We live in a busy world. Distractions abound. It’s challenging to stay focused on the most important things. We have big plans and big dreams but are halted by never-ending to-do lists. My wife often reminds me to just do the next thing. Turns out simplicity is the answer. Truly we can WIN.

The Simplest Question

In Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, author Greg McKeown shares the secret behind a basketball team’s success.

The secret is a relentless pursuit of the question, “What’s important now?”

“The players apply the question constantly throughout the game. Instead of getting caught up rehashing the last play that went wrong, or spending their mental energy worrying about whether they are going to lose the game, neither of which is helpful or constructive, Larry encourages them to focus only on the play they are in right now…By focusing on their game in the here and now, they can all unite around a single strategy. This level of unity makes execution of their game plan relatively frictionless.”

It’s Time to WIN

What game are you playing? What goal are you chasing? I’m not just talking sports; I’m talking life.

It is so easy to get caught up in trying to have a perfect plan. Some of us want to know what’s coming up 10 steps down the road. Others are stuck on missed opportunities or yesterday’s mistakes.

Either way, focusing too far into the future or holding on to the past prevents us from making the most of the current moment.

If you’re pursuing a big goal ask yourself, “What’s important now?”

If you’re trying to overcome one of life’s curveballs, ask yourself, “What’s important now?”

If you’re trying to win a conference championship, ask yourself, “What’s important now?”

If you’re trying to get through the 12 tasks on today’s to-do list, ask yourself, “What’s important now?”

Get the idea?

It works for teams too! When your next project meeting gets off topic ask, “What’s important now?” When your team is scrambling and making mistakes on the field, call a time out and ask, “What’s important now?”

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To help you focus on What’s Important Now, I developed a free desktop background image for you.

Keep It Simple

Regardless of what you’re trying to accomplish, keep your focus on the here and now. By continuously asking yourself, “What’s important now?” you prevent yourself from feeling overwhelmed or scatterbrained. Keep it simple. Make it a habit. Whether you’re at work, rushing the kids here and there, or trying to win the Stanley Cup trophy, just focus on WIN.

To keep your focus in the here and now, ask yourself, “What’s Important Now?”
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Question: Where do you most need to ask, “What’s important now?” I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Post: Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown
• Post: How to Get The Most Important Thing Done Today
• Post: Size Matters. Set Your Sights On BIG, Scary Goals for 2015

The post How to Instill a Winning Focus in Sports, Work, & Life first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

News flash, you get distracted. We battle distraction daily, hourly, in extreme cases, even minute by minute. By definition distractors are attention thieves which steal our focus from our tasks at hand. In some cases distractions can be avoided. In others, those thieves deserve our attention – just not right now. 

Two Natural Distractions

Like you, I get distracted. It happens in meetings, during a webinar, reading a book, or having a conversation.

From what I know about the human brain, and from watching this happen to others, I know I’m not alone.

• External distractors – things in our environment grab our attention
• Internal distractors – our own thinking grabs our attention

In this post we’re going to tackle the latter (us distracting ourselves).

While we’re supposed to be focused on one thing, our brains may be processing different thoughts. This is especially true if the task at hand doesn’t require our full attention.

Some of these thoughts are extraneous, random, or irrelevant. But often they are things that we need to revisit.

We are our own worst distractor. Capture distracting thoughts & free your mind to focus.
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The Parking Lot Technique

Distracting thoughts which you deem important, relevant, or don’t want to forget need to be captured for later review. This is where the parking lot technique comes in.

• to-do items
• questions
• ideas
• resources
• things to remember

Parking lots are often used in meetings or group work to keep the discussion on task. However, it can be a very useful on a personal level too.

Your parking lot is your place where you capture all of those internal distractors that are worth revisiting. Once thoughts are captured, your mind is free to refocus on your task at hand. Later, revisit and process your parking lot for action items, reminders, etc.

Thoughts pertinent to the task at hand should go in your notes. You do take notes, right?

Analog or Digital

Your parking lot can be customized to your individual preferences and the setting you’re in. Remember, the point is simply to capture your distractors.

A parking lot can be as basic as a blank sheet of paper or as advanced as a digital app. I often use a sticky note and then transfer each item to a more suitable place after the meeting or appointment.

This past weekend I was mowing the yard when an idea struck. I pulled out my phone and entered the task right into Wunderlist, my to-do app of choice.

