Scaling Yourself

February 12, 2008 · Comments

giantsized Probably the most difficult challenge I’ve had to deal with since last autumn until now is learning how to do everything that needs doing in a day as demands on my time and my roles have changed. It’s been difficult, and along the way, I let down a few people, friends who wanted my best effort, and who got a really pale rendition of what I can do and offer instead. That was hard to swallow, as no one ever likes to overpromise and underdeliver. Since that time (probably starting this last September), I’ve been working towards learning how to scale my skillsets up to this next level, trying to rapidly prototype what I have to know how to do to get everything on my plate done. I thought I’d share some of what I’ve learned with you, because at some levels, I think this is useful “how to” information for anyone working in the Creative class. Here’s what I’ve learned.

Cut Relentlessly

Gandhi was fond of saying that we all have the same 24 hours in our day; it’s all in how we use them. All of these things that I’ve cut are my choice. If YOU do them, that’s great. This is where I found some time.

  • I don’t watch commercial TV (haven’t for years).

  • I don’t play casual games online more than once in a blue moon. (Last night, I played Line Runner to test out MySpace’s recently launched games portal.)
  • I cut several projects that I was doing that were fun, but weren’t meaningful to my larger goals.
  • I cut participation in several online groups where I was only going through the motion.
  • I cut how much time I spend on any particular social network. I spend time with people, but I don’t consume every scrap of content.
  • I’ve chopped out real time social events that felt more like obligations, and limit my social media ones to 2x/week.

Through these efforts, I find back some of the time I need to work on projects that matter more to me, and to spend with my family, who are my supporters and the people I want to please most after myself.

Say No With Kindness MUCH More Often

This one is hard for me. I love participating. I love being part of things. But I have found that I have to say no to things a lot more often, so that I don’t accidentally set myself up to let others down. This still happens, because sometimes, I misjudge the project’s impact. But more often than not, I’m sending people polite no’s, and redirecting them to people who might be just as good at fulfilling a request. The more I can say no to projects that I can’t possibly keep up with, the more likely I am to do well at the ones I’ve already taken on.

Learn Triage and Loop Closing

Triage is the art of quickly looking at everything that needs doing and knowing what will either make the most impact or relieve the most stress. Often times, in business, we’re faced with relieving the stress (pressure of deadlines, complaints, squeaky wheels, low hanging fruit) before we can actually take on the parts that have the most impact. I try hard to balance those two targets, even though I often find myself more on the tactical side of the stick than I’d like.

Loop closing becomes important in communication. When it comes to the back and forth of business communication, I strive for closing the loop as fast as I can. Let me explain with an example:

  • You email me asking me for a phone call to run something by me.
  • I respond with my cell number, the days I’m best able to take a call, times that are best, and ask for some sense of the agenda of the call. (Note that I’ve given as much to close the back and forth as I can on that first pass.)
  • You email back with a few dates and times. I pick whichever is first that matches my needs (no thinking, just doing), and if you’ve given me a summary, I try to offer my advice in email (which works faster than phone calls, and permits asynchronous conversation).
  • I close the entire thread with no more than 1 or 2 more emails TOPS, and only then if I think I can resolve this without that meeting.

I do the same with all communication, as best as I can. When the boss points out a problem, I give him recommended next actions to take, and/or describe which ones I can handle without any input. Even if I have to have follow-up and re-positioning conversations, I’ve given my best shot at settling this on the first pass.

Decisiveness

I had a great conversation the other day where the key point that seemed to be missing from someone else’s action was decisiveness. I recognized at once that there are points in my day when I’m not just deciding on a path and taking action, that I’m shopping my idea around for advice before execution, even when it’s my task to solve. I’ve learned through this that however much I can fold into a decision, that’s more that won’t be a loose thread blowing in the wind for me later.

Templating and Shortcuts

Perhaps the most important thing I learned from Thomas L. Friedman’s THE WORLD IS FLAT is the notion of “value chain disaggregation.” Big words, but what they mostly mean is that if you look at some work process, there is almost always some way to break it down into a chain of processes, and that SOME of the processes need real thought and consideration, while other processes are more repetitive and/or simpler to replicate. Your goal (the goal of Creatives) is to focus on the part that adds value, and find ways to automate or outsource the parts that take the least creative effort.

