Max Productivity Mastery [Review]

Productivity - The Art of Making Every Moment CountWouldn’t it be nice if you had a productivity system that provided you with the right task to do at any given time? If you had a way to organize ideas, goals and tasks in such a way that you didn’t have to constantly juggle them in your mind?

My focus of late has been in the arena of time management… the art of making room in my schedule for everything that I need to fit.

But there is much more to it than just making a schedule and getting everything to fit. And one of the big areas is how to make the most of each minute. In other words, productivity.

One aspect of productivity that I’ve been struggling with is keeping all the different ideas, goals, tasks, etc. balanced and in order. It is one thing to be able to schedule blocks of time for a task. It is quite another to know which task that should be.

Too much time is spent trying to figure out which task should be done next.

Not to mention the time wasted by the distraction of keeping your task lists and priorities in your head. How are you supposed to focus properly with all of that going on?

[stextbox id=”custom” caption=”Tweet!”]Wouldn’t it be nice if you had a productivity system that provided you with the right task to do at any given time? [Tweet Me!][/stextbox]

Alex to the Rescue!

Enter Alex Goodall and his Max Productivity Mastery training. Alex is an organization expert. He has spent a great deal of time developing organization techniques for data storage. He’s also spent some effort in developing organization techniques for tasks.

Max Productivity Mastery is a product to teach you how to organize your ideas, goals and tasks in such a way that you:

  • don’t need to remember everything
  • can easily capture and organize your ideas, goals and tasks
  • will quickly be able to determine which task is most appropriate next

The nice thing about Alex’s system is that he will teach you how to do it using free tools like Evernote, GQueues and Google Calendar. But you aren’t limited to using those tools — the system works with any tools that you may have at your disposal. The tools are only used to implement the system.

The Training

The training that Alex has put together is in the form of a mindmap within his site. There are notes, video and audio portions as well as links to the sites for the various tools that he recommends.

It is well laid out in a logical fashion. All the steps are well described so you can figure out the nuts and bolts of the system quite quickly.

However, the true test will be whether you implement it or not. The knowledge and principles of this training will be of little use to you if you don’t implement it.

I’m still learning how to work it myself. The concepts are there but I still need to train myself to use them consistently. It means changing some habits (bad ones I must admit 8=)

But I’m really impressed with this training so far. I believe that once I master it my productivity will increase.

[stextbox id=”custom” caption=”Action Steps”]Check out Max Productivity Mastery for yourself and see what you think.[/stextbox]


Gears image by deafstar at stock.xchng

Multitasking – A Million And One Reasons To Do It, One Reason Not To

Multitasking-The Answer You Think You Need

Is multitasking as beneficial as we think it is? Perhaps it isn’t…

A busy life gives you a million and one reasons to multitask. And it is tempting to give in to that, especially when work and family collide.

You’ve got to get the kids ready and off to school. And they need new clothes, supplies, video games, whatever. Extra curricular activities, after school events, visiting with friends.

On top of that, you have to get yourself ready for work, help your spouse, do chores, volunteering, social time with friends, hobbies and recreation…

And you still need to get some work done!

Multitasking – The Answer You Think You Need

Until cloning is perfected the answer most of us turn to is multitasking. The simple skill of doing more than one thing at a time.

Talking on the phone with a client while you read emails and file bills.

Listening to motivational tapes while you change the baby’s diaper and feed her.

Working out your schedule and to do list while in a staff meeting.

It’s great! You can get so much more done by doing more than one thing at a time! Why didn’t they invent this sooner?

[stextbox id=”custom”]Until cloning is perfected the answer most of us turn to is multitasking. — Tweet This![/stextbox]

Back Up A Second

Let’s back up a second. Let’s look at what multitasking really is before we get all excited about it.

I am a computer programmer and studied computer science in university oh so many years ago. And I learned about multitasking in computer environments as part of that.

You see, computers did not multitask in the beginning. They were given one program to run at a time. The computer ran the program without any interruptions. When it was finished, another program was loaded and it ran to completion (well, usually… let’s not talk about infinite loops).

