Mind Like Monkey

Digital Workspace

Just over a year ago, I bought a netbook. It is small, light and very portable. I searched for a long time before settling on this particular netbook. There were two deciding factors in my decision: screen size and a touchpad switch. 

This may be a holdover from my programming days, but my #1 rule for a computer is real estate. I have to have as much screen as I can get. In fact, at work, I have two 21 inch monitors side by side. Even with 42 inches, I find myself running out of space. When I started looking at netbooks, I knew there was no way I was going to survive on one of those tiny seven inch screens. The ten inch models also felt very small. I was lucky Asus made a twelve inch model Anything greater than that becomes a laptop and the weight dramatically increases. After a year, I have learned to survive with the smaller monitor. Occaisionally I will hook up an external monitor when I am doing something requiring more space. 

The touchpad switch is a deal breaker for me. For some reason, I cannot keep from dragging my wrist or thumbs over a laptop touchpad. The cursor starts moving around and 'clicking' in all the wrong places. It is especially annoying when writing because suddenly I will be typing in the wrong spot. What I find surprising is how few laptop makers include a simple button to disable the touchpad. Asus doesn't even put it on all their models. I was so glad to have it on this one. 

Why all this talk about netbooks? Well, this is pretty much my work space now days. I don't have a desk to myself anymore. I share with the rest of the family. I have my inbox in the desk, but sitting at it is pretty hard to get time. For the most part, I work at the kitchen table. 

A lack of physical space has required a different approach to work. I keep more and more online. I use my Scansnap to capture everything that comes in the door. I do my processing from PDF files instead of paper. I have switched to online everything - Gmail, Google docs, mvelopes for finances, Toodledo for tasks, Google calendar, and the list goes on and on. My whole life is slowly, but surely moving online. LinkedIn is next on my list to see how it can be used more effectively. 

Yes, there are security concerns with having so much online and I am worried about it more every day. I don't have answers there, but I am learning and keeping in touch with our corporate security guys. They keep me clued in on what is dangerous. 

Take a look at your space. Is there anything that can be automated or digitized? Organized? Filed? Perhaps a small electronic organization is the key. Just don't forget to back up your files religiously. 

The Mars Pathfinder Approach to "Faster-Better-Cheaper"

This short (83 pages) book shares some of the nuggets of business management wisdom gleaned from the wildly sucessful Mars Pathfinder project. It is a short read - I finished it in a couple hours. I was introduced to it by my manager when he proclaimed it the 'book of the month.'

I love science and this book is very interesting to me for the stories shared by JPL project director, Brian Muirhead. The format is very simple. Each chapter is titled with the attribute of the team with a short one or two page description on it by the co-author business consultant, Price Pritchett. Some of the attribute/chapters include "Set goals that make you stretch", "Plan...and improvise", Embrace eccentricity" and "Be fully trustworthy." None of these traits are a surprise. Honestly, from a business team building standpoint, there is nothing new here.

It is the stories illustrating each attribute is what make the book interesting to me. The Pathfinder Mission was the first of the shoe string projects NASA commissioned. The normal explorer mission budgets top $2 billion, but this project was told to land a rover on Mars for under $170 million in three years. It seemed to be an impossible task. However, the team rose to the challenge and surpassed everyone's wildest dreams. You may recall the rover was supposed to only wander Mars' surface for 30 days. To everyone's surprise, it lasted over 90 days, gathering data and transmitting it back to Earth.

Muirhead shares a story the exemplifies the point of the chapter. The stories are well chosen and artfully told. The attribute is illustrated in a way to make me want to find a way to capture it in my team, just as a book should do. Interestingly, I believe the book would have been much better without the little business college-style descriptions by Prichett. They should have just let Muirhead go and allowed him to write the whole thing. The only thing I wished for was more pictures and stories.

This is a fun, informative book that will get your innovative juices flowing. It will remind you how a small, dedicated team can really overcome the odds and make the impossible happen. It got me excited to try and bring a bit of that enthusiasm to my workplace. This is definitely worth a look.

Money, Money, Money!

Money, money, money! Money! --Pink Floyd

The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.--I Timothy 6:10

And they give you cash, which is just as good as money.--Yogi Berra

Money may sound like a funny topic for a productivity blog. But handling your finances is a place where you may experience some serious resistance and procrastination. I know this is true for me. And that resistance used to get me into serious trouble.

I went broke.