I’m doing this with work, insofar as I’m working to build processes that others can execute, where my ideas are most useful up front and in the final execution, but not in the operational details. I call this templating.

On the side of shortcuts, I’m doing lots of things. On my computer, I’ve started using TextExpander and iClip extensively to speed up my use of repetitive text. Whenever I find a word or phrase or piece of information I use all the time, it goes into either of those applications (both Mac applications) for use.

I’ve also learned keyboard shortcuts for Firefox, Gmail, and Google Reader, such that my primary tool for communication and my tool for information processing is all keyboard-level fast for me. This cuts down the amount of time it takes to process things.

Finally, people ask how I’m always posting stuff daily and without much break in consistency of quality. WordPress has a simple, DIVINE tool that I use quite frequently: Edit Time Stamp. I can set a post to launch whenever I wish, so for the possibility of me having too much to do and not enough time to manage my blogging (which I consider to be an important part of my life’s work right now), I schedule a few posts to launch on days or times when I’m worried I might miss getting something out to you. This has proven very valuable on days when I’m too busy with other projects to get a post out, but when I know I’d rather you have something new to consider.

Tidbits

  • I make use of two tools for my task and project management right now: Things (a project software for Macs loosely based on Getting Things Done), and Google Calendar. Between these two, I’ve found a flow that helps me move through my processes faster and with fewer drops.

  • I don’t use instant messenger much because I find that the majority of people who contact me there are “bored” or “hanging out” and I am almost always neither bored nor hanging out. Though I do use Jabber IM to see Twitter.
  • I think in multiple threads. Instead of fighting this habit of doing more than one thing at a time, I have a few things I try to do to keep focus: I open a notepad file with huge font and put the top most important things to do in a given day. I keep a ’scratch pad’ or two running with strange sidebar thoughts or tasks.
  • I allow lots of things to fall right out of my head after their impact has lessened. #1 on this list: directions. I have no idea where I’m going most of the time. I’ve surrendered to wanting to know. I use Google Maps. Some day, Garmin will take pity on me and just send me a GPS, but then, I haven’t launched that project.
  • I have a little gate in my head that separates: “this would be cool” from “this relates to things I’m doing,” and I pass lots of things through it. Often, they fall into the “cool, but I can’t do it right now” category.

Where I Scale the Least

My biggest challenge continues to be in person, and/or in real time. This is where I fear being considered a snob or rude the most, too. They relate.

At events, it’s really difficult to give everyone the time they deserve. In some cases, someone I don’t know will vacuum up a lot of time telling me a vast biography when they’ve approached me to ask me a “quick question.” In other cases, I find that there are lots of great people and not enough time. For example, at any dinner, it’s almost immediately tricky to see everyone at a table without some level of shifting around. It gets tricky, and people feel left out. (I’m sensitive to that).

Further, I find that events are where I go to meet up with old friends and reconnect, but also where I go to meet new people with new challenges and inspirations. So I’m always trying to balance both, because I love my friends, and some of these folks I don’t see in person more than once a year. And yet, that makes it tough to meet new folks.

The phone is tricky that way. It’s a 1:1 relationship between my attention and my ability to do things, because I focus on the back and forth of the experience. It’s great when I want to reach out to people, but it’s tricky when I’ve got too much to do and people want to have long, drawn out meetings. (I’m learning some tricks from my boss on this one).

What About You?

Where are you learning how to scale? What areas do you need to improve? How much of this resonates with your busy life, and have you found ways over the hump where you might notice I’m still struggling? We can share, right? : )

Photo credit, Kevin Dooley

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  • Chris,
    I did something similar... I noticed that a lot of Digg usage was becoming a vacuum of time. So instead of using Digg to coordinate with my Digg friends, I switched them all over to Twitter. Now that all of my social media conversations are starting to move to Twitter, I'm able to accomplish many tasks at once. The Twitter application on Facebook has also helped tremendously at making me "active" on social networks without having to log-in actively.
  • This post couldn't have come at a better time. I have had to scale back on things for some time now, but haven't. It actually was my New Years Resolution, but things actually have gotten a lot worse since then. I feel terrible has I feel I have let down or disappointed people lately by not replying to emails quickly or taking forever on projects. I wasn't always like that.... actually that has only been in the last few months or so. I say "yes" to things because I want to help or I want the project, but I should have said "no" because I just don't have the time. I don't have the energy to keep giving. I'm just getting so tired.