Here is a creative example my wife used in the classroom. Now she uses it personally by attaching sticky notes.

Personalize your parking lot technique. Do you prefer analog or digital?
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Capture Your Distractors

Tailor the parking lot technique to work for you and make it a habit. Capturing distractions as they occur will help you focus on the task at hand. You won’t be repeating the thoughts in your mind for fear of losing that golden idea or forgetting to pick up barbecue sauce on the way home. Simply jot down the distractor and revisit your parking lot once the task is complete.

Its simple. Its easy. Its a productivity no-brainer.

Question: How will you implement the parking lot technique? I’d love to hear your creative ideas in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Post: 8 Tips to Avoid Distraction and Boost Productivity
• Post: How To Get More Done with the Power of Wunderlist

The post How To Capture Distractors and Focus On The Task At Hand first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Mark Twain said, “If you eat a frog first thing in the morning that will probably be the worst thing you do all day.” Thus spurred self-development expert Brian Tracy’s book entitled Eat That Frog. He and many experts help us answer the age old question, “Should I tackle the easy tasks or difficult tasks first?”

If you’re like me, deciding what to tackle first can slow down your productivity before you even get started on your work. That’s why I typically recommend planning tomorrow’s tasks today.

When we delay the decision and thus, action, we are procrastinating. There several ways to tackle procrastination, and today we’ll add another one to our tool kit.

3 Strategies for What to Tackle First

1. As Stephen R. Covey preached in his best seller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “Put first things first.”

This leads to a logical question: What are first things? Covey steers us to quadrant II in his “Time Management Matrix.”

Covey writes, “Quadrant II is the heart of effective personal management. It deals with things that are not urgent, but are important. It deals with things like building relationships, writing a personal mission statement, long-range planning, exercising, preventive maintenance, preparation – all those things we know we need to do, but somehow seldom get around to doing, because they aren’t urgent.”

2. Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, Wall Street Journal bestselling authors of The One Thing, encourage us to ask “The Focusing Question” to determine what to do first. The Focusing Question is, “What’s the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

3. If we are to eat our frog first, as Brian Tracy recommends, then we start with our most challenging tasks of the day.

My Recommendation for Which Task to Tackle First

Start your day with the task which best lands at the intersection of all three: “Put first things first,” “The ONE Thing,” and the “most challenging.”

For example, I might start my day by working on an upcoming presentation for coaches, writing a blog post, or delivering a workshop. Each of these tasks might be the most important thing in my day, is challenging (i.e., takes more energy and brain power than meetings) and produces results toward my ONE Thing. For me, these are high impact activities. That’s where you want to start on your to-do list.

Why?

1. If we “put first things first” we will put our time, energy, and effort into the areas of our work where we can have the greatest contribution.
2. If we focus on our “ONE Thing,” our efforts will be purpose-driven, laser-focused, and results-producing.
3. If we we start our days with “our most challenging tasks,” we seize willpower (we typically have more in the morning), maximize energy (also have more in the morning), and throttle procrastination before the hard task seems mountainous.

#Productivity isn’t about getting more done. It is about getting the right things done today.
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Do The Most Important Thing First

Start your workday with what is most important, aligns with your ONE Thing, and will show results. Don’t start with busy work. In any organization I find there are two types of people, those who keep busy and those who contribute to success. Be the latter. Make your first thing count. After that, the rest of the toads will be easier to swallow.

Question: How will this change what task you do first tomorrow? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Book: Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy
• Book: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
• Book: The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan
• Post: Do What Matters Most Today: 4 Tips to Get You Started
• Post: Tackle Your Procrastination Problem
• Post: How to Get More Done with the Power of Wunderlist

The post How to Get The Most Important Thing Done Today first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

If your tasks and projects seem to run right up to the final deadline, you aren’t alone. Parkinson’s Law states that your work expands to fill the time allotted for it. “How long will that report take?” your boss asks. “How long do I have?” you might respond. Bingo. Parkinson’s Law is a nemesis of productivity. 

Parkinson’s Law Ate My Assignment

In college Parkinson’s Law was my adversary and I didn’t even realize it. I knew for weeks that a paper was due. Yet time and again I found myself putting the finishing touches on at the last possible moments.

Could I have planned better? Sure. No argument there. Did I procrastinate a little? Guilty.

However, the bigger issue was that I didn’t define the time I would work on a paper. Simply, it needed to be done by the stated deadline – maybe two months away.