This was fine when there was no human interaction with the program. But when programs were made that interacted through a keyboard and crt, it was found that they spent a lot of time just waiting for the user to do something. Wasted time!

So computer scientists developed algorithms that allowed the computer to spend a few milliseconds on one program, then switch to another, and then another. This allowed the computer resources to be productively used and shared.

The Human Computer

So let’s bring this into the realm of you and me. The human computer (your brain) is able to multitask as well. You can spend a few seconds thinking about 1 task, then switch to another, then back to the first, then switch to a 3rd, and so on.

You can multitask!

But there is something that you need to know. It is something that is called context switching. This is another computer term. And it describes the task of pausing one program and switching to another. [If you want to read more, see this Wikipedia entry]

The important thing about context switching is that it has a cost. Every time that the context switches the operating system has to do some stuff to move the one program out of the cpu and load the next one it. Depending on the resources available (and what the programs need) this can consume a large part of the computer’s time.

It can even get so bad that the computer spends all of it’s time trying to switch from one program to another and never actually runs any of the programs! That is known as thrashing.

Just like a computer cpu, your brain has to go through a context switch when you change from one task to another. Every time that you switch what your focused on, you lose a little time.

And often, you don’t actually get into focus on one task before you switch back to something else — you start to thrash.

So Is Multitasking Really The Answer?

I suspect that you already know what my answer to this question is going to be.

A few NY Times articles might be eye opening…

Slow Down, Brave Multitasker, And Don’t Read This In Traffic has some interesting things for you to ponder. I was especially shocked by the results of the study of Microsoft employees — 15 minutes to get back to work after getting an email or instant message? Wow!

Multitasking Can Make You Lose … Um … Focus is another great article. You’ll recognize the part about email voice. I’m sure you’ve heard it (and had it yourself 8=)

Another article at Innovation Management deals with how multitasking in projects affects delivery time. While it is speaking about multitasking at higher level (i.e. in projects rather than tasks), there are some graphics that really show the effects of context switching. You need to check that out.

The fact is, multitasking is not the best use of your time. I will admit that there are times where you have no choice. And I know that some people are better at it than others (although most of us think we’re better at it than we really are 8=)

But the simple fact is that you won’t do your best work on any of the tasks when you try to do them all at the same time. You just can’t.

Maybe the work will be good enough. And maybe that’s okay with you. But it won’t be the best you could do.

So stop reading this article! Share it with your friends, and then get to work!


Image by nota at stock.xchng

Time Management and Productivity

ProductivityWhen you start to learn about time management, the concept of productivity becomes one of the important things you need to learn. You don’t want to just create a schedule to control which activities are done when. You need to look at which activities are worth doing.

How Do You Measure Productivity?

You probably have a pretty good idea of what productivity entails? You know that productivity has something to do with producing results — preferably profitable results. But how can you measure it? How can you look at whether a given task is productive? Let’s look at a few possibilities.

Activity

I know a lot of people who are very, very busy. They are always doing something, talking about something or thinking about something that relates to their business. I’m like that sometimes too.

But is that being productive? Sadly, it often isn’t. Busyness is not an effective measure of productivity.

Much of the activity is meaningless. It doesn’t move the business or your life forward. It is like trying to fill a pool with a bucket. If you scoop the water out of the pool to pour it back in, the pool doesn’t get full.

So, while activity is probably a component of productivity, it isn’t a good way to measure it.

Products

Well, let’s look at measuring the actual product of our time and action. Perhaps that can be used to measure productivity.

When we build a piece of furniture, write an article for our web site or make a phone call to close a new client deal, we are obviously being productive. We have done something that has created something new in our business. We’ve scooped some water from the well into the pool.

But there is a lot of activity that doesn’t make something new. Yet it is vitally important activity. So there must be more to productivity than just those activities that create tangible results.

Intangibles

This is where things can get tricky. There are many activities that don’t directly create income or profit for our business. But they can be extremely productive activities. In fact, they can often be keys to making the other activities more productive.

I’ll give you an example from my programming days.

When faced with a new development project or module request, I usually spend a significant amount of time just thinking about it. I don’t write anything down, at least not anything technical. It is more like doodling if anything. Anything that I do write down will be thrown away. I don’t create any code. I don’t create any design documents.

