This photo, Sunset Rose, is by mazwebs at stock.xchng. When I saw it, it just took my breath away! So I turned it into a motivational poster with one of my dad’s favourite expressions! The image is 1150 x 796 … Continue reading
Productivity and Sleep
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When the demands on your time increase it is very tempting to make more time in your day by sacrificing sleep.
But this is the biggest mistake you can make!
The Myth
Our technologically advanced society has pushed the idea that sleep is a waste of valuable time.
Notable historical figures such as Thomas Edison have led us to believe that all we need to do is fight through the urge to sleep and become more productive. History is full of leaders and wise people who equated sleeping with laziness.
With the invention of the electric light, we’ve been able to push back the darkness and work “productively” through the night.
The Research
But are we truly more productive?
The research that has been performed in the sleep arena in the past 6 decade clearly tells us otherwise.
Having sleep apnea has forced me to learn more about sleep and the effects that it can have on your life. And the more I learn the more impressed I am with how critical a part it plays in a productive and happy life.
Researchers find that the need for sleep is not just a way to conserve energy or stay safe from predators during the dark hours of the night. Rather, sleep is a biological necessity. Without the proper amount of sleep our mental and physical health begins to decay.
A Failed Experiment
Stanely Coren, a researcher in neuropsychology, tells his own personal experience with the effects of trying to be more productive by cutting out sleep in his book Sleep Thieves
By the time that he got down to 6 hours a night he finally had to give it up. He was spending the extra time vegging in front of the television. His performance at work had dramatically declined. He also became much less pleasant for his co-workers to be around — his sense of humour was gone.
Basically, in an effort to become more productive by getting an extra 2 hours of time, he became less productive, less social and less alive.
And thankfully he wasn’t doing anything that involved dangerous equipment or materials considering the mistakes he discovered in the work he had done.
Get Your Sleep!
The fact is that we only have 24 hours every day. And almost all of us need to have at least 8 (9 is probably a better amount) of that for sleep. There are some people who get by with less, but you’re not likely one of them.
If we don’t get the sleep we need, we’ll be less productive in the hours that we are awake. Kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it.
You’ll need to cut some things out of your schedule to make time for what is most important to you. But cutting sleep isn’t the right choice.
When you’re scheduling your day, make sure that you get the sleep you need so that you can be truly awake when you need to be.
Share Your Story
So, how about you? Have you had any experience with the effects of less than adequate sleep? Leave a comment to tell us what happened. Or share tips on how you make sure that you get enough sleep.
Then you can pop on over to We Are All Of Us Nuts! where I share more of my thoughts on the importance of sleep.
Flexibility and Productivity from Timo Kiander
Am I famous?
Well, not really, but Timo Kiander at Productive Super Dad interviewed me as part of the first post in his series on productivity for work at home dads. So, while I’m not really famous I am definitely honoured!
If you want to learn how flexibility and productivity go together then you’ll love this article. It deals with the importance of flexibility with regards to productivity for WAHDs and WAHMs too. It is the first in a series of seven that Timo has planned. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the series.
You’ll definitely want to sign up to his list so that you’ll get notified as they come along. Plus the signing bonus is a great list of 222 productivity tips.
A New Time Challenge for Me
I’ve always admired those parents who choose to home school their children. But my wife and I decided that public school was a good route for us to take. When my daughter first started school I was still working contracts in the GTA and my wife was just starting her business.
But things change.
My son (who is in Grade 2) has never been comfortable in school. He does well with the school work and has fun with his friends most of the time. But something about it stresses him out.
Part of the problem may be his low vision which makes it difficult for him to keep up with his friends in the playground or play games involving a ball smaller than a soccer ball.
He’s also a perfectionist and worries about not doing well, or getting in trouble for some little infraction.
The stress is leading to health issues, like tension headaches and upset stomachs. For the past 3 months he’s been asking us if we could home school him at least 3 times a week.
So we’ve pulled the trigger and I’ll begin home schooling him on Monday with mom helping out, especially with the French.
I’m very lucky that I have the flexibility to do this. It means more hours a day that I can’t work which will be a big challenge. But it also means that I’ll be able to provide an academic environment for my son that will challenge him in a way that the public system can’t provide.
My daughter will remain at school (she’s in Grade 7) as there are many extra-curricular activities that she loves, not to mention tons of friends. She has asked to have some extra “home work” since she needs more challenge in her academic life.
That means I’ll still be driving her to and from school. I guess you could call this split schooling.
I’m not sure how this will impact my time management yet. I know it will be big, but I’m not sure exactly where. The work that I do will have to be rearranged quite a bit. I’ll have to cut back. I might be able to work bits and pieces of writing or whatnot during the school hours when he’s reading or working on a project. I’ll have to see how that goes.