To be clear, these papers didn’t require two months, but I allowed them to fill up the time allotted for them.

The Effects of Parkinson’s Law on Productivity

Which of your tasks, projects, or honey-do chores have swelled well beyond an acceptable timeline? What else could you have done if that item was already crossed off your task list?

Parkinson’s Law keeps us from being efficient. We become perfectionistic and tinker with details because we can. Or, maybe you aren’t a perfectionist. Maybe you put off the task under the guise of being too busy. Now it’s crunch time, anxiety is running high, and you embrace the thrill of the last minute push.

What If You Confronted the Law?

What would happen if you shrunk the time you had to get a task or project done?

Likely you’d still get it done. Likely you would still do a great job too.

So how can we mitigate the impact of Parkinson’s Law by confronting it? The answer is to define our timelines.

To overcome Parkinson’s Law & be productive, we must define our timelines.
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How To Seize Parkinson’s Law

In order to seize Parkinson’s Law, you will need to implement one of these three proven strategies (or all 3).

1. Establish self-imposed time hacks. 

You must define your own time hacks. Like setting short-term goals, establish when you will have chunks of the project complete. Perhaps even set a self-imposed deadline so the task is done with plenty of time to spare.

Do keep in mind that we tend to underestimate how long a project will take. Greg McKeown, author of Essentialism, recommends adding 50% to your expected completion time.

2. Define your time on task.

Get clear on how long you will work on a given project. That might mean the whole thing. Or you may choose to work on it for two hours today.

Ask yourself, how much time will I devote to the project? When will I begin? When will I have it completed?

3. Ship It Anyway

“Ship it” is a Seth Godin phrase. The intent is not to let the pursuit for perfection keep you from ever completing the task. This aligns with other’s promotions of the “minimum viable product” idea. If you wait until the product is perfect before you “ship it,” you’ll never make money, change lives, or impact the world.

Sometimes you need to remind yourself that “good enough” really is good enough. When you hit your deadline, you ship. Simple as that.

Seize Parkinson’s Law & Reclaim Your Time

If you’re tired of feeling like there’s never enough time, maybe you need to define your timeline. You’ll be more efficient with the time you do have. You’ll still get the most important things done. You’ll meet your final deadlines. And you will have more time to tackle other priorities. Stop drowning in your to-do list, define your time, and prevent Parkinson’s Law from thrashing your productivity.

Question: How will you take control of your time to seize Parkinson’s Law? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

The post How to Seize Parkinson’s Law and Accomplish More first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

In our efforts to increase productivity, we find the strangest places to get work done. A friend posted on Facebook yesterday that he was working from the back of his SUV in the parking lot of a big box store while others did the shopping. I’ve written a blog post while zipping across Scotland by rail. Another friend of mine works in an open office space where nothing separates her desk from her coworkers’. Yet, every environment isn’t suited for productivity.

High Flying Productivity

A fellow solopreneur once observed that there were two types of people at his local coffee shop. Those who sat downstairs, near the counter, were there to be seen, not to work. Those who sat upstairs, hidden away, were the ones accomplishing their dreams.

Sometimes we find ourselves attempting to be productive in less than optimal places. However, I can be quite productive in an odd place given the right conditions. For instance, I find that I am very productive with my laptop on a tray table for a few hours thousands of feet above the earth. Typically, there are fewer distractions up there.

5 Tips for a Productive Environment

When you really need to get things done, you can set the conditions for maximum productivity, even in unusual places. Here are 5 tips for creating a productivity friendly environment.

1. Turn Off the TV

Research confirms what your mother always told you – turn off the television. Just like your computer, our brains have a limited processing capacity. That means we can only truly pay attention to one thing at a time.

With the TV on, our actual work gets the short shrift. A task you could have finished in 20 minutes now takes an hour.

For those of you who swear by having the TV on, it is the white noise you benefit from, not the TV itself. For tasks that require thought, use a white noise app. For asks that don’t involve reading comprehension or other thought power, the TV will only negatively affect your efficiency. 

2. Match Your Music to the Task

Not surprisingly, all music isn’t suited for boosting productivity. In a 2010 study, participants who read in silence outscored both the classical music and hip-hop music groups. The music, regardless of type, interfered with concentration. Another study in 2011 found that background music interfered with reading and memory, but aided physical tasks like working out or athletic performance.

