More thoughts on deciding what you want to accomplish before going home from work. Think about the activity of defining what you want or need to accomplish that day as creating a finish line for the day. Many people continue to “work” after the workday is over — to check email, answer calls, stress about problems at the office — when really what they should be doing resting, relaxing, and giving their full attention to their family and loved ones. By doing a Daily Review each day and deciding exactly what you intend to accomplish that day, you are creating a “finishing line” at…
GTD
-
Most Topular Stories
-
The Daily Review – Crossing the Finish Line
GTD for CIOs29 Apr 2012 | 8:00 pm -
The Next Step to Freedom
Think Simple Now13 May 2012 | 7:00 pmPhoto by JUCO By Chris Guillebeau Before I made the call, I worried. I had the chance for a new client, a big sale, and a lot of money. It was during a time in my life when I could have used it. No, to be precise—I needed it, or at least I thought I did. But something didn’t feel right. I couldn’t follow-through, so I finally looked the opportunity in the eye and said, “Thanks but no thanks.” After I made the call, I stopped worrying. I walked outside and noticed that something was different about the sky. All of a sudden, it was blue! I felt as if I had never noticed before. Then I… -
You are Invited: 3 Keys to Consistent Follow-Up=>Getting MORE out of LESS
Productive & Organized11 May 2012 | 7:30 amOver the last year, I have talked a lot about taking action and having good follow-up systems in your business. The freedom and the dollars are in the follow-up! The crazy thing is, most businesses have no or limited follow-up systems in their business. I talk to business owners every day that are leaving money on the table and working way more hours than they would like to. It's my mission to help you turn that around. To that end, I've been more actively searching out opportunities for you to learn and take action to get the right systems into your… -
How My New Blog Earned A Page Rank of 3 In One Month
Productivity Bits4 May 2012 | 7:49 pmI know Google Page Rank is no longer a true barometer of how your blog is “performing” in the blogosphere. Google have said themselves that we should not use Page Rank to measure our blog’s performance.Very true.There is nothing else I can use to check metrics aside from hits and pageviews.Nonetheless, I look at Page Rank as a way to check how my SEO efforts are affecting my blog technically.In just one short month, I was able raise my blog’s Page Rank from PR0 to PR3 (Check | Verify). Usually, it would take a couple of months to reach that level but I did it in one… -
Start Your Work Day With the Right Things!
Wrike Product Blog17 Apr 2012 | 2:00 amMany of us start our workday with a quick inbox check. However, this "quick check" may often turn into hours of following up, sifting through tons of e-mails and switching over from one task to another. With Wrike’s To-Do e-mails, you can do it much better and faster, especially now that you can schedule them! Whether you are an early bird who starts the workday at 8 a.m. or a night owl getting to the desk by 8 p.m., now you can set your daily to-do e-mails to be sent right when you start working. This way, your daily agenda will be the first e-mail you read while…
-
Lifehacker
-
Grant Your Desktop Superpowers with These Superhero (and Villain) Wallpapers [Wallpaper Wednesday]
16 May 2012 | 1:00 pmMore » -
Google Knowledge Graph Brings Smarter Semantic Results to Your Google Searches [Video]
16 May 2012 | 12:40 pmGoogle's next-generation search technology, Knowledge Graph, is starting to roll out today, and it's going to make searching Google a lot richer. Knowledge Graph connects your search query to Google's knowledgebase of over 500 million people, things, and places to show you relevant info in a sidebar along your search results. More » -
TaskBadges Adds the Number of Uncompleted Tasks to the Icon of Any Text-Based To-Do List for Easy Reference [Mac Downloads]
16 May 2012 | 12:30 pmAdditionally, all your monitored text files are available in the menubar so you can quickly open them or just see what you've got left to finish. If you manage your tasks in a text file, TaskBadges is an excellent (and free) add-on. More » -
Why Do I Have to Keep Resetting My Router, and How Can I Fix It? [Ask Lifehacker]
16 May 2012 | 12:00 pm -
The Custom-Built Workspace for Two [Featured Workspace]
16 May 2012 | 11:30 amMore »
-
David Allen Company Podcast
-
Podcast: David Allen & Mike Williams - on Lifehack.org
9 May 2012 | 7:20 pmMike Vardy of Lifehack.org interviews David Allen and DAC CEO Mike Williams. They talk about David's role at the company these days, Mike's experience of bringing GTD into GE Healthcare, and a glimpse of what's coming from DAC to bring GTD to the global community. -
Podcast: David Allen - Interview with Evan Taubenfeld
13 Feb 2012 | 5:28 pmDavid Allen interviews Evan Taubenfeld, a young up-and-coming rock musician, writer, and producer. It's a fascinating look at how Evan uses GTD in his creative process. -
Podcast: David Allen & Mike Williams - Challenging Times
4 Nov 2011 | 4:59 pmDavid Allen and Mike Williams discuss navigating through challenging times with GTD. They share keys for your personal and organizational systems for dealing with rapid change, knowing your purpose, defining successful outcomes, clarifying next actions, and setting up the right tools. -
Podcast: David Allen - Dynamic Steering in an Organization
22 Sep 2011 | 4:40 pmWhat would your organizational structure be like if everyone is fully accountable for the roles they hold, both implicitly and explicitly? Can you imagine meetings where the things that you have your attention on are consistently and efficiently processed to concrete Projects & Next Actions? Join David Allen and Kelly Forrister as they speak with the experts from HolacracyOne. They'll talk about the "Holacracy" operating system, how it's been integrated into the David Allen Company, and how it complements GTD. -
Podcast: David Allen - Interviewed by KQED Public Radio
2 Aug 2011 | 1:25 pmA terrific interview with David Allen on a wide-range of GTD and productivity best practices. David shares about challenges people face today, getting off your own back, emergency scanning, why social media is addictive and much more. Recorded by KQED public radio, July 2011.
-
David Allen Company Updates
-
GTD Connect: Caine's Arcade
16 May 2012 | 12:02 amfor those of you who may have missed this, treat yourself to this sweet, inspiring story: http://cainesarcade.com/ -
GTD Connect: Screen Background Of New Workflow Map?
15 May 2012 | 11:01 amI've got the new and improved workflow map that is in color and a lot more detailed. I was thinking of putting the top part up to the limiting criteria on my desktop as a screen background for a while. Before I go scan the poster and clip out the part I want on my screen it occurred to me that s... -
GTD Connect: ITunes Issue With GTD Connect Members-Only Podcast Feed
15 May 2012 | 12:43 amHi GTDers, not sure if this is the right way to flag the David Allen Company about a small issue I see, but I am wondering if others are seeing this on their systems too. For the last 3 or 4 days my iTunes does not seem to be able to download two of the latest podcasts from the GTD Connect Mem... -
GTD Times: Why ABC Priority Codes Don't Work
14 May 2012 | 12:32 pmHi Folks, Before you spend another minute creating yet another list with ABC, 123, or high-medium-low codes as a way to define your priorities, read my essay this month. You may discover there's a more natural path for getting you what you need to get the right things done. All the best, DAVID'S FOOD FOR THOUGHT WHY ABC PRIORITY CODES DON'T WORK "How do I set priorities?" Because I hear that so frequently, I assume most people think they could and should be doing it better. The "ABC" priority codes don't work. Listing your top 10 things you think have to get done, in order, doesn't work. -
GTD Times: David Allen interviewed by "Small Business Big Marketing"
13 May 2012 | 8:58 am"Small Business Big Marketing" recorded this informative and entertaining podcast with David Allen. It has some great examples of how GTD helps us all to get more of the productive experience more often. Achieving an "on" state of mind Getting back on the GTD wagon Summary of the five phases of mastering workflow Listen now or download from iTunes.
-
In Context MultiMedia
-
Weekly Digest – 8 May 02012
15 May 2012 | 10:34 pmThe purpose of this newsletter is to foster the exchange of information through communication. Please consider replying to this email for a private dialogue, or via http://plus.google.com for a public exchange. Thank you! Thought for the Week I wrote a little rant at Phil’s … Continue reading → -
Occupation vs Vocation
9 May 2012 | 5:42 amFrom the book, the Accidental Creative: -
Work On Your Business, Not In It
4 May 2012 | 4:45 amAt Phil Gerbyshak.com : Work On Your Business, Not In It -
Weekly Digest – 24 April 02012
1 May 2012 | 10:34 pmClick this link for the 24 April 02012 issue of the Weekly Digest. -
Guest Post from Chuck Frey
30 Apr 2012 | 9:33 pmToday we feature a guest post from Chuck Frey, talking about his new book, Up Your Impact: 52 Innovative Strategies to Add Value to Your Work.
-
GTD Times
-
Why ABC Priority Codes Don’t Work
14 May 2012 | 12:32 pmHi Folks, Before you spend another minute creating yet another list with ABC, 123, or high-medium-low codes as a way to define your priorities, read my essay this month. You may discover there’s a more natural path for getting you what you need to get the right things done. All the best, DAVID’S FOOD FOR THOUGHT WHY ABC PRIORITY CODES DON’T WORK “How do I set priorities?” Because I hear that so frequently, I assume most people think they could and should be doing it better. The “ABC” priority codes don’t work. Listing your top 10 things you… -
David Allen interviewed by “Small Business Big Marketing”
13 May 2012 | 8:58 am“Small Business Big Marketing” recorded this informative and entertaining podcast with David Allen. It has some great examples of how GTD helps us all to get more of the productive experience more often. Achieving an “on” state of mind Getting back on the GTD wagon Summary of the five phases of mastering workflow Listen now or download from iTunes. -
Get clear, get current, get creative
10 May 2012 | 3:15 pmGet clear, get current, get creative. Sound good to you? That’s what you get from a weekly review. David Allen calls it ”the critical success factor” in GTD. Lifehacker has two recent posts on this topic. The first is their link to our video of David talking about the value of the weekly review, and why it provides the leverage you need to be more productive. The second is a how-to that includes practical tips for getting into the groove of doing a weekly review. Your time is valuable. The time you put into a weekly review is a guaranteed investment in… -
Complete projects list = clear commitments
8 May 2012 | 6:44 pm“If you don’t have a clear sense of the totality of your obligations, you will always overcommit. And commitments occur on multiple levels, from ‘why I’m on the planet’ to ‘need butter.’ But the elevation most amorphous for most is the plane just above your physical activities—your projects. I have a radical definition of a project: Anything you’re committed to finish within a year that requires more than one action to complete it. Given that broad designation, most people have between 30 and 100. Where’s your list? How complete and current is… -
5 Phases of GTD Workflow
5 May 2012 | 6:44 pmThere are five phases of your workflow: Collect, Process, Organize, Review & Do. You need to know the best practices and tools for each phase. David Allen Company offers the “Keys to Getting Things Done” public webinar. Whether you are setting up your GTD system for the first time, or want to get better at working what you already have, this webinar is the way to go. It’s a lively 90-minute webinar for $49, available on the dates listed below. “Thanks again for your excellent GTD seminar. I have just been reviewing the notes – very refreshing and…
-
RestartGTD
-
How to scan business cards, step-by-step with YouYube Video
14 May 2012 | 3:37 pmSource: Purchased from ShutterStock.com Hey! FYI, I just added a static page on How Tos, where the first how to is on scanning business cards. This page includes a link to a home made restartgtd.com YouTube video of the business cards moving through the ScanSnap scanner. In my Getting (re)started with GTD classes, when the students see how fast the duplex scanning operates, they immediately flip the mental bit related to being able to catch up with paper. If paper (or business cards have you down) you may want to check out the video. Resistance is futile, you need to buy a Fujitsu… -
Fantasy GTD Offices
29 Apr 2012 | 11:34 amSource: Office Design Gallery Introduction: A little more snooping around the internet has produced the polar opposite of “No money down GTD.” These are real offices that are tricked out in spare no expense creativity. GTD Friendly? The idea I like the best is the IL CONTE OFFICE (scroll to the bottom of Office Design Gallery’s web page). Why? Because the environment is mostly white, and does not have pictures of people, or clutter, directly in front of the work stations. I think the fake tree branches provide a sense of separation. They are not vegetable… -
Traveling GTD Desk Zoo
28 Apr 2012 | 9:25 pmIntroduction: I stumbled into a great apartmenttherapy.com article from 2008 that was looking back at desks designed in 1996. All these designs and designers are new to me. They form a kind of traveling desk zoo for the enjoyment of restartgtd.com folk. Source: apartmenttherapy.com This sports fans, is a 35 meter desk! A single desk! Now THAT is space to spread out into! Called the “carte blanche love table” by designer Edouard François Source: en.bulo.com Source: en.bulo.com Fun Facts: The cacti are called “vegetable barbed wire” and were… -
No Money Down GETTING THINGS DONE!