Totally broke. Like on my last dime broke. And several years, I lived below the poverty line. At the time, I was residing in Latin America, so even with next-to-no income, we still did pretty well. Nonetheless, I’ve had nothing, and lots of it. Being poor taught me some important lessons.

Ignorance is not bliss. As Dan said in his post on this topic, “Know what you have.” I know that knowing what you have is almost gone is really scary and that creates resistance. But not knowing what you have creates both anxiety and a setting for getting delusional. Get serious about keeping up with your numbers.

Have a ubiquitous capture tool and write everything down. Yes, every dime you spend. We wrote every single purchase down for months on end. We knew exactly how much everything cost. And we were ruthless about not overspending. It saved our bacon (and we became financial vegetarians as a result of the cost of bacon--and other meats).

Pay cash. If you can’t pay cash, don’t buy it. When we got out of grad school and got fully employed, even our modest salaries seemed like unimaginable wealth. It would have been easy to go crazy and spend it all, plus some. But we vowed to avoid debt. So we paid off our school loans as quickly as possible, drove our ratty (but paid for) cars, and saved up for every big purchase. As a result, we regained our footing pretty quickly, were able to buy a house, and built a savings cushion.

Cultivate an attitude of abundance and gratitude. While I was barely scraping by in Panama, I saw people who had nothing. No house. No food. No medical care. No nothing. I saw these people everyday. And I worked side by side with people who made around $100 a month who considered themselves well off. I was lucky: I didn’t miss any meals, I always had good health, we had a roof over our heads. Even when we really didn’t know how we were going to get by, my husband would say, “We’ve got enough.” And we did.

Figure out what your means are and live within them. As an extension of the attitude of abundance and gratitude is a knowledge of what it is to live within your means. This is perspective--not letting what other people do or say or advertise get to you and lead you to try to live beyond your means. It sometimes requires you to get a little tough on yourself. And it’s worth it.

Add financial tools to your trusted system. It’s easier than ever to keep up with what you’ve got and where it’s going. There are apps galore. Find one that’s easy to use and make it part of your daily (yes, daily--you spend money every day, right?) routine.

Just like every other aspect of your productivity, you’ll get great results if you create a clear vision, set goals, identify next actions, and track progress.

Getting Money Done

I don't know many people who love to pay bills. Collecting bills, writing checks, licking envelops and hunting stamps is not one of my favorite rituals. Yet, it is an important part of adult life and we do it every month.

Over the years I have been using the GTD methodology, I have naturally incorporated bill paying into my system. After all, it is a task that needs to be done. Here are a few tips that may help you in your quest to tame the money tiger.

• Know what you have. If you don't know the balance of your bank accounts, it will slip away magically into someone else's pocket. This has always mystified me. If I know within a few dollars what is available, it stays put. If I lose track, the whole amount is gone next time I look. I have gotten into the habit of mentally keeping the numbers in my head.
• Use a tracking system. There are many out there and one should fit your style. If not, make your style fit one of the tools. I used Quicken for years because their Savings Goals helped me have 'sub accounts' for each line item on my budget. It was cumbersome, but it worked. I could save ahead for periodic bills, like property taxes, Christmas and vacations, while having money set aside for monthly expenses, such as electricity, gas and food. Early this year I switched to Mvelopes because it is an online, envelope based system. I miss some features, like tracking investments, but the control my wife and I have obtained is worth it. Since we are living in two cities for awhile, having this information online has been helpful. We both know where the money is at all times.
• Know what bills come and when to expect them. I have used checklists for this task. Why worry about what bills should be coming? Well, planning is one, but the more important part is knowing when the system breaks down. When I didn't receive the electric bill one month, I didn't notice it. It didn't show up the next month either and I didn't think much of it. When the power turned off, I noticed! I still don't know why the bills didn't come, but that didn't release me from my responsibility to pay the bill. Now I track it myself.
• Have a budget. A budget is a living document, expanding and contracting with life. It is there to assist in decisions. To make one, start tracking every penny spent for a month. Write it down  and compile it. It is an eye opening experience. Sit down with those who spend the money (ie spouse) and discuss it. Don't accuse, rationalize or fight. As Rafiki in The Lion King said, "Doesn't matter. It's in the past." What is important it to learn from the past and plan for the future. Make it a monthly exercise to look at how things went last month and suggest changes for the coming month. Decide together what are reasonable amounts to be spent. Try to stick to it. Make a reward system, if it helps. Above all, don't beat anyone up over a mistake. It happens. Rome wasn't built in a day and budgets aren't golden overnight. It takes time to build financial discipline. Note the situation, the thoughts behind it, decide what the correct response should be in the future and move on.
• Post a graph. I have used this at work. By posting the budget vs. actual spending on a wall, everyone takes notice without having to say a word. I have watched my team correct many bad behaviors without my lifting a finger or threatening to fire anyone. Show the goal and progress made and most people will subconsciously make the necessary changes.
• Learn, learn, learn. Raise your financial IQ. There are many great sources of knowledge. Books such as Your Money Or Your Life or Total Money Makeover are a good place to start. I read a money related blog, Get Rich Slowly, daily for new ideas.
• Most importantly, talk about money with your spouse and family. Don't let money become a wedge in your relationships. My wife and I meet twice a month on finances. We go over the budget, pay bills, discuss plans for the future and figure out what changes need to be made. Over time we have become in tune with each other's strengths and weaknesses and help each other rather than attack. Because of this financial honesty in our relationship, we have been able to weather financial storms that could have capsized our marriage. We have come closer together through these difficult times.Start now before the clouds are on the horizon.
• Teach your children early. We have shared the budget with the kids and involved them in some decisions. We have helped them plan vacations. It is not the easiest task and we haven't been as successful as we would like. Kids have to learn on their own sometimes and the right wake-up call will happen at the right time. Just be ready with advice when they want it.