• Cognitive heavy tasks (e.g., reading, studying, memorizing, problem solving) – best with silence
• Cognitive light tasks (e.g., writing, organizing, sorting, email, brainstorming) – best with classical or slow, non-lyric music
• Physical tasks (e.g., running, exercise, playing sports, cleaning the house) – best with upbeat, positive-lyric music

The post How to Create a Productivity Friendly Environment first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

I tell everybody I know about Evernote. Please accept my apologies for not raving about it to you yet. Michael Hyatt refers to Evernote as his digital brain. I couldn’t agree more. Any piece of information I want to keep, have access to, or might need again goes into Evernote. 

Why I Love Evernote

I discovered Evernote several years ago and quickly fell in love. Today, I have nearly 2,000 notes in Evernote. They range from meeting notes, blog posts, and articles to recipes, documents, and lists. The more you put in, the more valuable it becomes.

Not only does Evernote maintain all the information I may ever need to access again, but it accelerates my productivity.

With @Evernote at my fingertips I can get more done in less time! #productivity
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How do you know if Evernote is for you?

See if any of these statements sound like you.

• You find yourself frustrated when you can’t find the information you know you have…somewhere.
• You can’t remember if you put that letter from the teacher in the basket in the office or in the stack on the counter.
• You find interesting articles online that you’d like to hold onto.
• You take notes and don’t know where you put them.
• You can’t remember what size clothes your kids or grandkids wear these days.
• You have to pull information from multiple places and turn it into a summary, report, or other assignment.
• You keep searching for the same information time and again (like your car repair history or medical forms).
• You are a parent or a student; you have a job, run a household, or are otherwise a human being.

If even one of these describes you, then you need Evernote.

@Evernote makes life simpler, easier, less stressful & more #productive.
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To be clear, I am not not an Evernote affiliate and do not receive any monetary benefit from Evernote for this post. I simply love it.

What is Evernote?

For those who may not know, Evernote is an app and web service that helps you organize your life.

You can take notes, make a task list, and save things you find online right into Evernote.

Then Evernote will sync all your information across your multiple devices so you always have access to what you need when you need it.

Evernote makes it easy to sort, group, search, and share all of your notes.

Its Free! While they have multiple tiers of storage and functionality, you can do a ton with a “Basic” account. This is what I had until last year, when I got serious about eliminating paper from my life.

How can Evernote help you accelerate your productivity?

Here are 3 revolutionary reasons to turn your life over to Evernote.

1. Never Forget Anything Again

That may be a bit of an overstatement, but not by much. Last fall, when it was time to winterize the lawn mower, I was a little lost. Note: we moved to Tennessee from the desert. To avoid the same headache again, I created a note in Evernote about exactly what to do, what to buy, and when to do it.

A couple of weeks ago, I got a reminder (along with the note) that it was time to prep the mower for hibernation. Without requiring a single thought in the last 12 months, I’m all set.

What do you forget? Cousin Jeff’s birthday? What size pants Shelly wears now? Where you stashed that pot of gold? With Evernote, you can set yourself up for success.

2. Store Massive Amounts of Information for Easy Access

Find a great article on social media about how to better organize your closet? You can clip the whole article (or part of it) straight into Evernote.

Can’t find your notes from a meeting two months ago? You could if you dropped them into Evernote.

You can add websites, news articles, emails, documents, PDFs, a sketch on a napkin, voice memos…pretty much anything…into Evernote.

You can organize your info in folders (old school) or you can group it all by tags. With Evernote’s amazing search features, you can find what you need in seconds!

3. Get Organized & Eliminate Your Paper Problem

Want to hold onto that church newsletter or handout from that awesome seminar last week? All that paper can stack up fast in its physical form.

Receipts, flyers from the kid’s school, bills, last year’s birthday card from Grandma that you can’t let go of…what do you do with it all? I used to have a lot of paper.

Now, I try to scan and dump all of that into Evernote. I can access it when I need (in seconds). Plus, I don’t clutter up the counter, shelf, desk, or closet with stacks of all this paper.  Even if you don’t own a scanner, you can use your mobile device to photograph your paper and save it to Evernote in a variety formats.

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I created a PDF “30 Things I Store In Evernote,” to help you dive in to using Evernote.