26 Apr 2012 | 10:57 amIntroduction! Taught my “Getting (re)started with GTD” class last weekend. One student needed to apply GTD without cash out of pocket. So, I’ve been thinking about how to get started with GTD without spending anything. So, below please find the GTD office available for no money down (but you have to drive to pick everything up, so alas, there are time and gas costs included) available in Portland on 2012/04/25. *Note* the links to Craigslist don’t live long, but they worked when I wrote this post. More important items have the picture that was up with… -
Give clutter air!
24 Apr 2012 | 4:52 pmJust saw a creative inspiring post on apartment therapy. The idea is to use the Asker counter organizer from Ikea. Source: Apartmenttherapy.com Ikea Spotting has a similar desk arrangement with tons of Ikea storage tools that get the clutter up above the desk so the workers won’t see the clutter on the desk. This does not hold the laptop up with a dish drainer (Wow!), but you can imagine yourself sitting at this desk and getting things done. Source: Ikeaspotting.tumblr.com As I hypothesized in the post on the “good enough” home desk, I think that the surface of…
-
GTD for CIOs
-
The Daily Review – Crossing the Finish Line
29 Apr 2012 | 8:00 pmMore thoughts on deciding what you want to accomplish before going home from work. Think about the activity of defining what you want or need to accomplish that day as creating a finish line for the day. Many people continue to “work” after the workday is over — to check email, answer calls, stress about problems at the office — when really what they should be doing resting, relaxing, and giving their full attention to their family and loved ones. By doing a Daily Review each day and deciding exactly what you intend to accomplish that day, you are creating a “finishing line” at… -
The Daily Review – How to Feel Great When You Leave Work
28 Apr 2012 | 2:56 pmIf you follow GTD and have your trusted system up to date it is easy to leave work every day and feel like you accomplished exactly what you needed to do for that day. This allows you to drive home and decompress by tuning out and watching TV, reading a book, or whatever activity you like to do to relax and refresh. The ability to forget all the things you didn’t do that are still on your plate is essential to relieving stress. Successful task management is really agreement management. At the end of the day, how good you feel about what you did (and what you didn’t do) is… -
Stop Making To-Do Lists
31 Mar 2012 | 7:21 pmPlease stop making to-do lists. You are simply setting yourself up for failure and frustration. Instead, create a Next Action list that has the very next action you can do to move one step closer to completing the task. What’s the difference? A lot. Typical to-do lists have a mixture of atomic next actions and much larger projects and possibly someday/maybe items that you are not really committed to doing. The result of this is you are repelled by looking at your to-do list because you subconsciously know you have items on your list that you really don’t or won’t… -
As Simple as Possible but No Simpler
3 Mar 2012 | 4:35 pmDavid Allen has a saying that your trusted system should be “as simple as possible but no simpler” and while that may seem strange there is real gold in that statement. When I first started GTD I tried elaborate systems of using folders in email and categories in Outlook Later on when I migrated to Evernote, I implemented an elaborate system of tags. These systems tried to capture every possible situation. I even applied this approach to my calendar and physical folder system. What I came to understand is that the drag or friction required to process my stuff led to… -
A Pilot’s Take on “Mind Like Water”
20 Feb 2012 | 10:00 pmThis is the first guest post on GTD for CIO’s from my friend, co-worker and fellow GTD enthusiast David Freedman. In 2008, I earned my private pilots license and bought a small airplane which I fly primarily for leisure. I want to reflect upon 2 general aspects of my training which were fundamentally aimed at maintaining “Mind Like Water” while exercising this exciting new privilege and ensuring that I live to tell about it. They are: Do routine things exactly the same way every time. Get stuff out the way when there is no pressure to make things easier on you when there…
-
Steve Pavlina's Personal Development Blog
-
You Earn Passive Income by Being More Generous
14 May 2012 | 7:28 pmNow that we’ve covered setting your passive income goal and a bit about the mindset of passive income — I hope you enjoyed the humor in the last post — let’s explore the details of how to actually create passive income streams. We’ll start out fairly high-level here and then drill down into the specifics in future posts. Here are the 3 basic parts of an income generating method: Value creation Value delivery Payment Notice that these same 3 aspects can be applied to any basic income generation method. When you work at a regular job, for instance, you’re… -
Jobs vs. Passive Income
11 May 2012 | 12:49 pmMany people have the limiting belief that passive income is weird, unusual, complicated, or confusing. As I’ve mentioned previously, passive income isn’t particularly difficult in practice. In many ways, earning a living through streams of passive income is easier than earning a living through a job or as an independent contractor, especially in the long run. The difficult part has to do with getting comfortable with a passive income mindset. To tackle this mindset issue, let’s turn this around and look at it from the other side. Suppose you were already very comfortable… -
Commit to Your Passive Income Goal
7 May 2012 | 8:30 pmNow that you’ve set a specific passive income goal (as per the Set Your Passive Income Goal post), it’s time to strengthen your connection to this goal. The idea here is to begin believing in your goal so that it becomes more real and solid, not just some airy fairy fantasy. Put Your Goal in Your Face Try this for starters. Grab a piece of paper, write your goal on the paper in a positive, personal, present tense format, and then post this piece of paper somewhere that you’ll see it every day, such as on your living room wall or your bathroom mirror. You can even post it… -
Set Your Passive Income Goal
30 Apr 2012 | 11:19 amAs we transition into the how-to aspect of passive income creation, let’s begin by having you set a goal for what you want to accomplish here. Why are you reading this series? Is it just for entertainment’s sake? Do you hope to learn something that you might apply later? Or do you actually want to create at least one new stream of passive income this year? Let me suggest a simple meta-goal for starters: By the time you’re done reading this post, set a clear goal for what you want to gain from this series. Do not close your browser window or move on to something else until… -
The End Game of Passive Income
27 Apr 2012 | 7:23 amLet’s talk about the reality of what it’s like to create streams of passive income and how it compares to working at a regular job. What I’ll share here may surprise you. With a typical job, you’re more or less directly trading your working hours for dollars. You may receive an hourly wage, a salary, and/or bonuses for the time you put in at work. Your ongoing pay depends on your continued presence at work. If you stop working, your paycheck stops as well. With passive income you’ll often get paid nothing at first. Initially you work to create and/or leverage a…
-
Think Simple Now
-
The Next Step to Freedom
13 May 2012 | 7:00 pmPhoto by JUCO By Chris Guillebeau Before I made the call, I worried. I had the chance for a new client, a big sale, and a lot of money. It was during a time in my life when I could have used it. No, to be precise—I needed it, or at least I thought I did. But something didn’t feel right. I couldn’t follow-through, so I finally looked the opportunity in the eye and said, “Thanks but no thanks.” After I made the call, I stopped worrying. I walked outside and noticed that something was different about the sky. All of a sudden, it was blue! I felt as if I had never noticed before. Then I… -
How to Find Fulfillment (with Sarah McLean)
6 May 2012 | 7:00 pmEditor’s Note: The following is a conversation between Cat and her meditation teacher Sarah McLean. This is truly an inspiring piece. As I was editing this interview, I felt an inner shift happening within me and with it came a sense of serenity and peace. Hope this inspires you as it did for me. Sarah is truly an incredible and powerful human being. I look forward to learning from her. Don’t miss the giveaway at the end of this interview. By Cat Li Stevenson “Meditation is an essential travel partner on your journey of personal transformation. Meditation connects you with your soul,… -
How to Lose Weight Fast
29 Apr 2012 | 7:00 pmPhoto by JUCO Editor’s Note: This article details my recent adventure into how to lose weight fast. Even if you are not interested in losing weight, check it out. There are some useful thoughts on the power of self image embedded within. By Tina Su “Losing weight is hard.” ~me “Anything worth having in life is hard.” ~my husband I admit it. I am not the most active person. I sit for more than 8 hours a day, and actually prefer to sit than stand, and drive rather than walk. To say that I am adverse to exercise is an understatement. In fact, the last time I visited a gym was over… -
4 Steps to Personal Transformation
22 Apr 2012 | 7:00 pmPhoto by Karrah Kobus Guest Contribution By Bobbi Emel “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” ~Anais Nin Sometimes the path of life comes to a crossroad. One direction ends in stagnation while the other leads to transformation. When I entered my junior year of college I had a sudden identity crisis. I had always been an athlete throughout high school and junior college, and a fairly good one at that. A very shy person normally, my abilities in sports gave me confidence and brought out leadership skills I didn’t know… -
How to Plan the Unexpected
15 Apr 2012 | 7:00 pmPhoto by Sandra Lara By Kayla Albert “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” ~John Lennon Plans are what I’m good at. I plan my meals, outfits, weekends. I plan what I’m going to say when confronted by a certain someone, what my life will look like six months from now and how I’m going to spend the tax return that hasn’t yet hit my account. I plan because I like control, because the only surprises I like are of the party variety and because I don’t want to have to face anything that I’m not entirely ready for. Yesterday I was forced to acknowledge…
-
Productive! Firm - new home to your favorite productivity Magazine and Show
-
Una charla con Jason Womack sobre productividad (in Spanish!)
11 May 2012 | 12:20 pmTweetLast time talked with Jason Womack, the star of our Productive! Magazine #12, we had such a blast that we decided to do another chat… in Spanish! Hope our Spanish-speaking friends will love it Ver y comentar on YouTube Una charla sobre productividad, Getting Things Done y enfoque con Jason Womack, un guru de productividad y Michael Sliwinski (Miguel?) un aficionado de productividad y el fundador de la herramienta de gestion de tareas y proyectos Nozbe. -
What’s inside of Productive! Magazine #12 with Jason Womack? Great articles!
