Dustin Wax, contributor at LifeHack, provides this excellent list of productivity blogs. TDS has been included and finds itself among an impressive group of people. I find this list to be authentic and personal- Dustin does a great job of adding commentary (wait till you read #9) for each blog unlike some other lists which have come out recently which solely look at Technorati scores. Thanks Dustin for the solid work!
Devoted readers of TDS will remember that I used to provide weekly downloads. Since it's Friday, I dug into the vault and retrieved this post from a year ago. (ok, not exactly a year ago but it works just as well)
Grocery store- last night. I am waiting at the deli counter and an older woman, obviously flustered, comes to the counter and asks the man where the produce workers are.
"Should be right over there," he says with a pointed finger. He returns to his work. Lady leaves, even more flustered.
There I remain stunned at the worker's approach to customer service. The lady had already been to produce and then walked 50 feet over to the deli, trying to get help. That was apparently not obvious to Mr. Deli.
The next time someone asks for help, try not to point out an option. Bring them the solution they deserve. Walk with them. Be interruptable. Pick up a phone. Care.
This morning I chose to arrive 15 minutes later to work. Not late just later. In that same block of time, I sat quietly and read an article that I've been putting off for a while. A great use of a quarter hour.
Where in your schedule are 15 quiet moments?
I like to think that there is a bit of monk in all of us. The BBC series, Finding Sanctuary was so popular because of this. When I take students away from the noise and hustle of the world, they too find that quiet moments actually boost their overall well-being when they return to the "real world".
Some suggestions from Finding Sanctuary:
Five Meditation Phrases from the Christian Tradition:
I’m pleased to announce the very first Daily Saint Podcast! This week I look at one productivity tool and one bit of encouragement for the week ahead. Enjoy and let me know what you think!
Click here for the podcast.
I know that strategic planning produces tangible results but I may have discovered something better. No, it's not a staff retreat nor is it a new coffee machine in the faculty work-room.
I put up a tree swing in my backyard.
Who would have know that such a simple project would produce such amazing satisfaction? Had I known, I would have put one up years ago. Remembering that a project is defined as "anything you'd like to or need to get done which requires multiple steps", I set out to give my family hours of joy.
Tree? Check.
Rope? Check.
Ability to tie a knot? Check the Internet. Kind of important.
In less than one hour, I had gone to the hardware store, purchased my gear and I was good to go. The result: my backyard is transformed into a play-zone.
Application
What project are you working on that is really worth the effort? Which one will produce results that will completely transform your workplace? Which project can you get rid of because it is a waste of time?
Imagine a school that allowed every student to grow, learn and prosper. That was the initial desire behind the No Child Left Behind act of 2002 and while NCLB is controversial, it has proven successful in at least one area- keeping schools accountable.
Now imagine a school in which Getting Things Done was implemented.
Course units might include:
Is this vision that far from reality? My colleagues in education would laugh at the sight of such courses and yet I wonder how Algebra I prepares one for life any better than a course in life goals or time management.
The secret of course lies in integration. It's not that we need a school for GTD. Rather, we need people who can integrate GTD into what they're already doing. Teachers and parents who see the value of putting ideas onto paper and out of the mind. Administrators who actually maintain a healthy set of lists and projects. Students who can actually remember a deadline because they wrote it down.
I recently had a friend ask how I got so much done in a week. Surprised, I had to scratch my head and wonder if GTD had something to do with it after years of practice. Would your colleagues wonder about your secret to productivity? As in any classroom, the moment when someone asks is of course the moment in which you know you've set an example. Now that's GTD!
Photo by Jovika
Elegant. I've heard David Allen use this word many times in his writings and training events. Most men don't use this word, much less in the context of a dayplanner or to-do list. The dictionary defines it as
"Characterized by or exhibiting refined, tasteful beauty of manner, form, or style."
Now think of the last time that you felt that someone was elegantly dressed or appointed. I think of a fundraiser that I was attending a few weeks back. One woman in particular (she happens to be my lovely wife) was clearly a cut above the rest, dressed stylishly and carrying herself with confidence.
We might also consider this a state of being "ok with yourself", or knowing what you're all about. In my work, we often refer to this as being mission-based and having a sense of contentment about who we are and where we see ourselves going. If you work in a competitive niche, this "ok-ness" is essential. Without it, the soul of your company is lost.
As I think of the word elegant as David Allen refers to it, I'm mindful of a system that is thorough and captures ideas as they come, then processing them into actionable steps. I think of a net of sorts that can 'catch' what needs to be retained and drop what's useless.
With this said, how carefree is GTD? Allen wrote last week about creating systems that are not beholden to the urgent. This harkens back to what Covey called an "urgency addiction" and he noted as far back as 1988 that the truly successful people in life are looking beyond the ringing phone and email chime.
As I was driving to work this morning, I wondered how many miles my car has- 88K or 98K? It runs like a champ and my commute is so short that an old pick-up would get me there in one piece. As long as I take good care of it, I (and my car) will be ok. This is of course how GTD works as well- when you know what you're all about and do your work with consistency you can relax and get things done.
How elegant is that?
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