2010 May | Constructively Productive

Archive for May, 2010

May 31, 2010 by Thursday Bram

When’s the Right Time to Stop Working?

Today is, at least in the U.S, a holiday. Personally, I’m theoretically on vacation this weekend — visiting family and attending a cousin’s graduation. I managed to smuggle along my laptop, though, and every couple of hours I’ve pulled it out and done a little bit of work. Just for the record, this isn’t a question of being rude —...

May 28, 2010 by Ali Luke

Why Are You Being Productive, Anyway?

I’m not good at sitting still. I like to be doing stuff. I like the buzz of achievement that comes from being productive. But in recent months, I’ve been trying to take a mental step back and get some perspective once in a while. After all, productivity is not an end in itself. Most days, I spend several hours sitting at a desk, pressing little black...

May 26, 2010 by Ali Luke

Is Your To-Do List Working?

The to-do list is a staple of productivity and time management advice. Whether it’s jotted on a post-it, written out neatly in your diary or managed through a piece of software, the to-do list is how we organise our days and try not to forget all those small but vital tasks that we need to get done. A lot of productivity advice seems to concentrate on making...

May 24, 2010 by Thursday Bram

The Git-R-Done Mentality

Using a task list requires you to make some basic assumptions, especially if you use some of the more common approaches to productivity. If you’ve got something you need to do, you have to put it on the list. If something’s on the list, you’ve got to put forth effort to get it crossed off of that same list. The whole system is built on a mentality...

May 21, 2010 by Andy Hayes

Are You A Plate Spinner?

Are you a plate spinner? No, really – I’m not talking about literal plates floating around in the air; I’m talking about the personality profile called a “scanner” by Barbara Sher in her book, Refuse to Choose. I fought, argued, and wrestled with lots of different productivity suggestions, some from my peers and friends, and others from the tips...

May 19, 2010 by Ali Luke

Why it Pays to be Idle

You want to get more done, be more productive, reach the goals you’ve set and make some real progress. So you push yourself to work some extra hours. You try out a bunch of new productivity systems, which promise to have you on top of things. You work in the evenings. At the weekends. During dinner. And you keep thinking if only I had a few extra hours…...

May 17, 2010 by Thursday Bram

36 Secrets the Productivity Gurus Won’t Tell You (But Our Heretics Will)

Productivity advice is never universal. We each think, create and act differently and our routes to productivity reflect that fact. More often than not, what works for us, goes directly against what we’re told should be the ideal way to do things. We asked the people below to give us their productivity advice — what they do that works for them, no matter...

May 16, 2010 by Thursday Bram

5 Reasons Why FlyLady Doesn’t Cut It For Me

When I first started writing about productivity — back when dinosaurs roamed the earth — someone sent me the link for FlyLady, tell me it was like the woman’s version of ‘Getting Things Done.’ I wouldn’t describe it as such, although it does seem to be the main approach to productivity geared towards women. And, before I really launch...

May 14, 2010 by Ali Luke

Stronger Productivity: Building on What’s Already Good

Often, when we take a look at our productivity, we start by looking at what’s bad. We keep a time log and highlight all the areas where we waste time We look for bad habits, like procrastination or a tendency to get distracted We berate ourselves for the things which we haven’t accomplished We notice all the tasks on our to-do lists which we haven’t...

May 14, 2010 by Thursday Bram

Is Multi-Tasking Really as Evil as It Seems?

I’ve read plenty of expert opinions that say that multi-tasking can ruin your ability to be productive: if you aren’t giving each task your full attention, nothing will ever truly get done. I’m not so sure I agree. Ask My Grandmother I spent a lot of time with my grandmother when I was growing up. She routinely multi-tasked, because there was...