10 May 2012 | 8:44 amTweetYesterday we launched the new Productive! Magazine #12 with Jason Womack and today let me go through the Table of Contents: 1. My interview with Jason Womack where we explore how your best can get better! “People who are the best continually go back for re–education, they go back for training, they go back for coaching…” “if you work on your weaknesses you might be an all around good tennis player but you won’t be dangerous, unless you work on your strengths’”. “I don’t need to change and be a positive thinker but I do need to practice positive focus”. -
Jason Womack in the Productive! Magazine #12 on PDF and iPad
9 May 2012 | 8:58 pmTweetFinally we’re launching the issue #12 of your favorite productivity magazine and it’s available now as a PDF download and as a download on our iPad app. This time we’re talking with Jason Womack about how our best can get better. And the whole theme of the magazine is “focus”. Download the latest PDF In case you missed it, a few weeks ago I posted my conversation with Jason Womack: Enjoy reading our new magazine and hope that your best can get even better now with Jason’s advice! Please share this with everyone you know through email, Facebook and… -
Interview with Jason Womack for the Productive! Magazine #12
19 Apr 2012 | 1:45 pmTweetI’m privileged to have been interviewing Jason Womack of the Jason Womack Company, ex-David Allen Company Senior Trainer for GTD, fantastic productivity person and a very optimistic one at that! And a great athlete. More detailed conversation with Jason can be found in the upcoming issue #12 of the Productive! Magazine. The magazine will be up next week! Watch and comment on YouTube Question: Did you read Jason’s book? How do you think your best can get better? Subscribe to Productive! Firm | Get the Show: [ with RSS | from iTunes ] -
Dual-monitor setup for twice the productivity – #43 Productive! Magazine Show
14 Apr 2012 | 4:47 pmTweetWhen I’m at my home office I work on two screens at a time – one big screen (Apple Thunderbolt Display) hooked up to my Macbook Air – helps me arrange apps and get stuff done quickly, shifting my eye focus from one window to another without actually switching the apps. Watch and comment on YouTube Question: Have you ever tried working on more monitors than just one? How did it work for you? Subscribe to Productive! Firm | Get the Show: [ with RSS | from iTunes ]
-
zenhabits
-
The 9-5 Guide to Staying Active
15 May 2012 | 10:00 amEditor’s note: This is a guest post from Matt Madeiro of Make Every Day Count. Let’s see if this rings any bells. When the clock hits 8, I sit. I plop back in my rolling chair, crack open the laptop on my desk, and spend the next nine hours with my butt glued firmly to seat. I stand on occasion to step into the bathroom, but I’m back to my post again shortly thereafter — hunched over, bleary-eyed, and nursing my coffee like it’s the greatest thing since toilet paper (I make no claims to the contrary). When that clock hits 5, I bolt. I’m out the door in the blink of an eye,… -
Three Little Habits to Find Focus
10 May 2012 | 12:42 pm‘Distraction is the only thing that consoles us for miseries and yet it is itself the greatest of our miseries.’ ~Blaise Pascal Post written by Leo Babauta. I’ll be the first to admit that I fall victim to the trap of the Internet — a wonderful empowering tool that can fill your day with distractions, a million little “productive” tasks that matter little, constant interruptions from messages and status updates. Who doesn’t fall victim to this? We are frittering our lives away. So how do we beat this? How do we make best use of the awesomeness of the… -
How to Live Well
7 May 2012 | 2:59 pm‘Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.’ ~Seneca Post written by Leo Babauta. I’m not a rich man, nor do I fly around the world and drink champagne with famous people in exotic locales, nor do I own a sports car or SUV or a yacht. And yet, I’m very happy. Much happier than seven years ago when I ate fried foods and sweets all time time and felt unhealthy and overweight, when I watched television and was out of shape, when I shopped a lot and was in debt, when I worked a job that paid fairly well and had no time for myself or my loved… -
What I’ve Learned About Learning
3 May 2012 | 10:07 am‘We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself.’ ~Lloyd Alexander Post written by Leo Babauta. I am a teacher and an avid learner, and I’m passionate about both. I’m a teacher because I help Eva homeschool our kids — OK, she does most of the work, but I do help, mostly with math but with everything else too. I also teach habits, writing/blogging, simplicity and other fun topics in online courses. I’m a lifelong learner and am always obsessively studying something, whether that’s… -
The 39th Lesson
30 Apr 2012 | 10:05 amPost written by Leo Babauta. Today (April 30) is my 39th Un-un-birthday, and as usual, the day is a good day to pause and reflect. Last year I wrote 38 Life Lessons I’ve Learned in 38 Years, and people seemed to find some use in it. This year, I thought I’d share an additional lesson I’ve learned: You’re not missing out. Our lives are often ruled by the Fear of Missing Out, or FOMO. (Never heard of FOMO? You’re missing out.) Some ways we let the fear of missing out rule us: We check email, Facebook, Twitter and other social networks often, in case we’re missing…
-
Unclutterer
-
Unitasker Wednesday: Pizza Plates
16 May 2012 | 9:20 amAll Unitasker Wednesday posts are jokes — we don’t want you to buy these items, we want you to laugh at their ridiculousness. Enjoy! A few years ago, my husband and I got rid of all of our dining ware except for our Wedgwood White bone china. Our friends and family graciously gave us the set when we got married, and in more than 10 years we have only lost one bowl due to breakage (and that happened outside, on a brick patio). We use the china for every meal, including meals we serve to our two-year-old son. The stuff is incredibly versatile (tea with the Queen or holding chips and dip… -
A year ago on Unclutterer
16 May 2012 | 7:45 am2011 Ask Unclutterer: Concert ticketsReader Ali wants to know how best to display her concert, play, festival, and movie tickets she has kept over the years. 2010 Ask Unclutterer: Regular car maintenanceDo you have any tips to keep track of upkeep for your vehicle, such as when to have tires rotated, etc.? 2009 Be organized with a Butler BagThe Butler Bag makes purse organizing a breeze. Like this site? Buy Erin Rooney Doland's Unclutter Your Life in One Week from Amazon.com today. -
Unstuck: An app that helps you achieve your goals
15 May 2012 | 12:34 pmI’m always on the lookout for smart phone and iPad applications that can improve my productivity. It’s probably not a good idea to keep app switching all the time (it certainly makes more sense to stick with what works), but if I did that I wouldn’t have discovered Unstuck, a free iPad app. Basically, if you’re stuck in a rut, Unstuck can help. It helps you to get rid of said rut, take action, and “live better every day.” I’ve decided to use it for a project that’s been hanging over my head for a bit, and it’s time to get it moving. But,… -
New additions to the Unclutterer family: Introducing Deb Lee
15 May 2012 | 10:42 amWe are happy to announce that two writers are joining our content team here at Unclutterer. Starting today, there will be three active voices bringing you advice, reviews, inspiration, and a little bit of humor regarding home, office, and life uncluttering and organizing. Twice a week, Deb Lee will bring her seasoned perspective to the site (she’s a phenomenal professional organizer who knocks my socks off with her depth and breadth of knowledge about how people can improve their lives with order). And, twice a month, Dave Caolo will share his wit and wisdom (he’s a technology… -
Five tasks to keep your Monday morning productive
14 May 2012 | 8:11 amMonday mornings can be tough, especially rainy ones like we’re having in the Mid-Atlantic this morning. Instead of wasting away your morning, try these simple five tasks to keep your productivity from stalling: Read and sort any stray emails that somehow went unread and processed last Friday when you were thinking about your upcoming weekend. Inspect your rain gear — umbrellas, boots, rain coats, compact poncho — and look for any damages, proper size and fit, unnecessary duplicate items, etc. Weed out anything that is past its prime, donate to charity any unnecessary…
-
Notes on Productivity
-
DominoPower: Getting Things Done with Lotus Notes
9 Aug 2012 | 10:20 pmOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity -
A question only a Lotus Notes for Mac user can answer...
14 Apr 2012 | 11:23 amYesterday, I posted this topic to this blog, seeking an answer to question. The title I chose did not actually ask a question. So, as you might expect, I didn't get the answer I hoped for. If you are a Lotus Notes for Mac user, I'd appreciate your quick thoughts on this.Originally posted on Notes On Productivity -
How to use File and Folder Aliases in Lotus Notes for Mac
13 Apr 2012 | 5:02 pmToday, I was coaching an executive in how to use Lotus Notes as a tool for getting things done. In the course of our work together, I went to show him how to capture and paste a shortcut to a folder or a file into any Notes document (e.g. a To Do, or document or even an email) so that later, when he opens the document, all he has to do is click on it and Notes will take him to the folder or open the file. Oops. I should have tried it first. When I drag the alias into a Notes document, Notes properly shows the attachment type: However, when I go to open the attachment, I get an… -
Technology Solves Problems, Frustrates - David Allen
23 Feb 2012 | 11:59 pmOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity -
What if computer problems were real?