Slow and steady wins the race. By living in a budget and saving relentlessly, financial goals such as debt-free, mortgage free and early retirement are possible. In fact, the odds are better than winning the lottery. Managing money is not glamorous, but the payoff is worth it.

Eight things I learn about Productivity reading Rework. (Kind of a Book Review)

If you are not familiar with Jason Friend and David Heinmeier, you may be familiar with their company, 37 Signals. If you are not, please stop reading, and visit them.

This book contains business advice that goes against the common ideas, for business growth, and many of them that can be extrapolated to personal productivity. 

When I was reading this book, I was fascinated, with the uncommon sense of their advice, but how cool and logical sounds. This is a short read, and was intended in that way, the book has cool images by Mike Rodhe

You can find more information on the book, on this link, inclusive an official PDF excerpt here.

The book was impressive, the following story was even more impressing: They cut the amount of words before the final draft, and remove the fat, to make a lot of essence, after that, they add the incredible images of Mike Rodhe. 

This book aims to rewrite the rules of succeeding in business with a fresh, down-to-earth approach. Contain 12 chapters and many short essays, with advice that it’s contrary to the usual advice, but that has been prove true on their own company. This is in a way, what they had learn from not following the rest.

Now that I took care of the housekeeping issues, let me go over the Eight Things I learn about productivity by reading Rework.

Eight things I learn about Productivity reading Rework.

1.- “You don’t need more hours, you need better hours”

That is one of those things that we forgot so often, we focus on the lack of time we had, instead on how to use the time we had and do the thing that will have the biggest impact. We focus on the lack of hours, not on how to make the ones we have better.

2.-  “Your day is under siege by interruptions. It’s on you to fight back”

I am tired of listening to people that the interruptions or meetings are eating they alive, if you don't fight back, you will never win. I use to need to stay in the office a couple of hours a day extra in order to catch up and fight with the meetings and interruptions, now I have sometime blocked in my Calendar, if you place a meeting on the same time i am blocked, unless is critical I will not come. This has raise a lot of things, but has allow me to leave the office before six in a consistent way.

 

3.- “It’s tempting for people to obsess over tools instead of what they’re going to do with those tools.”

As a person that had bee into GTD for a numbers of years, I love when people ask why I use, and how I use it, or even more, why they don't need to use it. People obsess over the tools, but often don't think about how they will use the toy, resulting in a waste of money and time, in the search for the perfect tool, until you define what you are looking for, any tool will help and not help in the same measure.

 4.- “Focus on what would not change”

How many times did you catch yourself, worrying on the change that is coming, the economy downturn, the excess of the lack of inventory, the things that you can simply never control, focus on what won't change, is a principle that apply to productivity is really powerful, if you focus on what wouldn't change instead on the possibilities of change, you will move forward faster than the rest, and will be able to keep yourself centered, when the real change happen, you will keep focusing, the others will continue in fear.