    Thank you for such a great post. It is exactly what I needed. :)

    Shana
  • Hi Shana-- The trick with the saying no is knowing that you're giving more energy and focus to those things where you've said yes. Glad it resonated.

    Ainsworth- good plan, actually. Twitter's more flexible for that particular usage. Neat, actually. Have to think more on this.
  • Chris,

    I have just started working from home and I am realizing that I would need 56 hours in a day to do HALF of what I'd like to. Thanks for these great insights and tips.
  • Getting things done -- humankind's challenge.

    More often than not, I think a lot of the challenge is simple willpower, balanced with how you organize your work space. (And thanks for the tips on iClip and TextExpander!) Mozart produced an astounding volume of incredible music because of natural skill; but also, I hazard, because of his will to do so, and an innate ability to churn.

    There was a guy I worked with many ad agencies ago who produced lots and lots of strong creative work. He also insisted on cleaning off and organizing his desk every night before he left the office. He wouldn't leave until it was cleared, a willful, visual cue he'd achieved the day's goals.

    My dad--a choirmaster, organist, opera conductor, and founder of a large music non-profit--gets more fantastic work done in less time than anyone I know. Yet, his desk has been a dynamic catastrophe for 50+ years. His willpower is palpable. But clearly his organizational process is known only to himself.

    I side with willpower, which all too often translates into "less sleep." Then I adopt and test any number of small tips and tricks to optimize the output.

    Maybe the question we haven't asked, but should, is, "Does scaling up our ability to get more things done actually make life more worth living?"

    Personally, I think it does.
  • Prioritize.

    Prune.

    And say "No".

    Oh, I forgot. Use automation and/or outsourcing intelligently.

    All success
    Dr.Mani
  • Chris,

    Great post. I constantly struggle with productivity as well since I am perpetually overwhelmed.

    I would love to hear more about how you use Things and GCal. I love GCal but I feel that I am barely scratching the surface. I have never heard of "Things".

    Perhaps another screencast like your GReader screencast that kicked major ass?

    Thanks,

    - jason
  • Hi Tim-- I agree with you that it makes life better if you get a handle on things. I work with passion on those things I'm passionate about, and I'd rather lose some sleep than live my days without passion.

    Dr Mani- Simple and straight to the point. Thank you for your advice.
  • This is great advice, Chris. I struggle with scaling because, like you, I would love to participate in everything. But staying successful in a full time (first!) job while learning to navigate and maximize social media networks means figuring out how to move quickly.

    I'm planning to adopt, or at least try, some of your tidbits and strategies... I like the idea thinking in multiple threads, using a notepad file and 'scratch pad'.

    As for the greatest challenge, maybe it comes to resigning to the age-old fact that you can't please everyone. There are only so many hours in a day, right?
  • We set up an excel spreadsheet that lists our daily production order needs to keep ahead. That way we don't stray and get distracted. It keeps us focused and working on the most important tasks!
  • Wow. I've been trying to do the exact same thing the last couple months--and the first thing I learned pretty quick was that it was going to take months.

    I've been looking for tools to help me manage tasks, and just heard of Google calendar--but thank you for reminding me of Edit Time Stamp! That's awesome!

    I find myself spending a lot of time "filling needs" as they appear, rather than working on the most important tasks. Sometimes the needs branch out into projects themselves, distracting me from the important goals all the more. So I definitely need to work on my triage.

    There's one area I'm finding I can't cut back--personal health and well being. A decent lunch, 30 full minutes for exercise, a half hour for pleasure reading, a Sunday off--that's the time budget I feel I can dip into when I'm short on time for projects, because it's "me" time. I can spend it as I want, right? But I am totally finding that the me time is important--because if I don't take it, I crash. And then nothing gets done.