28 Sep 2011 | 2:06 amOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity
-
Ian's Messy Desk
-
5 keys to making success a habit
14 May 2012 | 2:22 pmWant to make success a habit in your life? If you’ve got determination, it may be simpler than what you think. All you need is a change in your thinking pattern. Changing your thoughts can change your beliefs, your expectations, your attitude, and consequently, your behaviour. A change in behaviour will eventually lead you to a change in performance. And when you perform at your peak, you succeed. It doesn’t matter where you are in life, or what you do for a living, by changin the way you look at thingsand think about things, you can achieve success. The following keys can help you unlock… -
How to Connect With Your Audience
7 May 2012 | 4:11 pmCommunication works best in an active, not a passive environment. If you want to get your message across to your audience members, you have to connect with them. Interaction is a continuous way to get feedback on how well your content is understood. It also gives listeners a chance to contribute their experience to the learning process. How do you build interaction? Be prepared to be spontaneous. Have questions ready—begin with relatively easy, accessible ones. Ask questions that create disagreement and watch the audience come to life. Work to get everyone involved: even in large groups. I… -
The 10 Biggest Organizing Mistakes . . . and How to Avoid Them
30 Apr 2012 | 10:24 amBasement, before professional organization (Photo credit: Wikipedia) by: Sharon Lowenheim Many people want to get organized but don’t know how to take the first step. Unfortunately, the first step many of them take is the wrong step! Here are the ten biggest mistakes that would-be organizers make, and how to avoid them. 1. Waiting for a large block of available time Many disorganized people say that they will get organized when they have a completely free weekend, or when they can take a few days off from work. There are several problems with this approach. One is that it postpones getting… -
How to Start and Keep a Journal
27 Apr 2012 | 8:48 amI’ve mentioned before, I didn’t start keeping a journal until later in my life. I had regarded writing in a diary as being too self-absorbed. However, once I overcame the perception and got started, I quickly discovered the benefit and pleasure that came from keeping a journal. However, it’s not always easy to keep a journal. We tend to side-track the process with self-imposed limits. We feel we don’t write well enough; our lives aren’t exciting or glamorous enough to document; and so on. The thing is, there are no rules or limits on how to keep a journal. Here are some tips… -
8 Simple Ways to Encourage Others
23 Apr 2012 | 11:06 amEncouragement goes straight to the heart. In fact, the word itself comes from a combination of the prefix “en” which means “to put into” and the Latin word “cor” which means heart. Knowing what a big difference encouragement makes in your own life, what can you do to help others “to take heart” when things get tough or you want to acknowledge a job well-done? The following tips were handed out at a meeting I attended. The sheet had no attribution , but I believe they came from this post by Dave Cheong. Take an interest. I believe this is one of the most effective ways of…
-
Jason Womack
-
Check out Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More (Unabridged)
6 May 2012 | 10:07 amYour Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More (Unabridged) Check out this audiobook on iTunes: Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More (Unabridged) Jason W. Womack Audiobooks Released: 2012 iTunes for Mac and Windows -
FBR (Friday Book Review): Uprising by Scott Goodson
27 Apr 2012 | 9:46 amReminder: Sayings are called "sayings," cause they are usually true. So, you've heard this one...right? "When the student is ready, the teacher appears."The same week that I committed to creating, producing and publishing a "TV Show" (as a Facebook community) for interviews called: "The Better Series," I received an email from Scott Goodson. (FULL DISCLOSURE: We exchanged books...I love doing this with other authors.)I "just" finished reading it today, and I absolutely HAVE to share some of the things I learned from this great book. I'm scoring it a 5 as much for how well it's put together… -
It's about that time
26 Apr 2012 | 4:29 pmThe alarm clock is just about to ring... Has that happened to you recently? You know, you roll over after a good night sleep, glance at the clock and realize it is about that time. "That" time. We need you to keep on rolling... Right out of bed. Get your day going, and change us with your engagement. It's about that time. So, what are you gonna do about it? -
A Way to Focus
6 Apr 2012 | 11:47 pmAt the end of a long - great, productive and even a little bit warm - week, it's apparent that "Focus" is one seriously valuable asset.How do you practice focusing?My triathlon coach taught to ALWAYS arrive early enough to races so that I could review the map and even ride/run some of the course. Over the years - through triathlon, to speaking, even to writing - this strategy of "seeing it before I see it" is significant. Focus could very well be one of our most valuable assets. For with our attention pointed toward the deepest and most challenging problems (not just where the terrain… -
The Online Course: Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More
5 Apr 2012 | 12:22 pmPlease register for the: INTRO to The Online Course: Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More This FREE webinar will take place: Friday, April 6, 2012 9:35 AM - 10:05 AM PDT at: https://student.gototraining.com/r/7792425064912247808 After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the training.
-
Stepcase Lifehack
-
9 Childhood Rules Best Forgotten by Adults
16 May 2012 | 10:00 amI recently read a story about how we get pulled into yesterday each time we follow the sage advice of our parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents. Do you ever find yourself — at 30, 40, or 50 years of age — still carrying through on that advice? For the longest time into my adulthood I didn’t go outside for fear that I’d “catch my death of cold.” Same with going outside barefoot in the winter. To this day I still want to throw salt over my right shoulder (or is it my left?) after knocking over the salt shaker because Grandma said it would keep evil spirits away. I wonder… -
15 Minutes to Workplace Sanity
16 May 2012 | 4:00 amEver have one of those days when you’re just completely overwhelmed? Too much to do, not enough time. Deadlines looming (or whizzing past), phone ringing, emails pinging. Just everyday life for a lot of us. And most days we manage to roll with it, deal with things as they come up, and get along just fine. Some days, though, the clamor of multiple competing demands on our time, energy, and attention can be just too much to bear. We feel overwhelmed and out of control. It can paralyze us — dozens of things to do, and we do none of them, because we don’t know where to start. We… -
What Can Software Developers Teach us About Crushing the ‘Perfection Bug’?
15 May 2012 | 9:58 pmImagine this: Your desk is full of paper and it’s all related to unfinished work. Also, your task list never seems to shrink – instead, it’s growing bigger and bigger. Even if you work hard on your tasks, you have this nagging feeling of incompletion in your head. You also feel that it is impossible to meet your inner critic; you are never satisfied to your results. You are frustrated and burnt out. And even if that’s not enough, you start to procrastinate on your tasks. You only wish that you could leave the office at 5PM and spend time with your family. And then you look at the… -
It’s Time to Change Your Life
15 May 2012 | 4:00 pmToo often we come home after a long day at work and open the takeout food, then plop down on the couch and watch TV until it’s time for bed. The next day, we do the same thing again. While I have been known to indulge in this from time to time, there’s an issue with this lifestyle. You basically spend each day, trying to get through it. You’re just living for the weekend. The weekend is never long enough, of course, and then it’s another week of the same. The problem with this is that months — or years — can go by. That’s time you won’t get… -
The Top 5 To-Do Apps for iPhone
15 May 2012 | 12:00 pmTo-do apps are great because they help you to remember and complete the tasks that you need to do. Whether it is a task in business or family life (or any other field), to-do apps can help you keep on top of them and complete them in time. They make your life easier. They make you more productive. The iPhone has many to-do apps available, but it can be difficult for you to find out the best to-do app for your iPhone from the plethora of choices from both paid and free app lists. To help you get started on being more productive with your iPhone, let’s take a look at the top five to-do…
-
Arif & Ali's Blog
-
The Hindu Hits Back
30 Apr 2012 | 12:14 amWho doesn’t enjoy advertising wars. The Hindu’s comeback deserves it’s place in Arif & Ali’s Advertising Hall of Fame. We applaud The Hindu on it’s stand on journalism and the ads are awesome too. Here are all the ads (Video, Outdoor and Print) that I could find across the city and the web. Video Outdoor Press Similar Posts: Muharram, Maryam, Mayhem – A personal update Here’s an idea… Behold. A terrible campaign that is being aired. 40 Sufi Comics in the Media Please Support Wikipedia -
Excellent Lectures I have heard – April edition
29 Apr 2012 | 11:53 pmI have come across some exceptionally good lectures this month. Do hear them as soon as you get to. I have found that the best best BEST time to hear these lectuers is while driving or exercising. There’s an immense amount of education and mental stimulation you can get while dong either of the two. All the lectures are uploaded on the Arif and Ali Podcast Feed. Subscribe to the feed with itunes, sync it up with your ipod and you have all the below lectures and more. How to Maximise your Energy by Tony Schwartz Tony has given a brilliant presentation as part of Leading @ Google series. -
Sufi Comics: On Business
30 Mar 2012 | 12:25 pmA new comic is being released after a long while! One request that I’ve received frequently is to have the comics in color. So I’m trying something new with the style of the comics from now on. It’s going to be in color and will use elements from Persian & Turkish miniature paintings. This is the first Sufi Comic using this style. Hope you all like it :)Similar Posts: Sufi Comics in Color! Sufi Comics at Comic-Con Express Mumbai: Photos & Press Sufi Comics will launch an iPad app at Comic Con India 2012 Sufi Comics at Comic Con 2012: Photos & Press Book… -
Sufi Comics at Comic Con 2012: Photos & Press
27 Feb 2012 | 9:52 pmSufi Comics had a stall at the Annual Comic Con India, at Dilli Haat. It was exciting meeting with Comic Artists from the country & abroad, and sharing our experiences in creating Comics. Sufi Comics got nominated for Comic Con awards in two categories, “Best Web Comic” & “Best Children Publication”. Here are some photographs from the event Press coverage: Daily Pioneer: Doodling Quran Indian Express: Sketching the Sufis Odishatv: The changing face of comics. Outlook India: Women Issues, Sufi Verses New themes for Comics India’s Sufis give image of… -
Don’t Watch your Step for too Long.
26 Feb 2012 | 3:07 amStep Up, Instead. Similar Posts: 6 Steps to read a 300 page book in 2 hours, and remember what you’ve read Eat That Frog. 21 Ways to stop procrastination and Get More Done. (Book Review). Now I know exactly how many miles to go before I sleep. Why there is Still World Hunger and 5 Steps to End it, by Bill Gates at Harvard University. Sufi Comics – Perhaps you know this Donkey
-
I'm an Organizing Junkie
-
Garage Sale Tips for the Non-Garage Saler
15 May 2012 | 1:34 pmsource: John Beagle I’ve written before about my love of going out to garage sales each week. Every Friday night my 12 year old son and I head out to see what “treasures” we can find. It’s a great bonding time for us as we drive around town chatting to one another without any interruptions. I really enjoy our date night. However as we cruise from garage sale to garage sale there is something that drives me a little bit batty. I instantly know when I walk up someone’s driveway whether or not they are garage salers themselves and those particular garage sales are… -
Menu Plan Monday ~ May 14/12
14 May 2012 | 8:00 amUpdated: I’m so sorry if you are still having problems getting onto my site. This has been a very painful experience for me as I try to correct the problem. If anyone has any suggestions for me or a hosting company to recommend (I’m currently with Bluehost) please let me know. Thanks! Hi everyone and Happy Belated Mother’s Day! I hope you all had a wonderfully relaxing day yesterday. We started the day off at church and then went for a long family walk in the woods. It was a beautiful sunny day and so nice to be out enjoying it. I then was treated to a yummy Chinese… -
The Great Garage Clean Out Challenge ~ Week Two
11 May 2012 | 4:00 amWe are back! How are you all making out? This weekend I was dragging my feet I tell you. Of course it could have something to do with the HOURS I spent trying to teach my youngest how to ride a two wheeler, talk about painful! When we got back to the house I was already exhausted and not really wanting to tackle the garage. It just felt like it would take hours to make headway. Oh the stories we tell ourselves. I decided to spend an hour working on the garage and whatever I got done would be better than if I did nothing at all. My husband had already done a pretty big purge so… -
Container Organization
8 May 2012 | 11:43 pmPlease welcome my guest, Rebecca from D and R Tabb, to the blog today. Rebecca is talking about my favorite subject, containers of course! Talking about containers never gets old to me, especially inexpensive ones. They are the best! And they make me deliriously happy too :) Containers bring me inner peace. If I had not been a toddler in the 80s, I would probably have sold Tupperware. Things have a way of growing legs and spreading all over your house. From the shoes you kick off at the door, to the bag of groceries you bring in from the car, to (my personal unfavorite) the junk… -
Shoe Tree Organization
8 May 2012 | 12:07 pmSo I bought a new friend, a lovely new shoe tree friend. She was only $20 in a discount store (Fields for those of you in Canada) so I just couldn’t pass her up. These go for a lot more in specialty organizing shops for sure. Besides she called my name when I walked by and I could tell she was lonely. I originally thought I’d put her in my bedroom closet for my dress shoes because there wasn’t any room in my entryway closet. However I’d really rather have all my most frequently worn shoes in the entryway closet as that’s where I need them as I’m…
-
THE WEEKLY REVIEW
-
Top Dating Website Reviews Online!