  

5.- “What you do is what Matter, not what you think or say or plan.”

Again, DO, stop thinking and planning, and begin doing. People is not more productive because is hard, people is not more productive because they are using their time to think and plan instead of do, so remember that only what you do matter.

6.- [Workaholics] "...try to make up for intellectual laziness with Brute Force. This result in inelegant solutions

I love this one, and can think in so many people and companies, Workaholics work harder, they use brute force to accomplish their stuff, the problem with the Brute Force is that will generate the results, but never an elegant solution.

7.- “You are better off with a Kick-Ass Half, than an Half-Ass Whole” Ship, doesn't matter if is not perfect yet, is better a Kick-Ass Half than let the pressure push you and produce a Half-Assed Whole. I had been guilty of this, and had produce a lot of Half-Assed Wholes, but without a doubt, always better when I do Kick-Ass Half. Are you doing Half-Ass Wholes?

8.- “To do Great work, you need to feel that you’re making a difference. That you’re putting a meaningful dent in the universe. That you’re part of something important.

I love the concept of great work, I try to spend one hour daily doing my definition of Great Work, in my case, Great Work is something that will matter in 10 years, I don't need motivation, I don't need push for this now. Years ago, took me a lot of time to came with this idea, and begin putting on the right stop of the daily priority my great work time, or as I call it, my Extraordinary Time!

This book was really fun to read, and I learn a lot, not only in productivity but also about business.

Disclaimer: Images are screen shots of the book, and belong to their authors. 

Abundance is an attitude.

A while back, I was in conversation with someone who was really struggling financially. I mean seriously struggling. Like not sure if the next bill could be paid kind of struggling. Oddly enough, she wasn’t stressed. “I am very blessed,” she told me. “I’m healthy. I do work I love. And my family is nearby.”

Contrast this to a business owner who I overheard saying, “I’m getting killed out there. My competition is overwhelming. Using Twitter and other kinds of social media would expose me to them and they’d wipe me out.” His sales last year? Over a million. Yeah, like in the seven figures.

Abundance is an attitude. It’s not a dollar sign. It’s not a bank balance. Abundance is all in your head.

Or not.

The best part about abundance is that you can acquire it at any time. And the easiest route to enjoying your abundance is gratitude.

Simply by saying (preferably writing down) what you’re grateful for will allow you to become more aware of your abundance. Just noting five things that you’re grateful for each day can turn your life around. The sunshine. A smile from a stranger in the grocery store. The way your legs held you up when you walked up the stairs. It doesn’t have to be big stuff. Little stuff works just fine. If times are hard, you may have to search your world but rest assured, the abundance is present if you’re present to it.

Finally, one little bit about money. Yes, paying taxes does pinch a little. And yet, like Augusto, I am grateful for that tax bill. It means we earned more last year. It means we’re doing our part to provide services and all sorts of other things that make our nation, our state, our county, our city run. I don’t have kids--and I am grateful to pay teachers. My house isn’t on fire--and I’m grateful to pay the fire fighters’ salaries. No one is breaking into my house--and I’m grateful to pay the police officers’ salaries. The list goes on and on.

When we were poor grad students (and by poor, I mean that we earned less than $10,000 a year--well below the poverty line), my husband used to tell me: there is always enough. And there was. 

I am happy I pay taxes this year

I am happy I pay taxes this year, and I hope to pay more next year. Around this time I spend a lot of time helping people to get the most common complaint of April in perspective, people complaint on paying taxes, on paying more than last year, on paying too much; me, I am glad I am paying taxes, and I am glad I pay more than last year, that means I made more money than last year. 
 
That last part is what a lot of people miss, yes is true, you are paying taxes, and I hope you are paying more than last year, otherwise stop for a moment and thing in the alternative, the alternative is pay less taxes or pay nothing, but let me remind you that if you pay less or nothing, most likely is because you make less or noting too. 

People tend to remember that they are paying the taxes, but they forgot for that same moment that they make money the year before and because of that they are paying, is never the other way around. Make no money, pay no taxes

As I said here before, I am happy I pay taxes this year, and I hope to pay more next year, I work hard during 2009 and make money, I hope to keep working hard on 2010 and make more money, and next year when tax season gets back, I will spend my time reminding people, that they are blessed because they pay taxes, and even more blessed if they pay more than the year before, don't forget it, don't loose that perspective.

