It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)
Thanks for your notes and comments in response to my "BAD TRAVEL DAY" note last week. If you missed in, HERE IT IS.
Thanks as well to those that sent in a PRODUCTIVITY TIP. I won't post them all here, but I'll add a couple each week. If you'd like to send me your greatest PRODUCTIVITY TIP in just a few words, I'll be happy to share them. EMAIL ME
We're talking about PRODUCTIVITY and the importance of it in our lives.
Tim Challies writes in his book Do More Better (A Practical Guide to Productivity) that there are a number of things that rob us of our productivity. He describes them like this:
#1) LAZINESS
Proverbs talks about the sluggard in all of us and we relate easily with this. If we want to figure out a way to get out of doing something, this often comes easily. It's part of our nature. For many of us, we don't have to look very far to realize that the only person to blame for our lack of productivity is ourselves and our simple desire to be lazy.
#2) BUSYNESS
This is the opposite of being lazy, but it's just as bad. We tend to spiritualize being busy and we put busy people on a pedestal. Busyness often gives others the perception that we're really productive, but really it just means we're busy.
He goes on to talk about THORNS and THISTLES which are things outside of our influence that we allow to come in and choke out our productivity, but the first 2 words hit me hard.
First, I can be lazy. I allow things to creep into my life that keep me from doing what I need to do. I'm often tired, I schedule too much, and it's easy to keep procrastinating and putting things off, again and again. I'm sure none of you can relate.
Second, Jim Burns used to teach that "Busyness is a Sin". We tend to glamorize the full schedule, but when I'm busy I'm usually unhealthy, I'm out of rhythm, relationships are strained, my physical body not in a good place and everything is affected.
There's a balance between these 2 things that each of us need to find.
What have you found that helps you navigate between LAZINESS and BUSYNESS? Share that with us...
Here are some comments from people last week on Productivity Tips:
Brian shares: For me, its about scheduling my work and working my schedule. If I don't take the time to make a plan and put it on my schedule, it usually won't happen organically. Tips and strategies are great, but I have to take the time to implement them which doesn't always happen unless I'm intentional about it. I try to take the first couple of hours on Monday to plan out my week. This helps me see what needs to be done, make a plan, and then put it into a practical schedule that I can handle. This also helps me be pro-active in scheduling appointments and lunches with people who are a priority to me.
Oscar shares: My tip is that I always focus on the big things, important things (Covey principle) but I always have smaller pebbles to tackle down during down (waiting) time. I focus on things on quadrant #1 first and then things from quadrant 2 I plan with time so they happen and those will in turn improve/ boost productivity.
Ty Shares: Being productive and being organized are inextricably linked for me. In 1988 (or so) when I was working in the steel industry, we were provided with training in the Franklin-Covey Day Planner System. Though I don't use that particular system any more, the principles of task prioritization and calendar management integral to it have stayed with me. Over the last 10 years, I have looked at many digital tools for the Apple platform (full data integration across all your devices is a beautiful thing) that would help me to capture, prioritize and execute tasks while maintaining one calendar which would integrate all my calendar feeds, plans, tasks and reminders. I tried lots of products that did parts of it, but not all of it. Finally, I invested in an app called "Fantastical 2" for mobile and for my laptop about 5 years ago. Calendars and task management across all of my devices are always synced, all of my email account calendars and TripIt (an excellent, free travel app) easily integrate, and the app also has an excellent task management and reminder system, too. The "Fantastical 2" apps are not cheap, but to me, they are super effective in helping me to stay organized, prioritized, and therefore productive.
What has made the biggest impact on your productivity? Share it with us...
"Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired." Jules Renard
"Don't confuse activity with productivity. Many people are simply busy being busy." Robin S. Sharma