8 May 2012 | 3:47 pmDating website review writing is a task that is mockingly referred to in rather cruelly dismissive terms, with more seasoned writers quick to lambast the perceived lack of skill and talent on the part of the writers responsible for drafting such an article. In reality however, the truth of the matter is that the successful writing of reviews that provide a careful blend between quality information and originality is a tricky balance to achieve effectively. MarriedSecrets Review Article For The Professionals The married secrets review which is included within this link is an excellent example… -
Blind love is true love
19 Apr 2012 | 2:16 amLoving someone unconditionally means loving someone with all heart. When people start judging other people and want to be in love with only those who can satisfy their needs and wants is when the entire definition of love goes wrong. If loving someone dearly means measuring someone’s capacity to be just like one wants it to be, then one thing must be cleared that this is not true love. This is like a class room where there is a teacher, who grooms her students the way she wants them to be. If there is no formal relation then there is a possibility of unconditional love. Don't trap your… -
Why Do Women Fall for Jerks?
11 Apr 2012 | 2:10 amWomen are the most mysterious creatures; they tend to do actions which others can never explain. And contradictory to what many people think women do not always want a nice guy. Maybe in an earlier era women wanted simple and nice men; but not today. Therefore, many people will now spot the most attractive women, with a bad boy. Ever wonder how these attractive women, end up with a jerk of a man? May be when we say women are hard to understand, this is why one cannot understand their nature and their hidden criteria to find the man of their life. There are many theories, reasons and… -
Welcome To The Weekly Review
3 Apr 2012 | 2:08 amThis is my personal blog and I hope you find fun, insightful and interesting articles on it! Weekly
-
Popular Science - DIY
-
Gray Matter: In Which I Play With White Phosphorus
16 May 2012 | 11:15 amUnsavory Element White phosphorus creates an eerie flickering light on Theodore Gray's gloved hand. He will show this and other experiments on NOVA's Hunting the Elements , airing April 4 on PBS. Mike WalkerOne of the nastiest substances on Earth creates a beautiful glow Being a mad scientist can be a thankless job, but every once in a while you get a chance to shine-literally. I recently had that opportunity when working with a TV show to film one of the most beautiful of all chemical phenomena, the cold luminosity of white phosphorus. White phosphorus, an uncommon form of the element, is… -
Turn Your Old Netbook Into A Touchscreen Tablet
19 Apr 2012 | 4:27 pmNetbook To Tablet Greg Maxson Tablets are taking over the portable-computing market, but that doesn't mean the netbooks that they've replaced are useless. It's possible to jam the processing power and battery life of most netbook models into a smaller, touchscreen-equipped package. The project is very straightforward: Remove a few parts, add a touchscreen overlay (about $80; MyDigitalDiscount), reseal the device in its new tablet form, install a driver, and calibrate the screen. And if you use an old netbook you have lying around (or buy a used one), it costs a fraction of the price of a new… -
Video: A DIY Flight Simulator Built in the Nose of a Real Boeing 737
19 Apr 2012 | 1:43 pmThe Flight Deck of a 737 Not a simple build. Sol Young via Wikimedia Some people golf. James Price tiners with the full-blown flight simulator he's been building in the nose of a Boeing 737 jetliner in his garage for the past two decades. The air traffic controller and aviation enthusiast is now one of only a few people in the world who have built this kind of flight sim in an actual aircraft nose. And he's among only a handful of people in the world with a toy this cool. Price's sim goes far beyond the ambitions of most flight sim enthusiasts, who recreate cockpits in their home offices or… -
Simple Project of the Month: Build A Rotating Time-Lapse Camera Stand
19 Apr 2012 | 10:13 amVersatile Platform The timer can be mounted on most standard tripods, not just this GorillaPod. Larry ToweA panning platform made from a kitchen timer If you're into time-lapse photography here is a way to easily build yourself an affordable panning device using some simple tools and a kitchen timer. STEP 1 Drill a 15/64-inch hole in the center of the dial of a kitchen timer such as Ikea's Stäm model. Insert a ¼-inch-20 set screw. STEP 2 Drill an 11/32-inch-diameter hole in the bottom of the timer. Screw a 3/8-inch bolt or a 3/8-inch tap cutter into the hole to create threads for a 3/8-inch… -
Gray Matter: Want a Chemical Reaction Without Heat? Add a Catalyst
18 Apr 2012 | 9:13 amButterfly Effect Copper facilitates a reaction between oxygen and acetone, causing an earring to continuously glow red-hot even without an external heat source. How does this copper earring glow without any flame or current? The copper earring you see here had already been glowing bright orange for half an hour when we took the photograph. There is no flame under it, no electric current through it. Underneath is a pool of volatile and highly flammable acetone, but the liquid is not on fire. So where is the heat coming from? Acetone vapor and oxygen from the air are combining and releasing…
-
Get Organized Wizard
-
If It’s Not Useful Or Beautiful – It’s Clutter
13 May 2012 | 8:46 pmThis quote from artist and textile designer William Morris is a pithy prescription for avoiding clutter in your home. Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful. To earn its place in your house, office, closet or life, according to Morris, each thing must: Serve a useful purpose and/or Make you happy. Which means you can count as clutter anything that: You don’t use regularly Doesn’t work You find ugly Has unpleasant memories or associations Is tatty or dirty or broken or uncomfortable Doesn’t suit you You only keep because it was… -
BRAND NEW 30-Day Weight Loss-athon Pack: Just $4.95 (83% Off) For A Short Time Only
10 May 2012 | 7:42 amYou may know I’ve been running a 30-Day Weight Loss-athon over at 52 Weight Loss Missions. Each day we completed a 10-minute task relating to diet, exercise or mindset. As with all my programs, the focus was on taking action and being accountable. With more than 2,500 people signed up for the daily emails, a lot of action was taken over those 30 days! I’ve now packaged up the program into a neat little 30-Day Weight Loss-athon Pack containing: The 30-day email series An interactive workbook with: - All 30 x 10-minute tasks covering diet, exercise and mindset - To-do list for each… -
How To Stop Procrastinating? Sit Down To Write
8 May 2012 | 10:12 pmAt the moment I’m re-reading The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. It’s a wonderful book on overcoming resistance and doing meaningful stuff. Early in the book Pressfield says There’s a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don’t, and the secret is this: It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is the sitting down to write. You could say the same about decluttering, exercising, that project you’ve been meaning to do… In every situation where procrastination raises its nasty, multifarious little heads, what’s… -
FREE 30-Day Weight Loss-athon Program At 52 Weight Loss Missions
22 Mar 2012 | 8:52 amEvery year I run a FREE, action-based program in April. This year my program is for people who have a few extra pounds they’d like to shed, and are looking for a burst of motivation, inspiration and community support to help them take action. It’s called the 30-Day Weight Loss-athon and I’ll be running it on the blog over at 52 Weight Loss Missions. It involves 30 days of 10-minute actions. Easy peasy! You can get all the details here. If you’ve been putting off your goal to lose weight, start exercising or overcome emotional eating, then this cool, FREE program could… -
Get Organized and Declutter for Spring
20 Mar 2012 | 10:44 amSpring has just begun in the US. What a lovely time of year! Whether you live in the US or on the other side of the world (Australia) like I do, you may be feeling inspired to spring clean – or at least to declutter, or to do a little home organization. To help you, I’ve put together a list of some of my most popular posts from the past couple of years on decluttering and organizing your house, or simply making a fresh start. I hope there’s something here to help and motivate you! Reboot Your Motivation With Some Small New Beginnings Declutter Your Life and Home Home…
-
Get Organized!
-
Get Organized: The Secret to a Long Marriage? Couple of 72 Years Credits Organizing
10 May 2012 | 11:06 amIf you’ve ever wondered about the secret to a long marriage, Selma and Kenny, who have been married for 72 years, are pleased to share their insights.In fact, they credit organizing and having a tidy home as one of the keys to keeping their union happy, healthy, and long-term. What exactly do they say about the power of organizing?Well, in this case, I think it best to defer directly to the source… Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economyIf you cannot view this video, click here.(You can fast forward to 4:10 if you just want the bit about organizing, but… -
Get Organized: Downton Abbey Helps With Home Organizing
26 Apr 2012 | 7:07 amAre you a Downton Abbey fan? I must admit, I’m a sucker for a good British period drama. There’s something about the architecture, the politics, the fashion, the formalities, the romance, and … the organizing.Yes, you read that right! Although discreet, there are organizing, time management, and productivity themes all throughout the ever-popular television show. Whether you are an avid Downton fan, a fan in passing, or anywhere in between, here are three ways that watching Downton Abbey helps you get organized:1) Everyone has a job to do.The Earl of Grantham, Robert, takes care of… -
Get Organized: What's Your To-Do List Personality? Real Simple and I Team Up to Help You Make the Most of Your Lists!
12 Apr 2012 | 11:15 amSo...what's your to-do list personality? To help you find out, I recently had the honor and privilege of teaming up with RealSimple.com to help you make the most of your list-making!In the resulting article, you will discover if you are classified as...-The Post-It Noter-The Anywhere Scribbler-The Pen and Paper Faithful-The Smart Phone Smarties-The Uber Organizer(I am part of the Uber Organizer clan - no surprise there!)Also, you'll find tips and tools to help you transform ho-hum lists into powerful ones that ensure you leverage your time and energy.Go here for all the exciting details:… -
Get Organized: 4 Ways to Jumpstart Spring Cleaning (and Organizing!)
22 Mar 2012 | 11:05 amWith spring quickly approaching, it's time for your annual spring cleaning overhaul. Here are 4 ideas to jumpstart your efforts:(1) Update your files. We all have the looming April 17 tax deadline ahead of us. (At least the Americans do.) This is a great time to sort through not only your financial paperwork but also other documents in your files. Clear out the old, back file what is necessary in storage, and shred whatever you don't need to keep.(2) Prep your house for spring rains. Check your roof for curled, cracked or missing shingles. Inspect windows and door seals to… -
Get Organized: When Lists Don't Work
8 Mar 2012 | 9:28 amGenerally speaking, a list is a good thing because...When you write a list, it helps you focus. When you follow a list, it keeps you on track and moving toward list completion. And when you cross off list items, you feel productive.And yet, despite proven results and positive qualities, lists don't always work for everyone, every time because...When you have to make a list, it means you have lots to accomplish. When you have lots to accomplish, you suddenly don't want to do anything but sit on your couch, watch TV, and eat ice cream.In other words, making a list is making you procrastinate.
-
Notes on Productivity
-
DominoPower: Getting Things Done with Lotus Notes
9 Aug 2012 | 10:20 pmOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity -
A question only a Lotus Notes for Mac user can answer...
14 Apr 2012 | 11:23 amYesterday, I posted this topic to this blog, seeking an answer to question. The title I chose did not actually ask a question. So, as you might expect, I didn't get the answer I hoped for. If you are a Lotus Notes for Mac user, I'd appreciate your quick thoughts on this.Originally posted on Notes On Productivity -
How to use File and Folder Aliases in Lotus Notes for Mac
13 Apr 2012 | 5:02 pmToday, I was coaching an executive in how to use Lotus Notes as a tool for getting things done. In the course of our work together, I went to show him how to capture and paste a shortcut to a folder or a file into any Notes document (e.g. a To Do, or document or even an email) so that later, when he opens the document, all he has to do is click on it and Notes will take him to the folder or open the file. Oops. I should have tried it first. When I drag the alias into a Notes document, Notes properly shows the attachment type: However, when I go to open the attachment, I get an… -
Technology Solves Problems, Frustrates - David Allen
23 Feb 2012 | 11:59 pmOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity -
What if computer problems were real?