This monkey is checking his progress

This week we finish the first three months of 2010, I know is incredible, but the first three months are gone, that in a way, give us the opportunity to check the progress of those Goals that we set for 2010.

I check my goals progress every 30 days, because help me to keep track of how I am doing, help me to assure that I am moving forward toward those things that I define important at the beginning of the year.

When setting goals, (not-original content careful) one of the most important things (and one of the most ignored) is to write them down, have write not only the goal, but the motivation. Some goals can do with a line, for example read for me, only require a number, do exercise instead, require to put the motivation line, otherwise, I will begin my exercise tomorrow.

After you write them down, then you can go on the list and check if you have move toward the goal or not. Some people I know write down also, the status or the current situation when that goal was set, so they can see the progress easier.

This are some of my Goals for 2010 that I am going to discuss today:

PERSONAL

• I Read more than 52 Books a Year

• I am Healthy

• I Meditate at least 4 Times a Week

• I Write Daily 2000 words

• I Find Enjoinment in Exercise

• I will clean and leave our home organized before get to bed

• I go to Chruch once a Month FAMILY

• I Maintain our 401K in 15% Investment CAREER & BUSINESS

• I write 1 post a week for Mind Like Monkey

• I launch my personal blog and are writing consistently by the end of July

• I keep my day job as a high performer.

The moment of truth. Lets see one by one:

PERSONAL

• I Read more than 52 Books a Year

I have been doing really well on my reading goal, as this morning I had finish 24 books, so I am ahead of that goal.

• I am Healthy

 The 'Be Healthy Goal' imply eat better, and exercise, and even through I have improve, I am far from consider this a success, so I will need to put more energy and focus on this on the next three months. 

• I Meditate at least 4 Times a Week

This is another goal, that will require more effort on the next three months, I have been meditating around two times a week, but have not been able to accomplish consistency on four times a week.

• I Write Daily 2000 words

I am at an average of 1000 words per day, this is another goal that will require more focus on the next three months, I need to get better at using the little moments of time to write that I have, instead of wait for the perfect moment.

• I Find Enjoinment in Exercise

This is a goal, that I am failing miserably, not only I have not been able to find any enjoinment, I have been procrastinating on this goal in the worst way possible. I make a new commitment, lat night regarding this, and I hope I can move forward in the next two weeks toward this goal.

• I will clean and leave our home organized before get to bed

This is a goal that I am good at, and I am proud and happy to set it, no more unnecessary stress, and only require a little time investment. Also is a nice shut down routine.

• I go to Chruch once a Month

During 2009, I work hard on my spiritual side, I may say that I failed on march, even trough I went 3 times in January and 2 in February, I did not focus on this goal during march, and did not give it the importance it deserves, so I will need to work better in this also. FAMILY

• I Maintain our 401K in 15% Investment

This is on cruise control, and we continue putting this money away. CAREER & BUSINESS

• I write 1 post a week for Mind Like Monkey

I could have done this much better, but I am happy with the success I am accomplishing here. In the next three months, I will focus on have the post early done, so they publish at the right time.

• I launch my personal blog and are writing consistently by the end of July

I launch my new blog www.augustopinaud.com and have been also blogging there, part one of this goal is accomplished, I am working hard on make the posting more consistent.

• I keep my day job as a high performer.

This is a goal that I have been accomplishing, and I am happy about it.

As you can see, check the list can be brutal, but will give you an idea of were you are, and were you said you were going. Those goals can change, and that is fine, I can discover that I don't want to read more books, and change the goal, the important thing is to follow trough on the ones that are important, and accomplish them, or be really close, but unless you check constantly, at least every three months, and are willing to evaluate the status, it is going to be really hard, remember you set to accomplish these in twelve months, not twelve days, if you forget to follow trough you will most likely not accomplish them.

Are you checking your goals?, are you writing them down? How is your progress?

Monkey See, Monkey Do!

"Do or do not. There is no try."

    - Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back

"Do it! Do it right! Do it right now!"

    - Joseph Fielding Smith

Ultimately, everything we have been talking about in this blog boils down to actually doing something. All the capturing, clarifying and organizing is pointless unless we actually make something happen. 

This part is the pay off for doing all the other work. After all, if we didn't actually get more accomplished, what would be the point? There are some lucky people who manage to be highly effective and efficient at getting things accomplished without all the other work. For the rest of us, however, this approach is the best way to get all those open loops captured and acted upon.