Get More Done with Evernote

When I’m not busy searching for documents, notes, and information, I can get a lot done. I can pull together 5-10 sources for a blog post in no time. Evernote saves me hours every week. If you take Evernote for a test drive, you will find your own life hacks and time savers. Before you know it, you will wonder how you ever survived without it.

Question: What is one thing you keep or want to keep in Evernote? Share your ideas in the comments section! I look forward to picking up a few ideas from you.

The post How To Increase Your Productivity With Evernote first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

We are sedentary for 21 hours a day, according to juststand.org. The Washington Post wrote that the average office worker sits for about 10 hours a day, a combination of work and at-home chair-surfing. It’s a no-brainer that all this sitting is bad for your health. Yet many of us are unknowingly putting ourselves at risk for major health problems. 

One morning last week, I drove about 5 hours to a conference in Indianapolis, IN. That afternoon I sat in 3 hours of informative sessions, followed by a couple of hours of sitting while socializing over dinner and chatting with colleagues. That’s about 10 hours of sitting. Yikes!

Today, I sat in the car on my way to work, sat at my desk catching up on email, and sat in 3 hours of meetings. Sound familiar to you?

Fortunately, everyday isn’t like this for me. But it is for many.

Why Not Sit?

Here are 5 powerful reasons to get off your duff.

1. Numerous studies have documented the risks of too much sitting. Prolonged sitting increases your risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cancer, high blood pressure, and depression.
2. After 30 minutes of sitting, the enzymes that break down fat drop by 90%.
3. We only burn about 1 calorie per minute while sitting. Standing instead of sitting burns 20 to 50 more calories per hour.
4. After 2 hours of sitting, good cholesterol drops by 20%.
5. Sitting too much can lead to muscle and joint problems.

What If You Exercise?

Experts say that vigorous exercise before or after work may not be enough to overcome the dangers of over-sitting (okay, so I made that term up).

One study by Dr. James Levine, obesity researcher for Mayo Clinic, sought to determine why some people gain weight and others don’t even when they eat exactly the same food. As a control factor, researchers didn’t let subjects exercise during the study. The results of the study revealed that “the people who didn’t gain weight were unconsciously moving around more.”

Researchers urge us to view sitting time and exercise independently. “It is not good enough to exercise for 30 minutes a day and be sedentary for 23 and half hours,” said Dr. Alter, Senior Scientist, Toronto Rehab, University Health Network (UHN), and Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.

Exercise alone does not counteract the negatives of sitting all day.
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Furthering the point, an article published in the Journal of Physical Activity & Health highlights that people in the high fitness group had only about a quarter of the risk of developing metabolic syndrome (a compilation of risk factors) as the lowest fitness group.

How To Get Off Your Duff

At this point, hopefully you can acknowledge that excessive sitting is a risk we should aim to avoid. The next logical question is, How do I sit less?

A statement by the British Journal of Sports Medicine urges Americans to “stand, move, and take breaks” for a minimum of 2 out of 8 hours in the work day, but with an aim of 4 hours. In other words, spend at least 2 hours out of your chair.

Check out this terrific infographic by visual.ly. It provides a few suggestions for how we can move more: stretching, walking in place, or doing jumping jacks.

Stand to talk on the phone. When conversing with a colleague, stand instead of sit. Don’t send an email to Robert who works down the hall; get up and go talk to him.

One university professor gives her class a “5-minute-activity-break”  in the middle of any class that lasts longer than an hour. Some companies hold standing meetings or meet while walking through a nearby park. Company exercise clubs are growing. Devices like the Apple watch will even tell you when it’s time to get off your duff.

Take a walk on your lunch break. A 20 min. walk increases blood flow and creativity, enhances brain activity, and improves memory and cognitive performance. A walk actually helps you be more productive.

Today, stand up and go for a walk to help you be more productive!
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Stand up desks are growing in popularity. As I’m writing this, my laptop is sitting on a stack of books on my desk so I can stand and write.

Stop Sitting, Be Productive, Stay Healthy

Clearly, sitting has become the latest danger to our health, whether we are fit or not. Exercise is important but doesn’t fix this particular problem. We should find alternative ways to welcome others than, “Come in, have a seat.” Let’s promote a more healthy work and home environment. We must get creative. We must get moving. We must get off our duffs.

Question: What is one way to move more today? Leave your ideas in the comments to this post.