28 Sep 2011 | 2:06 amOriginally posted on Notes On Productivity
-
Wrike Product Blog
-
Are you making the most of Wrike?
2 May 2012 | 2:00 amYou’ve mastered all the main features of Wrike, and you’re ready to go further in perfecting your workflow. Now we’ve prepared some efficiency tips for you from a project management professional and, of course, a devoted Wrike user! Francesco Mangone, with 15 years of experience in the business consulting field, shares how he saves time and makes the most of our cloud-based solution. Here’s an overview of Francesco’s main ideas: #1 - Log everything into Wrike. Literally Of course, you already log all important tasks and milestones into Wrike. But we… -
New Backup Feature Lets You Save a Local Copy of Work
24 Apr 2012 | 2:00 amThousands of teams across the globe, including ones from Fortune 500 companies, rely on Wrike in managing their projects. We value your trust the most, and that’s why we are running a real-time database replication, so your data is backed up nearly every second. You can read more on this here. However, we understand that some of you might just feel more comfortable having a local copy of your work. Also, we know that a system backup might be even a mandatory requirement for the enterprise users to get the management to approve the use of Wrike. Your peace of mind is a… -
The Nuances of Building Great Customer Relationships With Japanese Clients
19 Apr 2012 | 2:00 amToday, even if you are not in Rome, you sometimes still need to do as the Romans do. Thanks to globalization, many of us have clients and partners all over the world. Ignoring the culture differences can be a stumbling block to your business growth. On the contrary, knowing several important national features of business communications will move you closer to building great customer relationships wherever your client comes from. As we have customers using Wrike all over the world too, we couldn’t miss an opportunity to get first-hand experience in successful interactions with clients of… -
Start Your Work Day With the Right Things!
17 Apr 2012 | 2:00 amMany of us start our workday with a quick inbox check. However, this "quick check" may often turn into hours of following up, sifting through tons of e-mails and switching over from one task to another. With Wrike’s To-Do e-mails, you can do it much better and faster, especially now that you can schedule them! Whether you are an early bird who starts the workday at 8 a.m. or a night owl getting to the desk by 8 p.m., now you can set your daily to-do e-mails to be sent right when you start working. This way, your daily agenda will be the first e-mail you read while… -
The Three Most Effective Principles To Encourage Your Team’s Creativity
11 Apr 2012 | 2:00 am“Have fun, create and inspire” – that’s how we describe our work at Realmdigital, a software solution provider. Software development is by definition an area for innovative and creative minds. Nevertheless, it’s not an easy thing to keep coming up with great new ideas in the day-to-day routine. That’s why in our work we follow several important principles that help us keep a fresh look at what we’re doing. If your team works in the creative environment, as well, I presume these principles will work for you, too. Aim for clients as adventurous…
-
There, I Fixed It - Redneck Repairs
-
VWBBQ
16 May 2012 | 12:00 pmAs known as “The Meatle.” -
A Life Without Risk Is Not Worth Living
16 May 2012 | 11:00 am“Need a lift, buddy?” “Yeah, in more ways than one!” -
Raise the Roof!
16 May 2012 | 10:00 am -
This Toothbrush is… Electrifying…
16 May 2012 | 8:00 amBrushing your teeth has never been this “stimulating” before. -
Please Shake Maracas to Enter…
16 May 2012 | 6:00 amAnd we would prefer if you boogied in through the door instead of walking. Thanks for your understanding.
-
How to of the Day
-
7 Ways to Spot a Pathological Liar
16 May 2012 | 11:00 amThe term, “liar, liar pants on fire” takes on new meaning when dealing with a pathological liar. This person may not be completely rooted in reality, believing the lies they tell, often in an effort to remedy low self esteem. Unlike telling a few fibs here and there, or slightly exaggerating the truth once in a while, the pathological liar lies about literally every aspect of his or her life. From how much was spent on dinner last night to talking about the last time the dog was bathed, the pathological liar feels that every bit of communication has strategic meaning positioned for his or… -
How to Make a Doll House Into a Hamster Cage
16 May 2012 | 3:00 amTurning an old unwanted dollhouse into a hamster home can be fun for you, thrilling for the hamster and entertaining for everyone who checks it out. Here are some suggestions for changing an old dollhouse into a new hamster mansion. Edit Steps Find an unwanted dollhouse. Check that nobody wants it for play, heirloom keeping or for fetching a fortune on eBay because once you've changed it, it's no longer going to be that old dollhouse. Clean the dollhouse. Unless it's particularly grotty, a warm, soapy wash should be sufficient for cleaning the doll house walls, floors and other surfaces. Use… -
How to Find Social Actions by Source in Google Analytics
15 May 2012 | 7:00 pmYou can use Google Analytics if you want to see the number of actions such as Facebook likes, Google +1s and tweets that you're getting by source. For these steps to work, you must have current versions of the Facebook like button and Google + widgets running on your site. Edit Steps Open Google Analytics. Open Google Analytics. Click "Social" under the "Visitors" tab. Then click "Action". Click Social Source below the graph. Click Social Source below the graph. Click whichever social action you wish to graph and track directly.Click whichever social action you wish to graph and track… -
7 Tips for Behaving Professionally on Social Media
15 May 2012 | 11:00 amOnce upon a time, a well articulated resume and interview were enough to land you the job. That was before Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Today, both clients and recruiters look beyond a nicely pressed suit and resume and are also scanning each candidate’s social media channels in order to get a flavor of who you really are and how you conduct yourself on a social level. Although some social media users let it all “hang out” and haphazardly comment and post wherever their emotions take them, those of you aiming to maintain a more professional reputation will do best to rein it in when… -
How to Use a Praktica MTL3 35mm Film Camera
15 May 2012 | 3:00 amThe Praktica MTL3 is a tough, reliable, and enormously popular mechanical camera from the late 1970s that sells for almost nothing and is a great choice for the photography student who requires a fully-manual camera for their studies, or for the photographer who loves having indestructible German engineering in their hands. Here's how to use one. Edit Steps Preparation Fit a battery, if one is not already fitted. The cover for the battery is on the underside of the camera. Put a coin into the slot in the battery cover and turn it anti-clockwise (a British 5-pence coin or an American quarter…
-
Clutter Coach
-
New Year's Resolution Ideas for Getting Organized
10 May 2012 | 12:50 pmOriginally posted 2010-12-27 14:10:00. Republished by Blog Post PromoterGetting organized, along with losing weight and quitting smoking, is on most people's list of new year's resolutions. Here are some ideas for resolutions, and three rules for increasing your success at keeping those resolutions. First rule for any resolution: keep it small enough to be do-able. You want a goal that's reachable soon, even if it seems insignificant. You're setting the stage for the next, bigger goal. Success breeds success. Second rule: It's all about you. Don't compare yourself to… -
How to Organize Books
10 May 2012 | 12:50 pmOriginally posted 2008-06-04 09:46:00. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI like an organic approach to organizing books. By that I mean that I suggest paying attention to how you use your books and what works well with your current set up before rearranging them. You may find that books you use a lot are already on the most convenient shelf. If not, that's a good place to start. It doesn't matter if those books are on different subjects and are different sizes, keeping them as handy as possible is a good idea. If you have a visual memory, returning your books each time to the same spot… -
Where Does Clutter Come From?
8 May 2012 | 1:40 pmClutter comes from many sources; a primary one is what we call delayed decision making. That’s when things pile up because you haven’t made a decision to move them on to their next stop: being put away, thrown away, taken to the cleaners, returned to their owner, tossed in the Goodwill bag, shredded, mailed back or foisted off on someone else. Clutter can also come from projects in progress. It’s understandable to want to leave everything out until you finish whatever you’re working on, but if you’re working on more than one thing at once and you’ve got the… -
The Art of Slow Living
3 May 2012 | 11:51 amOriginally posted 2008-05-14 10:00:00. Republished by Blog Post PromoterSlowing down to combat the stress and dehumanization of modern life isn’t a new concept, but it’s been taken to greater and more charming heights by Ella and Bruno Contigiani. Their “slowmandments” offer tips about avoiding multitasking and hurrying and a few more novel and Italian-inflected ones, such as the ones below. “Write your text messages on your cell phone with no symbols or abbreviations and get in the habit of starting with “Dear…” “Don’t force yourself go shopping;… -
How to be messy and organized
26 Apr 2012 | 10:36 amOriginally posted 2007-02-21 12:22:53. Republished by Blog Post PromoterHow to be messy and organized. At the same time. A contrarian view, perhaps. Organizers get sick of having to inform people that being organized and being tidy do not necessarily co-exist. The organized part refers to an underlying system that helps you function. It can be more or less detailed, depending on how much effort you’re willing to put in and what kind of results you need. The tidy part is about looks. It’s also about how an environment feels to you. People who are messy on purpose revel in being immersed in…
-
Daniel Richard
-
5 Practical Reasons Why You’ll Love Waking Up Early (or Becoming an Early Riser)
2 May 2012 | 8:44 pmEvery morning, someone out there in the world today, someone out there on the web today is waiting for you to do awesome works that will change their lives altogether. I’ve always not been one who’s known to wake up fresh in the morning. While I’ve written about how I’ll be taking over a company in the next few days, one thing that I had been praying about and have a strongest desire to change, is to wake up early. While I know that somehow I may have a shift in life (no bad season will last forever; only His mercies and faithfulness stretches till eternity), I had… -
How to Really Start Over (or Moving On From Where You Are At in Life Today)
1 May 2012 | 12:41 pmI was looking at my Statcounter and decided to check out how users are coming over to my site, and read some of the referring articles. Wow! I had been totally blown away by how many positive comments and referrals I had been getting that I had overlooked when I was going through a pretty rough time over the past 2 years (credits at the end of this post). This post is dedicated to all the great readers and friends made over the years who had been supporting me both financially and through writing positive notes; you totally rock! And while I had a post written about starting fresh, that post… -
How To Enter Into God’s Promise of Provision
24 Apr 2012 | 11:13 am“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.” – Philippians 4:19-20, New King James Version God is one who acts on His promises. He doesn’t go wish-washy with His words, and that means what you read in the Bible concerning His promises to you, you will have them. However, before we go into the main letter, here are 7 quick brief and background of the verse: Paul wrote this while in prison—his life was uncertain. Ironically, the message of the book of Philippians… -
How to Move On With Life & Walking in Faith
12 Jan 2012 | 4:50 pmPossibly the most viral video, shared by Christians, those who had left church, and non-Christians, in my Facebook news feed today. What if I told you Jesus came to abolish religion. What if I told you voting Republican, really wasn’t His mission. What if I told you Republican doesn’t automatically mean Christian and just because you call some people blind, doesn’t automatically give you vision. I mean if religion is so great, why has it started so many wars? Why does it build huge churches, but fail to feed the poor? Tell single moms God doesn’t love them if they have ever had a… -
What Do You Do When You’ve Overpromised?