    Thanks so much for great thoughts to ponder!
  • Mousewords and Kristen- your points kind of both relate the same way to me, with regards to the "saying no so you can say yes to the stuff that matters."

    Learning how to say no with poise is important. Want the BEST tips on that? Check out Steve Robbins' post on Saying No with Honesty and Respect.

    BTW, Stever's podcast rules!
  • Speaking of scaling, Bill Gates had to stop using Facebook because he was getting 8000 friend requests a day.
  • This post is very timely for me. I have a few more pots on the boil than I can handle well, which I hate. Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people who still has a brain when I don't sleep. Too bad, that would come in handy.

    I have no pithy words of wisdom to share with the group, just thinking about this. I will come back to this one, it's very useful.
  • Hey Broges

    I did some leg work for similar shortcut and templating apps for the windows posse.

    "Things" = http://www.tudumo.com

    "Text Extender" = http://lifehacker.com/software/texter/lifehacke...

    Tudumo is in beta and closely coupled to GTD. It will cost $20 when it goes live.

    Texter is seems to have a learning overhead but looks super useful.
  • Very insightful and helpful, Chris. Your suggestions certainly affirmed many sentiments and behaviors I encounter on a daily basis, and I've learned a few more ninja skills to apply to my life.

    I'm in the midst of 'triage' and scaling back my participation in several distractions right now, though I always make time to absorb your invaluable knowledge. Thanks again for everything!
  • I declared war on unfinished projects today, armed with a kitchen timer and an Excel spreadsheet. The timer reminded me to take a break every hour and the spreadsheet forced me to be accountable with my time.

    It seems I'm not the only one struggling with many competing priorities for my attention. Thanks for this very timely post, Chris!
  • Emily
    Good post, and I appreciate that you chose the word "scaling" rather than "balance". Today we have the tools to make ourselves valuable in the right ways, at the right time. The question becomes one of applying yourself appropriately (i.e., scaling) rather than simply managing your time.

    For me, this distinction means the concept of scaling is also relevant on an organizational level (though I know your post was really about personal scaling).

    So I'm just wondering, what are good strategies at an organizational level? For people in an environment where tools like Twitter and del.icio.us are part of daily work, this might be already be seamless...

    What about environments where scaling tactics like those you've mentioned have yet to be adopted by more than a few individuals in an organization?

    I've been in situations where my ideas for scaling or templating work (e.g., IM, Google calendar, wikis, etc.) often require a great deal of education and convincing before they are implemented... and integration with daily work flow is another challenge. In some ways, this makes my individual efforts to scale less useful, as I either have to guide adoption of a new approach or be sure to account for all the different and more time-consuming ways for communicating with and connecting people (e.g., unnecessary meetings).

    I like to think we can all benefit from these kind of efficiencies, but what's the easiest way for a maxed out person to bring others along... for the benefit of everyone in an organization?
  • Jeanne Breault
    I struggle with all the above, and then some! Marriage and family has disrupted my sense of order and focus, which previously was work and personal fitness. Now I always feel overwhelmed and find it very hard to relax.

    Reading over these struggles we share makes me wonder if they're simply the bane of creatives - more thoughts and ideas than we'll EVER be able to complete! (Of course, the www, especially Web 2.0, doesn't help!)I always say, "So many ideas, so little time!"

    I think it's wonderful, Chris, that you have taken positive steps in scaling back. Unfortunately my scaling back is still along the order of collapse! Maybe one day I'll REALLY accept the fact that I can't do it all!
  • chris
    fantastic post. Since I have have cut back on my twitter, facebook and email(set times to check) I am way more productive, I have stronger erections, and I sleep much better. Side effects have been a stronger marriage, larger bank account and more time for the important things like drinking.

    Time managment and saying no is something they don't teach you. The most successful people I know all excel at this.

    Mike
  • This is a great article - at the perfect time for me. Since my company was acquired, things have shifted into high-gear and a lot of things that mean so much to me (blogging, my social relationships online and off) have suffered. But I finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. It is about prioritizing, and knowing when and how to say no and how to balance your day.