So now, in addition to Mother Bill, I’m Mr. Bill. Don’t be late for class!
Image by julosstock at stock.xchg
Contest! Who is Messiest?
My office is a mess. I have to confess — I’m a pack rat. I go through cycles. The mess builds to a point. I get motivated and clean it. The mess builds again.
Unfortunately, my wife and kids are pack rats too. We have a tendency to hold on to things far too long.
But we are trying to change that. And I hope that you’re trying to simplify things in your life too.
Lorilee Lippincott, author of 3 2 1 Stop – Stop Running Start Living (see my review of the book) has generously donated 3 copies of her book for me to give away. So we’re having a contest!
The idea is simple. From now until Monday, March 26, 2012 at 5:00pm EDT you can submit a comment. In your comment you can describe your messiest room, or better yet, link to a picture of it.
Just to get you started, here are a couple snaps of my office. Scary isn’t it!
My messy office - part 1 (Click to start the slideshow)
My messy office - part 2 (Click to start the slideshow)
Make this fun! Get your friends to post their pictures too!
NOTE: If you don’t know how to post a picture to FB or Twitter or Flickr or some similar social sharing site, just email me a pic at bill@toxichabits.com and I’ll put it up!
3 2 1 Stop – Simplifying Made Simple
One of the cornerstones of effective time management is simplifying your life.
For some reason, we have a tendency to think that more is better. But the fact is that the more stuff that we own, the more we are owned by it.
Things cost more than just money — they cost time and they cost space. And of those 3 things, we have to remember that we might be able to increase the money and space (possibly at the further cost of time) but we can’t increase time.
3 2 1 Stop - Stop Running Start Living by Lorilee Lippincott
Lorilee Lippincott of Loving Simple Living has been blogging about her experiences in living a simpler life. And to top it off, she has actually written an amazing book about simplifying your life. The book is called 3 2 1 Stop. It outlines the journey that she and her family took to simplify their lives and provides some excellent tips and guidance for you to simplify yours.
I received a review copy of the book and I was blown away at how much practical guidance Lorilee has packed into these pages. She shares her experiences and provides steps for you to follow in getting your life simplified.
Before you get worried about having to give up too many things, relax. This guide isn’t going to tell you to get rid of everything.
Lorilee’s tips will guide you towards finding the things that take up space, time and money without giving you a benefit. In other words, things you could easily do without.
And this book doesn’t just focus on material things. It looks deeper into other areas of your life that get cluttered as well.
As you follow through the tips you’ll find that life becomes easier. You’ll have more free time to do the things that really matter to you. And you’ll likely never miss the things that are no longer cluttering your space.
If you’re frustrated by the way that things have taken over your life then you need to get this book. Now!
On Chainsaws, Tools and Time Management
The right tools make for an efficient use of your time
About 13 years ago I got my first chainsaw.
I had never used a chainsaw before. I had watched as a family friend cut down a couple trees on my parents’ property once when I was about 16. That’s as close as I’d ever been to a running chainsaw.
But when we moved to the Muskokas we settled in to a rural home with a woodstove. We have a forested acreage, so I learned to make my own firewood.
Now, I know that you’re probably wondering what this has to do with time management. Well, stick with me and you’ll see how it relates. I promise!
My first task when getting the saw was to get one that was big enough for the job. I couldn’t use just any saw. So I picked out an 18″ saw at Canadian Tire. I didn’t plan on cutting any trees bigger than that could handle. Later I learned that there is a lot more to choosing a saw than that.
I did a lot of research (thank you Google) on how to properly (and safely) cut trees, limb them, buck (cut into logs) and skid (drag them to where you want them). I also learned how to split them into firewood.
I made mistakes along the way. To quote the Thomas the Tank Engine stories “Luckily no one was hurt.” But in the past 13 years I’ve learned a thing or three.
The Right Tool
One lesson that I didn’t learn until my first saw died is that you need to have the right tool for the job.
The nice 18″ saw that I originally bought was a great little saw, unless you needed to cut a few cords of firewood a year. It was actually underpowered and not built as solidly as some of the more expensive saws.
When I finally got the right saw, it was a bit shorter but much more powerful. I couldn’t believe how much better (and faster) it cut through the wood. For 5 years I’d been wasting time with an underpowered saw!
The new saw is also more solidly built, so it can handle the amount of work it’s being used for.
Lesson #1: A cheaper tool may get you by for a while, but the proper tool for the job will last longer and work better. It will make you more efficient!
The Right Maintenance
A chainsaw works by dragging a series of cutting teeth linked together like a bicycle chain around a bar. The teeth are shaped in such a way that they each cut a piece of wood out of the log without cutting too much at once.