The post 5 Powerful Reasons to Stop Sitting and Move More Today first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Why is it that most people accomplish more in the days leading up to vacation than they did in the previous week? The answer is the same reason I ensure all my clients set a deadline for their goals. Urgency. 

Under Pressure

For the last few days I’ve been under some tough deadlines. Not only that, but I’ve had a lot on my plate, juggling multiple demands. I’m sure many of you can relate.

The interesting thing is, those deadlines forced me to do three things:

• focus my attention
• discriminate (aka: decide what to focus on and what to set aside)
• get the job done

Sure, it has been stressful. But it forced me to prioritize and be efficiently productive.

The Essence of Productivity

Efficiency is a huge component to productivity. Suppose I got one thing done today, but I wanted it to be absolutely perfect. What could have been done in 1 hour took me 4 hours.

This is a very real battle for me. When I’m developing a new module of training or updating a product for a client, I want it to be excellent. Sometimes I confuse excellence with perfection (that’s a post for another time). Therefore, I’ll tweak and adjust for far too long.

Deadlines help us to be more efficient.

However, productivity isn’t about just getting more done. As Greg McKeown writes in Essentialism, we need to focus on getting the right things done.

Getting the right things done requires intentionality, focus, and discrimination.

Deadlines help us do that too. So how can we infuse the urgency and focus we gain from deadlines into our everyday lives?

Set a Timer

If you’re a productivity nut like I am, you’ve probably heard of the Pomodoro technique to time management coined by Francesco Cirillo. The essence of it is to divide your work up into 25 minute chunks with short breaks in between. The Pomodoro technique is one of many approaches for breaking up your work time.

You don’t need a ticking tomato (Pomodoro timer) to infuse some urgency into your daily workflow and accelerate your productivity.

Most mobile devices have a timer built right in.

Here’s how I use a timer to accelerate my productivity.

Set a timer to infuse urgency into your daily workflow & accelerate your productivity.
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Step 1: Determine the task you’re going to complete.

Notice I said complete, not work on. If the task is going to take me very long then David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, would say I’m dealing with a project and not a task. Small projects are fine, but you aren’t going to blast your way through your company’s financial report in 20 minutes.

A few examples for me are: outlining a blog post, setting up social media shares for the day, creating an image, drafting a headline, or designing an infographic.

Step 2: Fire up your timer.

Set it for no more than 45 minutes. For our attention spans and our abilities to concentrate effort, I’ve found 45 minutes is about right. Afterward, I need to get up, move around, drink some water, and give my brain a break.

When I’m writing blog posts I’ll set the timer for 30 – 45 minutes, depending on whether or not I’m outlining, researching, or writing the draft. It keeps me laser focused.

Step 3: Do the work. 

Bust a move! You only have 45 minutes. Focus solely on the task you set out to complete. Save rabbit trails and distractions for after the timer goes off. This is crunch time. Do the work. Then, as Seth Godin popularized, “ship it.”

Get More Done

Since deadlines and added pressure can increase focus and productivity, let’s leverage that power more often. Setting a timer is a quick and easy way to up the intensity. Give it a try and see how much you can get done in less time than you thought.

Question: What kind of timer works for you? Share your strategies or favorite app in the comments below this post!

• Book: Essentialism by Greg McKeown
• Post: Getting Things Done by David Allen

The post Time It: How to Boost Productivity and Focus first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Staying organized and managing your to-do list is a challenge. There are a ton of systems and tools that claim to help you get more done. You can spend so much time shopping for a tool  you don’t get anything done. What really matters is finding a strategy that works for you.

The Search

I’ve tried a lot of different methods to keep track of all that I have to get done: sticky notes, to-do lists, outlook tasks, white boards, note pads, and apps (lots of apps). Many of these were suitable options. All had their limitations.

• easily captured tasks
• accessibility across platforms (iPhone, web, iPad, desktop)
• real-time sync
• useable for both single tasks and projects
• sharing capabilities
• ability to keep notes on a task (such as “left a message on Monday”)
• simple user interface (UI)

I’ve put numerous apps to the test. Most of them came up short. However, there is one app that I keep coming back to – Wunderlist.

It’s About The Process

You may use other tools or apps. You may stick to a pen and pad strategy. That’s fine. The tool you use is less important than the process that allows your mind to stay focused on the task at hand.

Allow me to walk you through my process for gathering, categorizing and getting tasks done. These are simple principles you can apply to almost any task management system you’re using.