    One of my (Mac) applications that I love is Yojimbo - I put articles, documents, all the stuff I can revisit "someday" in a searchable database. I also love my OmniFocus and TextExpander.

    I find that when I get frustrated and maybe overwhelmed during the day, I find an empty office and look at my "must-reads" in the gReader. It relaxes me.

    Thanks for this - nice to know I'm not alone!
  • Thank you so much for this informative post - these are all the issues I've been struggling with over the last few months and periodically over the past 27 years of freelancing.

    The saying no is hard for me too. I'm a visual person - so what I've done is to put a "pause button" photo on my monitor and when I get requests coming - I "hit the pause" button and ask myself if it relates to my long term goals.

    I also try to visualize a weekly capacity calculator in my calendar:

    Capacity Calculator:


    168 hours in a week
    56 for sleep
    28 hours dedicated to home/kids/family
    14 for meals
    7 for showering/dressing
    7 for spouse
    7 for business development/administration

    49 remain for work.

    When I don't pay attention to this framework or limits, I end up short cutting sleep or family or showering .. and that's not good.

    As someone who has worked freelance for past 27 years, I've found that it is essential to manage time - your most valuable resource. I struggle with that daily - and often efficiency gets slaughtered on the alter of inspiration. Or, perhaps I lack discipline sometimes.

    I've also found that some clients can take up more of my time than others - and it isn't alway billable. And, then sometimes the quality of the time used - is not great -- that is a particular job or client is not fun to work with and that has a stress impact that can be a time suck and prevent from scaling.

    So, I have a happiness is a warm puppy clause in my contracts - not necessarily stated in those terms. But gives me an opportunity to formally evaluate the relationship in short increments.

    Thanks again for the great post.
  • Great minds think alike. My blog today (www.socialmediaexplorer.com) talks about how to manage microblogging communities and time commitments. Scaling yourself is at the heart of that matter. As someone who feels the need to know and understand a lot of different tools, I have to play in a lot of places. But it can be overwhelming. I spend most of my time where I enjoy the tools more personally, but still have to play on things I don't find all that exciting just so I can speak intelligently about them. Where's the line to be drawn? That's what I ask today. And where you're head is as well, I see. Thanks for affirmation.
  • Great post! However, I'd argue that much of this is less about scaling and more about focusing on the important tasks. If you were truly scaling, you'd be accomplishing more in less time. Sort of like what's described in the 4 Hour Workweek book.
  • Jason, I'm so glad you commented here because I noticed your twitter reference to your post but didn't favorite it .. going off to read it - while testing a comment tracking software. Hence, the second comment here.
  • Chris:

    What about just writing shorter blog posts?

    ;)

    Best always,
    - Peter
  • Or less often? :-)
  • I got the audiobook "The Power of A Positive No" by William Ury, one of the co-authors of "Getting to Yes." That helped me out immensely. One of his main points is to remember that behind every "no" is a "yes": you are saying "yes" to having more time with your family or "yes" to a more manageable work life, for example.
  • Hi...I found you from ProBlogger, nice post. You need to live a clutter free life, time manage with a TO-DO list, and focus on what matters. The biggest time waster is surfing the web. Just do it. The winners of this game is the people who can execute on their ideas the fastest! Money Never Sleeps pal!
  • Excellent!
    I'd like write my experience, but my english is not so good: sorry.

    Rino, from Italy
  • These are great suggestions. I recently rearranged my schedule to begin waking up around 4:30am. It went well for the first couple weeks, until I realized I was quickly burning out. I felt like I was constantly "chasing daylight." Like you, I have eliminated things like television and other time-wasting activities, but still find myself with to-do items carrying over from day to day. I look forward to implementing your suggested strategies and closing a few loops myself.
  • Thanks for the great tips, Chris. I've been a freelance science and technology writer since 1998, and I now run a blog, as well. For me, the most useful scaling tool has been to do more of less in every day. That is, instead of working a little on lots of projects, I try to get something significant accomplished on only a couple. It reduces the time that I spend changing brain gears.
  • First note, that Vader photo made me laugh out loud. I have no idea how it relates to the subject, but who cares. It's a tiny Vader and cat paws.