11 Jan 2012 | 4:14 am“My son, if you become surety for your friend, if you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger, you are snared by the words of your mouth; you are taken by the words of your mouth. So do this my son, and deliver yourself; for you have come into the hand of your friend: Go and humble yourself; plead with your friend. Give no sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eyelids. Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, and like a bird from the hand of the fowler.” – Proverbs 6:1-5, NKJV Ever found someone close to you made promises that they aren’t able…
-
GO MOM!
-
Tips for Moms to Manage May
14 May 2012 | 8:00 amA Mother’s life is tethered to seasons and each one demands tips for Moms to manage their time. The seasons of the year, the seasons of her children’s lives, the seasons of friendship, marriage, and faith. First shared in May of 2010 I am just as busy and working hard to get it all done, just as excited about summer but full of mixed emotions as my children end another school year closing chapters while opening new ones yet to be read. This simply proves the topic is timeless, the challenges the same ~ I hope you enjoy it! Things have been crazy lately and that’s what May… -
Disney Channel Stars Celebrate Moms
12 May 2012 | 7:00 amLet’s face it ~ it’s not often you hear teens share what their Moms mean to them, their family traditions, and how they will spend Mother’s Day on Sunday. That’s why I am so happy to see the folks at Disney Channel lead the way, helping show their loyal viewers just what it means to “Celebrate Mom.” Take a look as Disney stars tell their stories about their Moms ~ fun and personal ~ its peer pressure and leadership at its finest! Tyler James Williamsand Coco Jones(“Let It Shine”), Debby Ryan (“Jessie”), Ross Lynchand Laura… -
Thank You Disney Social Media Moms!
11 May 2012 | 12:58 pmToday I want to deliver a virtual Thank You! I recently had the unbelievably awesome honor to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. Its third, and while I could not have imagined it getting any better than two I had been so blessed to attend before, I have been blinded by Pixie Dust for the better part of the last two weeks. I’ve been trying to frame up how to share with you all the goodness with a home organization and family time management eagle eye. There are photos and videos that I will gently be rolling out over the next few months because, yes, that’s how much… -
Last Minute Mother’s Day Gifts
10 May 2012 | 1:44 pmToday we are talking about last minute gift ideas for Mother’s Day. Its just a few days away but you’ve got plenty of time to make it memorable. So here are my tips to make it extra fabulous for a friend, a sister, your Mom or if you are helping someone else out to recognize a very special Mom in their life. 1. Technology Tune Up 2. Music to Her Ears 3. Summer Fun Bag 4. Certificate for a Mom’s Nite Out 5. Mom Makeover So no matter if you are a friend or sister, a Dad, brother or husband, these are my tips for last minute Mother’s Day gifts on the scramble. I’d… -
Teacher Appreciation Week
9 May 2012 | 8:19 amToday we are talking about Teacher Appreciation Week. This year it happens to fall on the week just before Mother’s Day. That can make it doubly stressful from a parent volunteer perspective because while you might be helping out on some Mother’s Day activities for the lower grades, you also are likely helping out on a school wide level for teacher luncheons, on a classroom level to navigating special things for your teacher, or perhaps just personally one on one making your gesture. Here are a few ideas to help that last minute gift idea come together in a snap! 1. Make it…
-
Productive & Organized
-
Triple the Results You Get from Live Conferences and Events
16 May 2012 | 7:04 amLive conferences are a fantastic way to gain actionable knowledge for your business, rekindle former relationships and make new relationships. They also represent a significant investment in time and money. Yet, many people don't take advantage of the investment like they could. Today I'm going to share my secret tips for how you can triple your results from attending live conferences and events. Before I go into my tips, I want to come clean a bit. You see, while I really love getting up on stage and sharing my message, I get really uncomfortable off of the stage. -
You are Invited: 3 Keys to Consistent Follow-Up=>Getting MORE out of LESS
11 May 2012 | 7:30 amOver the last year, I have talked a lot about taking action and having good follow-up systems in your business. The freedom and the dollars are in the follow-up! The crazy thing is, most businesses have no or limited follow-up systems in their business. I talk to business owners every day that are leaving money on the table and working way more hours than they would like to. It's my mission to help you turn that around. To that end, I've been more actively searching out opportunities for you to learn and take action to get the right systems into your… -
Did You Know Paper and Other Things in Your Office Hold Emotion?
13 Apr 2012 | 6:13 amOK, you may be thinking that I've lost my mind in telling you that paper holds emotion. Maybe I have! However, I also know that when I'm working with my clients, letting go is extremely hard for most. So why is it so hard? There is emotion to it! As you are looking to simplify and move your business to the next level, be prepared to face a sense of loss as you let go of certain possessions. The sense of relief you feel afterwards will compensate for the feeling of loss. Today, I'll share some techniques that have worked with my clients when in the… -
How to Save At Least 2 Hours a Day By Automating Your Business
11 Apr 2012 | 5:26 amI was talking with a small business owner earlier this week and sharing a bit about what I do. He instantly told me that he could use our services, but did not have time to put anything new in place. He shared that he feels overwhelmed performing daily tasks and he does not have time to engage his prospects or maintain a strong connection with his current customers or even assign tasks to his staff. Does that sound familiar?At the end of the day, do you have ample time to spend with your family or give back to the community? The truth is, most small businesses are stressed and… -
12 Ideas for the Best To Do Lists and How to Get Things Done
23 Mar 2012 | 7:33 amOne of the questions that I frequently get when I work with clients is "What is the best way to ensure that I get things done? What type of to do list should I use?" And I often answer: "It depends!" You see, managing your tasks is a personal thing. There are many fantastic systems out there for managing tasks. The best tool is one that you will actually use and trust. Often, people fail with their to do system because they simply don't trust that it will work for them. So, to get you started, I asked my expert panel: What is your…
-
The Organized Executive's Blog
-
10 questions to improve your productivity
15 May 2012 | 8:08 amTo do the right things, first you must identify what those actions are. Productivity coach Bruce Lee recommends regularly asking yourself these questions: How well does my use of time match my priorities? What am I doing that doesn’t really need to be done? What am I doing that could/should be done by someone else? What major things should I be concerned about in my department, and in what sequence should I tackle them? What three things should I be doing to further my career? What should I focus on next week in order to move toward my personal goals? What process can I follow to solve the… -
4 services that ease business travel
10 May 2012 | 8:03 amThe following is a guest article by Catherine Ahern, Web editor of Briefings Media Group. Business trips can provide great opportunities—or excessive stress and frustration. The following services will ensure that your upcoming business travel is painless and productive: LugLess. A representative from this delivery service will come to pick up your luggage, ship it to your destination via FedEx, and coordinate drop-off with your hotel or other accommodation. That can save you the hassle and cost of checking bags. And LugLess guarantees that your luggage will arrive safely and on time. -
Culture fosters innovation—Money can’t always buy it
8 May 2012 | 8:00 amThis is a guest article by Kate Benson, president of Martens & Heads! Innovation is the name of the game in many industries, certainly in all of those that we at Martens & Heads! recruit for. Innovation fosters new products, new categories and new consumerism—which leads to what we are all in business for: to make money. After all, this is America—we are a capitalist society. I believe that some of the most innovative endeavors come not only from those million-dollar ideas (or million-dollar investments), but from people. I recently read an article on habits by Janet Rae-Dupree,… -
4 life lessons worth repeating
3 May 2012 | 8:00 amThis is a guest post from Jaimy Ford, editorial director of Briefings Media Group. I’m in the process of moving. We’re renting out our former house and buying a new one about an hour and a half away. During the past month, I have had many of the lessons we talk about in The Organized Executive reinforced. When our lives are out of whack, it is easy to forget the knowledge we’ve learned through the years—even when it can help us through tough times. Here are some life lessons definitely worth revisiting whenever you start a new venture—or adventure: Expect everything.We were… -
The dirty little secret hiding on your screen
1 May 2012 | 8:20 amI caught only a glimpse, but it was enough to horrify me. As an acquaintance opened a program on her laptop, I saw that her desktop was littered with files and shortcuts. I’ve worked with other people who kept their desks tidy but filled their computer desktops with clutter. I’m not a stickler for pristine conditions, but I do hate inefficiency. With dozens of icons on the screen, there is no way to quickly find a specific file or shortcut. If your computer desktop is full right now, I challenge you to take a few minutes to delete what you no longer need. Then if you still have many…
-
2Time Labs
-
The Internet is Ruining Your Brain
2 May 2012 | 2:18 pmAn interesting infographic that can be found here – at the Mashable website. Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress. Tweet This Post Digg This Post Stumble This Post -
Orange Belt-Level Scheduling Expands
23 Apr 2012 | 6:01 amHere at 2Time Labs, one of the distinctions that we made have between different levels of time management skill has to do with the skill/art of using a schedule to manage your daily activity, rather than either a group of lists or one’s memory. Recently, I noticed that two books have echoed this idea; one of the few books to represent the more modern point of view about this critical skill. 18 minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distractions and Get the Right Things Done by Peter Bregman. A Factory of One: Applying Lean Principles to Banish Waster and Improve Your Personal… -
News For Professional Organizers
19 Apr 2012 | 11:03 amIf you happen to be a Professional Organizer, take a moment to visit the mytimedesign.com website to find out more about Baby Steps 101/201; Radically Reducing Your Clients’ Time Clutter. Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress. Tweet This Post Digg This Post Stumble This Post -
New Posts at MyTimeDesign for Time Management Coaches
8 Apr 2012 | 5:01 pmOver at MyTimeDesign.com I have started writing and posting ideas for time management coaches using the research done here at 2Time Labs. It’s just a beginning, but there is a great deal more to come. The truth is, I can’t find another place on the Internet offering any real assistance for managers, trainers, coaches and professional organizers who have a commitment to help others make solid improvements. See http://mytimedesign.com Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress. Tweet This Post Digg This Post Stumble This Post -
Time for a Change of Gears
29 Feb 2012 | 9:26 amAs you may have noticed, over the past three months I have taken the chance to step away from regular posts to the 2Time Labs website. While some of that time was spent writing my book (a business fable based on on Time Management 2.0 principles) I also spent some time looking at a new direction I want to pursue in 2012. 2011 was a big year in which I was finally able to clarify and name 2Time Labs as a venue for the best research in Time Management 2.0. It’s taken 10+ years of thinking and 6+ years of writing to get to the point where I can say that the fundamental principles are…
-
Robin Dickinson
-
Successful business strategy: is diversification di-worse-ification?
2 May 2012 | 2:36 amCheeky toon by Robin Dickinson (inspired by the article How to Build a Narrow Niche Brand to Widen Your Opportunity by brilliant business strategist Liz Strauss) What are your thoughts? When it comes to developing a successful business strategy, what’s your view on diversification? More from Robin Stay inspired, motivated and right up-to-date by subscribing to RobinDickinson.com Get [...] -
Twitter success: what matters is the number of followers, right?
26 Apr 2012 | 4:35 pmCheeky toon by Robin Dickinson What are your thoughts? Does it really matter who follows you on Twitter? What makes you say that? More from Robin Stay inspired, motivated and right up-to-date by subscribing to RobinDickinson.com Get a 1-minute business boost by watching BLACK CHAIR Business Success TV -
The real reason why women’s business networks succeed
19 Apr 2012 | 8:44 pmCheeky toon by Robin Dickinson What are your thoughts? What’s your opinion on why women’s business networking groups succeed? More from Robin Stay inspired, motivated and right up-to-date by subscribing to RobinDickinson.com Get a 1-minute business boost by watching BLACK CHAIR Business Success TV -
SXSW: must-attend conference or avoid at all costs?
