There are times when thinking can feel like a slog through molasses. And then there are times when thinking is like careening off walls and bouncing everywhere. This is pinball brain and it may feel more productive, but the rapid-fire chain of thoughts is moving too fast to truly engage with. You can take steps in conquering pinball brain, though, and restore your calmness.
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I have been using Launchy for many years. It's a great little application and saves me time every single time I use my computer.
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Productivity doesn’t happen consistently by itself. Consistent productivity is about applying techniques that can be learned and knowing yourself. Today we will talk about these. This is Episode 66 - My Top 10 Productivity Methods.
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As I think about what I have learned about productivity, I came up with a list of things I had to stop doing to be more productive.
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I dislike wasted effort. Typing the same thing over and over again is wasted effort. Breevy saves me that effort.
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Software abuse is when you take a program and make it do things it was never intended to do. This often results in slow computers, incomplete data, and bad analysis. It also means poor productivity.
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When I really need to blast through a lot of work, but really don't want to, I use the (10+2) * 5 method invented by Merlin Mann. It's a modified Pomodoro method, but instead of 20 minute work sessions followed by a 5 minute break, it shortens both work and break times. I prefer (10+2)*5 to Pomodoro because the 10 minute start seems do-able, whereas the 20 minute block often seems insurmountable.
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One of the most useful things I have learned to do over the course of my professional career is to organize project notes. Not only does this allow me to tell you where the status of any piece of my work is at a given point, but it also allows me to revisit the items when questions arise after the work is completed.These days I use a Bullet Journal. I also have used OneNote, Evernote, and a personal wiki to do the same thing. I believe that this general system can be used no matter how you track it.
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I'm going through a rough patch in my life right now, and I know that I can't keep up with everything. Unlike the past when this has happened, I am asking for help, offloading what I can, and letting some projects go dormant. So how do you know what to let go of, even temporarily?
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Our brains, the Ziegarnik effect reminds us, focus on the open loops that have yet to be completed. Physical clutter can often hide open loops. Today we look at how to figure out if your clutter is hiding open loops and what to do about it.