    Anyway, who said anything about scaling? I didn't even know that was an option. The way I've been going, you'd figure that my only option was to pile more crap upon the already huge pile of existing crap. I do need to come up with something, though. As I mentioned over at Darren's place, I find myself laying in bed at night thinking about all the stuff I didn't do instead of sleeping. That can't be good.

    However, different from you, I'm addicted to mindless online video games. I really really need to cut those out completely, maybe a self-imposed parental filter.
  • Further proof that Brogan is a superhero.
  • Fantastic post Chris, I'm happy to say I've done about half the stuff you listed but I've still got the other half to go :) Thanks for the reminder.
  • Great Post Chris,
    this time thing is such a challenge.
    Thanks for all the tools and tips- time to learn shortcuts.

    I was interested to read you are using things- have downloaded it, and will explore and google calendar over ical?

    Great blog, thank you
  • After getting married and then seeing my interest in social media take off, along with work associated with it, I have definitely been thinking about ways to spend quality time as well as advance my knowledge and interaction on the SM platforms. Thanks for the tips Chris and great way to put things in perspective, Beth.
  • The hardest thing to do in my mind is to identify other people to scale up in parallel. While I've never used the word "scale" before, it's a leverage deal - the investment to scale up four people around me should pay off with the ability to scale myself up even faster down the road.

    I disagree slightly with the other commenter that surfing the web is the biggest time-waster. Without surfing at some point, how did we get to this page??
  • Hi Chris,
    I like your "cutting" principle.
    The elimination of clutter to achieve simplicity is a key Zen idea.
    Drue
  • I'm surprised you don't mention RSS as a way of not only keeping on top of information but also getting things done. I rely on NetNewsWire/Newsgato/Newsgator to go on the Blackberry. As a writer and consultant if I find something that needs following up, I clip it on the phone or the desktop and then it becomes in effect a to-do. I could go on about how that integrates with DevonThink but that's just getting geeky. Of course scaling is about managing but it's also about using stuff and making it work harder. RSS is more than a reading tool, it can be a productivity one too.
    Similarly, Twitter has become a notebook. I send thoughts, ideas and captured language to my Twitter page and then it gets pulled into my Blog as RSS and then into the workflow.
  • Whoa!! So it's not only me. I thought I was going mad trying to juggle all my projects as well as family life! The last couple of months for me have thrown me right out of whack due to school holidays and having the kids home, and now that the school routine is into it's second week here is Australia, I still find myself procrastinating and doing bits and pieces here and there.

    I am in the process of drawing up a poster board with my goals and writing in the steps it will take to achieve them. I am using a poster board so that it will be a visual reminder of where I want to be by the end of the year.

    I have also set up my google calendar for the first time and learning how to integrate it into my day and blocking out times for certain tasks.

    Learning to say "no" so that I don't let others down is another biggie for me. I tend to be a people pleaser and like you Chris, I do not watch TV, I limit my socialising if it's not a family affair, and only use my skype chat to tap into my tech guy if there are any issues.

    Twitter is a great resource and that's how I found this article via Problogger... I had been out most of the day with my little one and have come online a short while ago.

    Thanks for the tips!
  • Hi,
    Well, I think that the most important thing is to know exactly what your long term goals are and then start modulating your time. Knowing what percentage of your day-time (sometimes night :)) you may utilize for your top 3 goals you can easily accommodate a few less important thing you may start, continue or finish. So basically I think that its all to the self-management process a person do every day. I personally am missing a lot of the stuff you said (and completely right) and I typed here but you cannot be following all your plans as there no perfect plans!!

    Enjoy!
    A.
  • Great post!

    I've struggling with time a lot lately and I've started to research ways to use my time more effectively. In my blog I wrote about getting rid of distractions, on the computer and in your surroundings, points to help me concentrate on more important stuff.

    PS: you have one more RSS subscriber!
  • Your "gate" analogy is a good one.

    I have difficulty corralling all the "cool" ideas into a holding pen while I wrangle the stuff I really know is a priority.

    The result is a landscape inundated with fantastic ideas & concepts so vast they hamper my productivity....I get spread too thin, frustrated & overwhelmed.

