productivity

Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principles for Work and Life
$15.00
David Allen is back with an add-on to the popular book, "Getting Things Done". I prefer this one, simply because it has less jargon and gives you something to work on every week. Still, I think that most people ought to buy both books!

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
$16.00
GTD rests on the principle that a person needs to move tasks out of the mind by recording them externally. That way, the mind is freed from the job of remembering everything that needs to be done, and can concentrate on actually performing those tasks.

GTD is based on making it easy to store, track and retrieve all information related to the things that need to get done. Allen suggests that many of the mental blocks we encounter are caused by insufficient 'front-end' planning (i.e., for any project we need to clarify what is to be achieved and what specific actions are needed to achieve it). It is most practical, according to Allen, to do this thinking in advance, generating a series of actions which we can later undertake without any further planning. Allen contends that our mental "reminder system" is inefficient and seldom reminds us of what we need to do at the time and place that we can do it. Consequently, the "next actions" act as an external support which ensures that we are presented with the right reminders at the right time.

The core principles of GTD are...

COLLECT:

The notion of stress-free productivity starts with off-loading what needs to get done from one's head, capturing everything that is necessary to track, remember, or take action on, into what Allen calls a bucket: a physical inbox, an email inbox, a tape recorder, a notebook, a PDA, a desktop, etc. The idea is to get everything out of one's head and into a collection device, ready for processing. All buckets should be emptied (processed) at least once per week.

PROCESS:

When processing a bucket, a strict workflow is required. If it takes under two minutes to do something, it should be done immediately. The two-minute rule is a guideline, encompassing roughly the time it would take to formally defer the action.

ORGANIZE:

Allen describes a suggested set of lists which can be used to keep track of items awaiting attention, including a calendar which is important for keeping track of appointments and commitments; however, Allen specifically recommends that the calendar be reserved for the hard landscape: things which absolutely have to be done by a particular deadline, or meetings and appointments which are fixed in time and place. To-do items should be reserved for the next action lists.

REVIEW:

The lists of actions and reminders will be of little use if not reviewed at least daily, or whenever possible. Given the time, energy and resources available at a particular moment, one must decide the most important task to be done immediately, and do it. If one is inclined to procrastinate, one may end up always doing the easy tasks and avoiding the difficult ones. To solve this, one can decide to do the actions of the list one by one, following their order, just like processing an inbox.

DO:

Any organizational system is no good if excessive time is spent organizing tasks instead of actually doing them. Allen's contention is that if one can make it simple, easy, and fun to take the necessary actions, one will be less inclined to procrastinate or become overwhelmed with too many 'open loops'.

Phew! It's a lot, but it's a lot of useful information and a foolproof system once you get it all down.

My other favorite business read this year is Emotional Intelligence 2.0

An Introduction to Efficiency and Productivity Analysis
$59.95
This book covers three major approaches to productivity measurement, namely: Index Numbers, Data Envelopment Analysis and Stochastic Frontiers. Examples and applications are provided using software available from the authors' website for free. No doubt it's the best starting point for those who want to learn about the subject.

The Productivity Handbook: New ways of leveraging your time, information, and communications
$21.95
Up front, three key points. First, this is a handbook. Wetmore wrote it to be taken in hand and, once its contents have been absorbed and digested, put to practical use. Second, he brings some fresh perspectives to core concepts (about time, information, and communication) which have been been around for thousands of years. Third and finally, this book and any of the other excellent books which cover much of the same material are essentially worthless if those who read them do not make [begin italics] and then sustain [end italics] a long-term commitment to continuous improvement while using the tips, tools, and techniques recommended.

Wetmore immediately and correctly stresses the importance of having a balanced life built on a sturdy foundation. What does that mean? That for most people, attention, time, and effort are like a currency which should be spent, over time, almost equally within seven areas: physical health, family, financial, intellectual, social, professional, and spiritual. Appropriate balance depends upon appropriate proportionality. Hence the importance of establishing priorities prior to the allocation of resources. To some people, having a "rich" spiritual life is far more important than material wealth. To others, many of them academics and artists, the intellectual area is most important. Of course there are always trade-offs and compromises. Wetmore is right: "A deficit in one area [e.g. physical health] can and does affect every aspect of your life." He seems to agree with Jack Canfield and others that the first "rule for success" in life is to know what you want. Only then can you select the appropriate tips, tools, and techniques. Only then will the inevitable sacrifices required to obtain what you really want seem well worth it. Of course, attitude also plays a decisive role. I am again reminded of Henry Ford's observation: "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right."

Wetmore organizes his material within four Parts: Time, Information, Communication, and The Big Picture. Throughout his book, Wetmore maintains a personal, conversational relationship with his reader as he does everything he can to share what he has learned about productivity; more accurately, about more effective and more efficient production. (Note: Dropping a 2,000-pound block of granite on a fire ant would be effective but not be efficient.) I commend him on his clever use of chapter titles which are both appropriate and thought-provoking. For example: Putting Off Procrastination (Chapter 5), Delegate the Shirt Off Your Back (7), Whatshisname (13), Blah Rather Than Blah, Blah, Blah (18), and A Big Small Talker (22). Think of the tips, tools, and techniques introduced earlier as pieces of a puzzle (in the shape of a pyramid) which Wetmore helps his reader to assemble in the final chapter. He then provides a Resources section which contains additional aids related to productivity. They include a Time Log which captures "snapshots" of specific moments during a normal day. (Please see the example on pages 284-285.) Wetmore offers several practical suggestions as to how to derive the greatest benefit from use of a Time Log. He also discusses a Crisis Management Log and a Life Improvement Chart. (Please see pages 294-297.) He concludes with an exercise to be completed by his reader. This exercise is best revealed within Wetmore's narrative.

Obviously, I highly admire what Wetmore accomplishes in this book but feel obliged to conclude this brief commentary on it by asserting once again: this book and any of the other excellent books which cover much of the same material are essentially worthless if those who read them do not make [begin italics] and then sustain [end italics] a long-term commitment to continuous improvement of the tips, tools, and techniques they recommend.