Set Up: How to Organize Your Task Lists

I forget things. I’ll tell someone I’ll send them an article, report or product. Then I’ll get busy with something else and forget. This is especially true when I’m away from the office. Having a tool that goes where I go is crucial to my task management system.

Now, as soon as a discrete task is identified (e.g., email presentation to Jim), I add it to my to-do list. Since I have my iPhone nearly everywhere I go, I can plug a task into my list in two taps. This helps prevent me from letting things slip through the cracks.

This is what it looks like when I’m entering a task on my iPhone.

A boss once asked me how I could remember all the things he asked me to do. Before long, I taught him how to use Wunderlist.

The key to capturing is that you have to do it right away. In meetings, I’ll jot down a note in my notebook and, afterwards, plug it all into Wunderlist. Nothing gets overlooked and no balls get dropped.

Tip: If you haven’t already, create a list of unprocessed tasks in your Wunderlist inbox. Remember, capturing is paramount.

I prefer to group like tasks rather than have one massive list of things to get done. Wunderlist allows me to create separate lists. I use them to group tasks together for projects, trips, and more.

Here you can see how Wunderlist displays multiple task lists.

The benefit here is that if I want to know where I stand on a specific project, I open the appropriate folder and it tells me exactly what needs doing.

There are all sorts of ways to categorize your tasks: time of day, context, energy required, location, time needed, project, etc. Wunderlist also allows you star tasks. More on that later.

Recently, Wunderlist added tags to their ever-growing features list. Basically, you add a #hashtag to any to-do item and then you can search to find all tasks with that hashtag across all of your lists.

• traditional GTD stages (e.g., #WF for waiting for, #SM for someday/maybe)
• times of the day (e.g., #morning, #afterlunch)
• energy required (e.g., #low, #med, #high) or priority (e.g., #prio1, #prio2). Use your imagination!

This is really where finding what works for you is key. Try some different things and experiment until you find what works.

Integration: How to Actually Get Things Done

Now that you have captured your to-do items and have set up your categories, what’s next? It’s time to get things done!

I recommend doing this before you leave work for the evening. Review your projects and task lists (however you’ve categorized them) in search of 3-5 tasks that will become your focus for tomorrow.

Avoid the temptation to bite off more than you can chew (preaching to myself here).

This daily scan also helps keep you aware of upcoming projects.

Using the star feature in Wunderlist is how I mark those 3-5 tasks that I’ll focus my effort and attention on tomorrow.

This is how Wunderlist displays my Starred list.

Throughout the day, I check my “starred” list, which is at the top of my lists in Wunderlist. I don’t get distracted by other to-do items and can focus on my highest priorities.

Tip: Even if you don’t scan and star your priorities the day before, this is exactly how you want to start the morning – prior to opening email.

Finally, the part we’ve all been waiting for…doing the work. Start with your toughest and most important task from your 3-5 list. This way, if that is the only thing you get done today you can still call it a success.

Once that’s done, go back to the list you’ve made for today. For me, that’s the starred list.

If I complete all of my starred tasks before the end of the day, I return to scanning or sort my tasks by the tags mentioned above to find my next action item.

Bonus

With Wunderlist, as is true for other tools, there are a number of additional features you can leverage.

Reminders: Through the process outlined above, I have essentially eliminated the need for reminders. However, I occasionally use them for specific tasks that have a deadline or due date.

Sharing: Wunderlist allows you to share task lists. If you share your list with others, you can also engage in collaborative conversations about specific tasks within that list. Honestly, I haven’t used this feature very much, but I would if I was working with a team on different projects.

Subtasks: As we all know, many tasks can be broken down into even smaller components. That’s where subtasks come in. If I need to speak with different people or assemble multiple items before sending them to a client, I’ll use subtasks to make sure the little things get done.

Notes: This is especially helpful when I’m capturing a task or idea. I capture all of my blog post ideas in Wunderlist. In the notes for that idea I may include illustrations, resources or even a rough outline to start from – whatever is in my head at the moment.

I’ll also use this if I couldn’t complete the task.  For instance, if I need to call Susan and she doesn’t answer, I’ll make a note that I left her a voicemail. Then I can add the #WF tag to the task to indicate that I’m now waiting for her to call back.

When you open a task, this is where you can set due dates, reminders, add subtasks and notes.