    I'll work on keeping a better "gated community" for my ideas - nice tip. Thanks.
  • Chris, your post couldn't have been posted at a better time in my life. Sometimes when things get going so fast and furious, it's easy to slip into a pattern of time-wasting habits. I use a Franklin to keep me on track mostly, but I plan on saving this post and using it for improving my own projects and personal time management.

    Thanks for such an inspiring post!
  • Chris, i will also save your post which comes at a good time for me. I liked some of your shortcut ideas and will apply them. i'm into time management now, after reading on ProBlogger about Mark Forster's "Do It Tomorrow and Other Secret of Time Management. I''ve tossed my Franklin Planner and try to use my Blackberry for scheduled appointments only. So thanks again, Chris, for adding to my body of knowledge surrounding time management. You and mark have given the best advice on the topic. I've read most of the best-sellling books on how to manage time for some 30-years, With the exeption of your article and Mark's great book -- the other books have simply drivin me nuts. I spent more time managing the Franklyn Planner, Daytilmer, and other systems than doing work that needs to be done.
  • kat
    I'm all ears (eyes) at the experts. I've recently shifted to working online and just found out that there's so much more to accomplish in a day online than in an actual office.

    I've been going slow with all the things that should be done. I noticed that I was experiencing cognitive overload, so I shouldn't feel guilty.

    Even though I feel everybody else is like a hurricane going through all the entrecard, technorati, digg, etc campaigns and I was being left behind... Hell, at least I'm adjusting to what suits me.

    One task at a time... I'll get there somehow.

    Thanks to these tips, now I know what to watch out for.
  • Hi Chris - much welcomed advice (my own time management is so chaotic currently with juggling several projects and a job as it has taken me several days to respond!)
    Thanks for another excellent posting!
    Laura
  • you need to anti-alias your title. badly. first thing i noticed on this page.
  • Thanks for the advice. I work from home, as does my fiancée, and our biggest problem lies in stupid time suckers like keeping the house clean, the fridge stocked, and having clean clothes to wear! Sometimes my whole morning ends up being dedicated to chores. My only solution for people who do the same is to spend a few days a week working from somewhere with free Wi-fi, coffee, & snacks, like Panera or Starbucks. But don't expect to stay on Atkins ;)
    Cheers,
    filmfangirl
  • First time I went through this was studying for my business degree. A strange thing happened my fourth year of studying, I began to 'synthesize' my work and my results improved. I found it was better to just stop taking it all so seriously and start enjoying life more. I famous quote I have always liked says "Live all you can - it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that, what have you had?" - Henry James

    Just don't let it stress you out man.
  • This timing is perfect! I've been thinking about where I went wrong the last couple of weeks as life has gotten overwhelming... This is a great help in figuring that out and moving forward!
  • My biggest time waster is reading to many SEO blogs and forums. I find myself spending hours a day doing this. Of course I still think it is needed, but I definitely get to carried away with it.
  • This post is one of the best I've read in a while and will definitely go on my link roundup. The writer's strike produced a lot of free time for me since I was not watching the very minimal amount of TV that I recently had, and my wife and I have for the most part abandoned watching movies since there is very few good ones being produced anymore. The net effect is something like 10 hours per week.

    Your insight about templating is mind-blowing, as well. It's time to reevaluate what I'm doing and see what I can streamline and automate.

    Thanks for this wonderful post. Keep up the great work.
  • thank you for sharing this.
    I can relate though I think it's even worse for me.
    I am really an internet addict but not as a joke.
    I live everything with passion and this way with my internet connections because it's not just virtual to me.
    What separates them from me is miles but with words and understanding you sometimes get closer to a person miles away than someone next door.
    How strange!
    My real daily life is not empty just that I can find more in depths exchange with online friends.
  • I am also working on how best to say No with compassion.

    Often I start by thanking the person for the invitation and for thinking of me, and then I follow with a "No" and no further explanation.

    If asked, I describe the process I went through to make the decision, but offer no justification, and say something like "Sorry I won't be there."

    It's tough, because there are sometimes lots of guilty thoughts, and some people aren't ashamed to try to work up as much guilt as they can!
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