If you watched me during this step you’d think “He’s off in la la land again.” I’m sure that it seems like I’m daydreaming. Well, the honest truth is that is exactly what I am doing!

This step allows me to wrap my mind around the problem. It gives me an overview of everything at a high level. It allows me to see how the various pieces are going to fit and work together. I can see multiple solutions and weight them against one another. I can envision how they will impact future revisions rather than just fixing the immediate problem. I can get a feel for the most efficient solution for the long term.

Once I get past this stage then the design and development of the software flows much more smoothly and quickly. I have a mental map of where everything fits and how it interacts.

There are many activities that don’t produce any tangible product for you to sell or work with. The results of my daydreaming was never anything that I could sell.

But when you start to do build the actual product or provide the service that makes your profits, the intangibles that you’ve put together will make the job more efficient. You’ll be more effective at whatever it is that you do.

Productivity

So, when you look at what productivity is you need to think of it in terms of more than just actions and products.

You need to look at the actions you take and how they impact the ability to deliver the products that you sell to your clients.

Three Types of Activities

1) Some activities have no productivity. Let’s call these time users. These are the activities that you need to reduce in your daily schedule. I’m sure you can find tons of examples of these types of activities.

Don’t completely discount these activities though. Sometimes they are a necessary evil (like taxes) or provide stress release (such as checking Facebook). Just make sure that you control how much time you spend on these tasks.

2) Some activities result in products or services that you provide to your clients. These are your money makers. You want to maximize the amount of time you spend on these tasks and/or the efficiency with which you perform them.

For a carpenter, building a kitchen table is a productive task. For a blogger, writing an article. For a sales person, setting up appointments and making sales calls. For a programmer, integrating a new feature to a piece of software.

These money makers are your bread and butter. You want to spend as much of your work time as possible performing these tasks since they bring your income.

3) I believe the third group of activities is the most crucial. I call them multipliers. These are activities that don’t produce any income themselves. But they allow you to be more efficient and effective in the activities that do. In other words, they leverage your time. They make your money maker tasks more valuable.

It could be a simple thing like building a jig that allows a carpenter to make the same angled cut consistently without having to measure and mark it. Or blogger making a series of outlines for their articles.

It may be more complicated like a sales person writing and rewriting sales copy for their sales presentation or a programmer learning a new programming language or technique.

No matter what industry you work in, there are tasks which will make your work tasks more productive even though they don’t bring in any income directly. Discover what these tasks are and make it a priority to schedule these tasks appropriately.

You don’t want to spend all your time here. That would be leveraging nothing! But you do need to make time for this — especially if you’re busy. If you can find a way to make the money tasks more efficient you can work less, make more or both!

Scheduling Productivity

Now you need to look at the activities that you perform for your business. Break them down into the 3 categories: time users, money makers and multipliers.

Schedule your day becomes much easier. Minimize the time users by scheduling them at specific and limited times. Eliminate the ones that you can.

Fill up the bulk of your work day with the money maker tasks. But be careful not to let them bleed into your non work times. Those need to be guarded as well!

Finally, find some time to work on the multipliers. You may not be able to fit them into every day, but be intentional about it. Make specific times for these tasks.

What’s Next?

Now you’ve got a handle on determining what tasks are productive for your business. You can work your schedule to maximize the productivity of your working hours.

But there are some other factors that you’ll need to learn about. In the next few posts we’ll be talking about how circadian rhythms affect your productivity, the perils of multi-tasking and the need for downtime. If you want to be notified when these posts are up make sure to sign up for the newsletter.

In the mean time, start to look at the tasks that you do. What category do they fall into? What multipliers do you need to focus on?

Share what you’re finding or questions you may have in the comments. And make sure to share this article with your friends, family and co-workers.


Photo of watch by bartgroe at stock.xchng

On Chainsaws, Tools and Time Management

The right tools make for an efficient use of your time

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.

Say High to Chainsaw

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.

  1. Have the right tools for the job
  2. Keep the tools well maintained — outsource to professionals as needed
  3. Plan the job
  4. 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

Is Time Money?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!