One thing I love about Wunderlist is that they continue to evolve, improve and add helpful features.

Regardless of your task management system, the same core principles apply.
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Regardless of what tool you use to manage your to-do list, you can still apply these basic principles. When we aren’t trying to use our brains to remember all we need to do, our minds are free to focus on the tasks right in front of us, be creative and find solutions. Perhaps more importantly, we don’t drop the ball. We deliver the goods, get things done and can live in the present moment.

Question: What is one tip you have for staying on top of your to-do list? I’d love to hear what’s working for you in the comments below.

• App: Wunderlist
• Post: Do What Matters Most Today: 4 Tips to Get You Started

The post How To Get More Done with the Power of Wunderlist first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

“Do more with less” has become the mantra of today’s businesses. Sixty hour workweeks seem to be taking over. We complain about lack of time and manpower while more items stack up on our task lists. However, I remind you that necessity is the mother of invention. Allow me to introduce you to Parkinson’s Law and how we can embrace the pursuit of efficiency. 

Parkinson’s Law

Work expands to the time allotted to it. This is Parkinson’s Law. It can be applied to single tasks, multi-step projects, or simply how we approach work. How have you experienced Parkinson’s Law in your own life?

In college, I knew from the beginning of the semester when papers would be due. I often left assignments to the last minute, but on one particular paper, I decided that I would start early.

Weeks before it was due, I collected sources and reviewed them. I developed an index card and color coding system for capturing useful information from the sources. My research was a marvel of organization. However, when I sat down to actually write the paper, I realized I had mere days left to craft it.

While I was busy preparing to write, the deadline had crept up on me. The work had expanded to fill the time I had allotted to it.

Anomalies of Efficiency – Last Minute Tasks and Getting Out the Door

While I did complete that paper, I also completed many others in much less time. True to my procrastination tendencies, I had proven that I could crank out papers overnight (literally). The time allotted in those instances was very little. The point, though, is that those papers were also completed and turned in.

Think back to the last time you went on vacation. Narrow in on the workdays just before you left. Was your pace more hurried than usual? Were you more focused on finishing the tasks in front of you?

If you’re like me and many others, those are some of your most productive and efficient days of work all year.

What can we learn from our most productive days to help us avoid the downsides of Parkinson’s Law?

1. On those days we have More Clarity. When we’re clear about what needs doing and what it will take to accomplish a task, we can attack it with commitment. In contrast, if the task is ambiguous, we second guess. We have to seek more information. This slows down our productive juices.

2. On those days we have More Focus. Something magical happens when you know a task has to get finished immediately. There is urgency. Your body’s sympathetic nervous system comes to life, which brings added focus with it. All of your attention gets directed to the task like a laser. You avoid distractions. You avoid frivolous endeavors like checking social media, email or making small talk with colleagues. You attack your task list like a machine because it stands between you and freedom – or a vacation.

3. On those days we put forth More Effort. Once we are clear on our objectives and have brought full attention to a single task, we can apply intense effort. Our physiology is already in gear and we work both smarter and harder. Our minds and bodies are rising to the occasion, meeting demands by applying our full arrays of skills, strengths and expertise. This is what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi called flow or you may know it as the zone.

How do you gain more clarity, focus and effort everyday?

Less Time. That’s right; reduce the time allotted to complete a task. This forces you to apply more focus and effort to your clear objective. You don’t have time for “what if this” and “what if that.” You don’t have time for the illusion of multi-tasking. Shrinking your time-allotted will drive you to use the time you have most efficiently.

I’ve been using this strategy to focus my writing. I set a timer when I begin. So far, I’ve found that I am less distractible and more focused. InterestingIy, I believe I accomplish more in the short amount of time than I sometimes do in double the time.

Shrinking the time-allotted for tasks drives you to be efficient with your time, focus and effort.
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We don’t have to run from “do more with less.” Get more done in less time by intentionally shrinking your allotted time for a task or project. This doesn’t have to come immediately before an imposed deadline. Set your own deadline and give yourself a buffer for the unexpected. The point is to increase your efficiency more consistently. Why should the workdays just before a vacation be the only ones that get your best effort?

Cut back your time on task to increase your clarity, focus and effort. You’ll accomplish more in less time. If you’re in a results-oriented company, you might even get to go home early.

Question: What is one thing to which you could apply the less-is-better strategy this week? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. 

Links:

• Book: Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
• