GTD. I need to re-read it.
Also, if you do a google search for GTD as the cool kids call it you’ll find a lot of good resources and articles on it. It’s very, very popular. There are all kinds of programs out there that support it too.