Revamping Your Productivity System

Revamping Your Productivity System

Revamping your productivity system can be a daunting task. Digital? Paper? Hybrid? And what tools should be used for each part?

Sometimes the revamp is caused by an outside force, as is the case with one of the readers who emailed me recently. She is being required to use Google, but is used to Outlook and was having issues accessing Gmail through Outlook. Then add in the calendar and tasks, and things were getting confused.

Today we will look at how to revamp a productivity system by looking at systems of record.
How to Access Menus…from the Keyboard

How to Access Menus…from the Keyboard

I spend a lot of time at my computer. It involves a lot of navigation between and within programs, and it really slows me down to have to reach for a mouse to access menus. Here is a tip for accessing Windows menus from the keyboard:
Do Productivity Tools Really Work?

Do Productivity Tools Really Work?

Most of us have a whole lot of techniques for ways to get things done. Roles, goals, next action lists, someday/maybe lists, closed lists, timers, distraction blockers and most-important-tasks are some examples of these. These techniques fill a toolbox, and often times people will bicker about which tool is best.

There are some basics points that should be considered:
The Whys of Productivity: Processing

The Whys of Productivity: Processing

Gathering everything you need to give attention to is crucial to productivity; however, until you actually give it attention, your stuff won't be anything more than a pile crying out to you.

GTD addresses this during the weekly review and the clearing of the inboxes. Seven Habits doesn't address it, but the underlying assumption is that you are aware of what is going on in your life. Do It Tomorrow is all about putting things into your work for tomorrow, and keeping up with the inflow.

In this segment of "The Whys of Productivity", we will look at why productivity systems all want us to process all the things we have gathered.
The Whys of Productivity: Writing Things Down

The Whys of Productivity: Writing Things Down

It doesn't matter which system you look at: Daytimer, Filofax, 7 Habits, GTD, Do It Tomorrow, Bullet Journal...every system insists that you write things down. Each system differs on how and where you should write them down, but they all want you to get it down on paper (or electrons).
The Whys of Productivity: Minimizing Capture Locations

The Whys of Productivity: Minimizing Capture Locations

Every system out there, particularly those that are dependent on a specific format and/or planner, advocate putting everything in one place. Some systems insist that the only place to put things is in their product; GTD advocates a more realistic approach: minimizing how many places you put stuff.

Looking at this from a practical standpoint, it makes sense that the fewer places you put things, the fewer places you have to keep track of.
The Cons of Batch Processing

The Cons of Batch Processing

Recently I looked at the pros of batching, where you lump activities that require the same tools together to do at the same time. Today I will look at the disadvantages of batching.