Productivity

One thing at a time

I was sitting on the couch, reading an article, when I realized I had finished it but had no idea what it was about.

I realized I was not only reading the article, but was listening to a podcast with headphones in one ear, and was watching a baseball game on TV. Not only that, but my wife was occasionally talking to me about something.

I couldn't tell you what I read, listened to, or what's happening in the game. Of course, I could tell you exactly what my wife said, because I hear everything she says (not)

Plus-Minus-Next Journaling

The Plus Minus Next journaling technique from Anne-Laure Le Cunff’s Tiny Experiments offers a simple way to track what’s working in your life and make minor, actionable adjustments.

We’ve all heard about the benefits of journaling and how it can improve your life. Expressive writing can decrease symptoms of anxiety and improve our mood. ¹

But if you’re like me, journaling can be a daunting task. The simplicity of the Plus Minus Next technique changes this and provides a way to keep a record of your life without much time or effort.

In her book,

Our slow decay

Some brief thoughts about how our body decays as we age, leaving us with no option but to try and slow it down.

As we age, our bodies change. We lose muscle and mobility, even if we’re healthy.

It creeps up on us, and before we know it, we’re feeling old. Then, it’s much harder or impossible to reverse.

As my 50th birthday approaches, I’ve been more focused on this.

To combat muscle decay, we must incorporate regular strength and mobility training.

I now have heavy dumbbells, a weight bench, and a simple 30-minute, twice-weekly routine.

The challenge is incorporating this into my life so that it’s a habit I don’t force myself to do, but feel

Smaller Rocks Matter: Rethinking Time Blocking

Rethink time blocking: Don't forget to schedule "smaller rocks" like emails and admin tasks to prevent them from becoming urgent interruptions.

When blocking time on our calendar, we often schedule our ideal day, incorporating ample time to handle the significant tasks we plan to complete.

Scheduling these major tasks is a crucial aspect of time blocking, but we must not overlook the necessity of allocating time for checking emails, responding to messages, and performing other administrative tasks.

If we don’t set aside time for these admin tasks, they will either remain undone and accumulate, or they will become “urgent” matters that we end up addressing during the day instead of our scheduled tasks.

As Stephen R. Covey stated, you should

Using an index card to manage tasks

Using an index card is a simple technique for helping you focus during the day. It is not a replacement for your task application or calendar, but an addition. The point is to help you be less distracted and keep your planned tasks front and center while you work.

Review your task application and calendar every morning (or the night before) to determine what needs to be done that day. Then, write the main things you want to accomplish on your index card.

Use your index card as you work during the day. Jot down things as they come up.

How writing can help you solve problems

Have you ever started an email to someone explaining a problem that you don’t know the solution to, only to realize that by the time you finish the email, you have come up with a solution?

Simply writing out a problem where the explanation is as simple as possible (so someone else can understand it), we are clarifying in our mind precisely what the problem is. You likely don’t understand if you can’t explain the situation to someone else.

Understanding the problem is only the first part. Now, we try to come up with a solution. Often,

Posts tagged with Productivity