15 Mar 2012 | 3:56 amCheeky toon by Robin Dickinson What are your thoughts? What’s your opinion of conferences like SXSW? Are they worth attending? More from Robin Stay inspired, motivated and right up-to-date by subscribing to RobinDickinson.com Get a 1-minute business boost by watching BLACK CHAIR Business Success TV -
Google+ as a success tool: ring of roses or pointless loop?
2 Mar 2012 | 4:08 pmCheeky toon by Robin Dickinson What are your thoughts? Now that you’ve had a chance to use it, what’s your opinion of Google+ as a tool to help you succeed? More from Robin Stay inspired, motivated and right up-to-date by subscribing to RobinDickinson.com Get a 1-minute business boost by watching BLACK CHAIR Business Success TV
-
Do Life Big
-
The Secret of Actually Living
15 May 2012 | 11:05 amPosted in UncategorizedThere’s alot of talk about being planned, disciplined, sensible and efficient these days. On this blog I’ve even argued that to really do big things, we need to be laser-focused on those things. From doing the right things, to creating habits and being consistent and ordinary. But in pursuit of our goals, I fear that we will be so focused on results that we will blow right past the things that actually matter. NEWSFLASH - At your funeral, friends will not reminisce about the killer Power Point presentations you missed birthdays to create Your wife… -
God’s Will & My 2-Year Old
7 May 2012 | 11:37 amPosted in UncategorizedDo you ever wonder what God wants you to do? Does following his will feel like a one-sided game of wild goose chase? Is your ambition and energy fading because of a lack of clear direction? I have felt this way a lot. But God is a Father, and so am I. So when I think about my will for my two year old Sonny, I think about God’s will for me. And recently, the picture became clearer. One of Sonny’s favorite games, is “Daddy Fit-It”. This is his attempt at saying, “Daddy, Fix-It” and it involves him reaching into my tool box for a… -
Raise Your Price.
25 Apr 2012 | 11:17 amPosted in UncategorizedToo many of us undervalue what we do. We forget that our time, experience and skills matter. Don’t. You have something that people need. Consider this - A woman in Paris spots Picasso in a cafe. She begs and pleads him to sketch her…he finally relents, whips out his pad and draws a sketch of her. She’s delighted. “How much do I owe you?” she asks. “$5,000,” he replies. “$5,000!” she exclaims. “But it only took you 2 minutes!” “No madam,” he replies. “It took me my life”. Your value is not simply the time or effort you spent on… -
My First, First-Time list.
11 Apr 2012 | 11:25 amPosted in UncategorizedI wish I knew all the things I should do to make my life really matter. I don’t. Sometimes I get a taste, like when I turn off my phone and wrestle my two-year old, or show up with Starbucks for my wife after a long night. Anything else though, can seem like a real mystery. One thing I have found, is that real meaning is often the reward for courage. If you’re afraid of it, it’s probably worth doing it. Want to know one of my nagging regrets in life? I never studied abroad in college. I know, I know…not the end of the world. But if you know me,… -
Live Your Dream!
1 Apr 2012 | 10:27 pmPosted in UncategorizedSometimes, the push we need to pursue our dreams comes from hearing real stories, about real people, who are simply doing what they’ve dreamed of. This is an interview I did with Caitlin Agnew, co-founder of MAKERS, a co-working space in Seattle for professional creators, thinkers and doers that launches this month. Caitlin’s story reads like so many people’s I know… college graduate with skills and ambition frustrated by uninspiring corporate jobs and all along, a brewing desire to live out real passions The difference? She’s taken a…
-
Productivity Bits
-
Getting Started With GTD
11 May 2012 | 8:08 pmI often get questions about how to get started with GTD. If you never heard of GTD before, Google the phrase “Getting Things Done by David Allen”. Go ahead, read about GTD and I’ll be here when you’re ready.While you performed that search, you probably saw links to articles on how to get started with GTD. Ok, I’m really late into the game. I can find a lot of detailed materials on how to GTD on the internet.But here are quick tips on how to get started with GTD.1. Read the book. I know, there’s nothing quick about purchasing, waiting for the delivery, and… -
How My New Blog Earned A Page Rank of 3 In One Month
4 May 2012 | 7:49 pmI know Google Page Rank is no longer a true barometer of how your blog is “performing” in the blogosphere. Google have said themselves that we should not use Page Rank to measure our blog’s performance.Very true.There is nothing else I can use to check metrics aside from hits and pageviews.Nonetheless, I look at Page Rank as a way to check how my SEO efforts are affecting my blog technically.In just one short month, I was able raise my blog’s Page Rank from PR0 to PR3 (Check | Verify). Usually, it would take a couple of months to reach that level but I did it in one… -
The 501 Productivity: Bolting Out The Door At 5:01 PM
27 Apr 2012 | 4:26 pmI recently came across the 501 etymology and I thought of borrowing the concept over to productivity; thus, The 501 Productivity.The phrase “5:01 developer” was coined to describe a “developer who bolts out the door at 1 minute past 5pm.”.We’ve worked with these people – when the clock strikes at the 5:00 PM mark, they’re gone for the day.But of course, there are those who keep working far beyond that time.Let’s not attribute a bad connotation to the 501 workers. In fact, we all should aspire to become a 501 person.You should read the story… -
Enable Your To-Do List With Preemptive Multitasking
20 Apr 2012 | 4:13 pmPreemptive Multitasking is a term in computing used to describe the operating system’s behavior of permitting “preemption of tasks” in distributing the computer processor resources.To make the idea clearer, we’ll let Mr. Wikipedia define the concept to us:“Preemptive multitasking involves the use of an interrupt mechanism which suspends the currently executing process and invokes a scheduler to determine which process should execute next. Therefore all processes will get some amount of CPU time at any given time.”Now let’s borrow that concept and… -
If This, Then That – It’s Like Having Your Own Virtual Assistant
12 Apr 2012 | 7:30 amA sure way to lighten your workload and instantly boost your productivity is by way of delegation. Or there is another option to that. If you cannot delegate, automate.This is how it usually works. You delegate or automate the least important stuff on your To-Do list to pave way for more space, and thereby time, that you will put back to your main work pool.By delegating or automating, you’re accomplishing two things – One, getting rid of yourself of the extra load that is likely to cause you open loops and, two, gaining more time for more important tasks you have at hand.But how…
-
Clear Concept
-
What type of procrastinator are you?
16 May 2012 | 8:00 amWord Count: 413 Estimated Read Time: 2 minutes I took a Psychology 101 course way back in university and recall learning about all of the abnormal personality types. Our professor specifically pointed out that these were rare conditions and cautioned us not to label all of our friends and relatives based on our new-found knowledge. With 95% of the population procrastinating, it hardly feels like an abnormal condition. However, many of us would love to shake this part of our personality. The experts tell us that awareness is the first step on the road to recovery. So this blog article is… -
Should You Check Email While On Vacation?
24 Apr 2012 | 9:10 amWord count: 408 Estimated reading time: Less than 1 minute Vacations never seem to come along at a “good” time. We always seem to be in the midst of a huge project, and it can be tough to step away from the decisions and conversations. The question naturally arises: Should you check email while on vacation? I’ve taken both approaches in the past.But to be honest, I usually lug my laptop along with me and find a way to connect. But we just returned from our most recent family vacation. And this time, I didn’t check email. I’d like to say that this was all about me wanting some… -
Too much to do and not enough time (left in the year)?
7 Dec 2011 | 12:21 amLet’s face it – we all have way too much work on the go. Most of us spread ourselves thin at the best of times. This is only heightened with year-end deadlines and all of the holiday busyness. It’s enough to turn a calm, cool & collected professional into something akin to dried out turkey dinner … dry, burned out and downright nasty. The challenge is that we only have control over so much of our time. There are the non-negotiable deadlines, the meetings the emails, and additional holiday gatherings that leave little time to get “our” work done. And while I love the… -
Do You Suffer From ‘Last Minute-itis’?
17 Nov 2011 | 8:49 amA client recently told me that he suffers from ‘last minute-itis’. In other words, he puts everything off until the last minute: from preparing for a presentation to packing for a trip. In the best Dr. Phil voice that I could muster, I asked, “So how’s that workin’ for ya?” As I suspected, in many ways it was working for him. Yes, this approach made things harder for those around him, and he ends up sacrificing more personal time than he wants to, and his stress level tends to be higher than ideal. But at the end of the day, he is still able to get things done. And a lot done… -
Does Procrastination Boil Down To Temptation?
9 Nov 2011 | 4:00 amIf someone was to offer us $50 or $100, most of us would gladly take $100. There is nothing quite like a cool, crisp c-note. Same deal applies if someone offers us $50 today versus $100 tomorrow - most of us would choose to wait one day for the higher pay-out. But as the wait time increases, most of us change our mind. If someone offered us $50 today versus $100 in a year, most would choose $50 today. The dollar difference remains the same, but something about the delayed reward prompts us to choose the immediate pay-out. Even Kids Find it Hard to Resist Temptation Not surprisingly, kids…
-
IQTELL Productivity Blog
-
How Many Accountability Groups Do You Have?
7 May 2012 | 9:36 amA few months ago, I wrote that personal accountability can drive action probably better than any other method. The more I dive into the depths of improving my personal productivity, the more evidence I find that the drive to do must be met with an inner ability to act. But alas, sometimes we’re just drained…and the last thing we’re thinking of is the task at hand. So, what can save you when the temptation to stray overcomes all reason? Have you heard about accountability groups? Accountability groups are individuals working together for one purpose; it can be overcoming an inner foe… -
Quotivational Thursdays – Priorities
3 May 2012 | 7:55 am -
Are You Tackling Your Ticklers and Someday lists?
30 Apr 2012 | 6:38 amWhen we don’t have time for something, we just defer it. David Allen, the author of Getting Things Done (GTD), calls those items Someday/Maybe Items; I call them “the things I’d like to get done if I had more time to get things done”. The best way to get to those “I’ll do them later” items according to David is to set “ticklers”, ticklers are reminders or triggers that you set to “pop” when you reach a certain date in your calendar or when a certain condition or pre-requisite is met. The problem with ticklers is that we treat them most of the time as mere suggestions,… -
Quotivational Thursdays – A Helping Hand
26 Apr 2012 | 9:34 amLooking for help takes time, get the ball rolling until reinforcements arrive! -
The Apps That Make The Man (Or Women)
23 Apr 2012 | 7:20 amRoleplaying is fun…and as it turns out, also practical. According to a recent study conducted at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, if we wear clothes and use tools that correlate with what we’re doing (e.g., a doctor wearing white doctor’s robe as opposed to pajamas), our ability to focus improves. It doesn’t influence our professional skills or intelligence; it improves our focus and motivation by helping us on a subconscious level relate better to the task. Well, guess what? It’s not only “clothes that make the man (or woman)”. In today’s…