Here are a few tricks I use to keep moving things along. Each morning, I take a few minutes to get ready for action. I review my calendar to see what is coming up. On busy days, I print a hard copy of my appointments so that I don't have to boot Outlook, just to see my next meeting. I then take 5 or 10 minutes to review all my task, especially focusing on the work related lists.I take a 4x6 card and my florescent pink marker and write the 3 - 5 most important things I need to accomplish and tape it to my monitor. Having the short list in a obnoxious color reminds me throughout the day and keeps me focused. Then, it is "Ready, Set, Go!"

Another trick I have learned when I bog down is to do a sprint. When I have a few minutes, perhaps 30 before my next meeting, I shove everything aside and focus on my #1 task and see just how much I can get in 5 minutes. I even set a countdown timer. It is amazing how much can actually be accomplished in a few minutes. Intent focus for 10-15 minutes can drop me into flow, that euphoric state of hyperactivity where I lose track of time. That is when I can really get a lot of things done. It rarely happens accidentally, though. I have to concentrate and work for it. My day tend to be interrupt driven. Without that concerted effort, I can go the whole day and 'not get anything accomplished'.

One of the features of my task organized, Toodledo, is the ability to put time estimates on each task. As I am adding tasks, I try to take a guess of how long it will take to accomplish. Toodledo has a feature where I can tell it how much time I have and it will suggest tasks to do, based on priority, deadlines and urgency. This is really good for late in the day, especially Fridays, when I don't have the energy to make decisions. I just need to be pointed in a direction and told what to do.

I am interested in hearing your ideas on getting into action. How do you do it? What do you do when you need a little nudge to get started? Let us know. That is what we are here for. Just remember, lists are no good unless you get out and swing from the trees.

Power Processing!

I must admit, I enjoy processing. I find great satisfaction in plowing through an inbox, diving all the way to the bottom. In preparation for this post, I spent some time thinking about why I like it so much.

Last week, I talked about capturing tasks, ideas and such on paper. In thinking about it, I realized it is that piece of paper that really drives my love of processing. You see, I get a real emotional high from crumbling up that piece of paper when it is finished being processed. If you ask my cube-mates, they would tell you I really relish it. Do I ever just quietly toss the piece of paper in the trash? Heresy! Every scrap, from full sheets to Post-It Notes are mercilessly crushed into a tiny ball before being tossed.

I need that adrenalin rush. I live for it. It is the reward for processing.   Stephen Covey talks about the endorphins released when we check something off a task list. We crave it so much that we will write a completed task on our list just so we can check it off. Yes, I do that too. Productivity is a legal high! Try it.

Okay, now I have had my rush talking about crumpling paper, let's get down to processing. There are days I just can't make it happen. The inbox piles up. I can't get into the mood to deal with the dozens of email sitting there, waiting. I can't crush email, so I don't get my high. Perhaps that is why I don't like processing email. Hmm. Perhaps I need to really waste paper and crush blank pages for every email I process. Just kidding. Don't send the Green Police after me, please. 

Sorry. Back to processing. When I find myself avoiding an inbox, I reach for the two minute timer. I know I can force myself to do it for two minutes. I quickly decide what to do with the task - Delete, Defer or Do. I file quickly and resolutely. When I get on a roll, it is amazing how much I can get done in those two minutes. At the end, I find I often keep going, momentum kicking in and keeping me going to the end. If it doesn't, I stop and take it up again another time. I still get some done. Perhaps that just isn't the right time for processing for me.

Processing needs to be a quick action. Get used to the questions to ask about each item:

• Is it actionable?
• • If not, is it Trash? Toss it. Now!
  • If not, is it something to incubate? File it in a tickler.
  • If not, is it reference? File it. Make a new folder if necessary.
• What is the Next Action?
• • Is it a project? I code these and flesh them out in my weekly review.
  • Can I do it in two minutes or less? DO IT! I set the timer and go after it.
  • Can I delegate it? Get it off my plate and on to someone else's. Code for follow up.
  • Can I defer it? Put it on a task list along with a guess of the time required.

I keep a copy of David Allen's flow chart next to my desk to keep me on track. Even after several years, I still find I can get out of the habit of the flow. We all need a little reminder now and then. No shame in that. I try to spend no more than a few seconds on each item unless I am Doing It right then.

I make it into a race. And reward yourself! Now if you will excuse me, I need to go crush some paper.