After about an hour of use the teeth start to lose their edge and the chain drags more. It takes longer to make a cut.
I had to learn how to effectively sharpen a chain.
This is not as easy as you might think. If a tooth is not sharpened to the same angle and depth as the other teeth around it, it can dig too deep or not deep enough. This will cause the saw to work harder as it slows down and speeds up depending on which teeth are in contact with the wood.
So I learned how to do a basic sharpening job. But after 2 or 3 times I need to bring the chain in to the shop where it is sharpened by a machine that gets it right every time.
Lesson #2: Learn how to keep your tools working well and outsource the job when needed. Then you can focus on getting the job done quickly and efficiently.
The Right Plan
Selectively harvesting firewood makes for a sustainable supply of firewood and maintains the health of your forest. But it is much harder than just going in and cutting everything down.
The tricky part is getting the trees to fall in the direction that will keep them from getting caught up in other trees. When a tree gets caught up it is dangerous, time consuming and can damage the other trees.
Before cutting a tree I need to determine where the best place is for it to land. Then I have to look a where the tree is leaning. In some cases I may have to pick a different landing zone since the tree won’t go where I’d like.
Once I’ve decided which way to cut, I have to properly line up the cuts I make and possibly use some wedges or come-a-longs to direct the tree in the proper direction. Doing this helps me get more trees cut in the time that I have.
Lesson #3: Taking the time to plan a job helps you make the right steps at the right time. The job gets done quicker and correctly.
The Right Preparation
Despite good planning, things do go wrong. I will often have a tree hang up on other trees as it falls a little too far to the left or right. Or worse, I may have misjudged the lean and the tree starts to shift backwards, binding the saw so I can’t continue the cut.
Speaking of chainsaws… you might get a kick out of this video I created with my daughter a few years back.
Lesson #4: Things will go wrong from time to time. Try to have the tools and plans to correct anticipated problems close by so you don’t waste time. Having a toolkit that is easy to grab and bring with you really helps.
The Payoff!
I promised you that this all has something to do with time management. You’ve probably figured it out already, but just in case you missed it, the 4 lessons can be applied to any job that you are doing.
Let’s review those lessons.
- Have the right tools for the job
- Keep the tools well maintained — outsource to professionals as needed
- Plan the job
- Keep a toolkit ready to help when things go wrong
Whenever you’re working on your business you need to keep these 4 lessons in mind. They won’t help you get more time, but they will help you to maximize the effectiveness of the time that you have.
What time management lessons have you learned along the way? Please share them in the comments.
Proud to be a Work at Home Dad
I am a work at home dad (aka WAHD) — and proud of it.
Before we get too far in to this discussion, I think it is important that you realize exactly what I mean by “work at home dad”.
I don’t mean simply that I’m a dad who has an office (or workshop) in the home. Rather, I’m talking about a philosophy. So here is the core of what I’m talking about.
A work at home dad is a father who has made the choice to fit his work into the life of the family, rather than the other way around.
It really doesn’t matter where the work is done. It may be in an office or workshop in (or close to) the home. It may be done at customer sites or even in an office somewhere. The crux of the matter is that the family is priority #1.
While there are always going to be elements of the career that require a fixed time, as much as possible the family needs will be scheduled first.
Mother Bill
I drive my kids to school most of the time. And I pick them up. When it comes to the extra curricular activities, I will do most of the running around. In fact, some of our friends call me “Mother Bill.”
I will often be the one doing the shopping. And sometimes the cooking. I try to avoid the cleaning, but sometimes I get roped into that too 8=)
Doing this helps my wife have the flexibility to run her business. Her work schedule is more regimented since she is a paralegal and has to arrange her schedule around the court (not much flexibility there).
I am glad that I’m able to do all of this for my kids and my wife.
But it does put a tremendous amount of pressure on my work time. I have specific times that are dedicated to the family that are usually reserved for work time in a 9 to 5 job. Time is more fragmented, which makes keeping focused more difficult.
I also help my wife with aspects of her business, and that impacts the time I have left for my own projects.
Sometimes I’ve found myself resenting the intrusions (usually when I’m under pressure to get something done). But I have to remind myself that this is what I signed on for. The benefits of this lifestyle definitely outweigh the costs.
So I’ve had to learn how to better manage my time. Time management is not a skill I naturally have. And I can’t say that I’m an expert at this point either. But I’m getting better.
This site is dedicated to sharing the things that I’ve learned (and continue to learn) with respect to time management. While it is coming from the perspective of a work at home dad, most of the principles can be applied to anyone who wants to make better use of their time, whether you’re a work at home parent or not.
The most important thing that I’ve learned is that time is not money… it is far more valuable!
Join me!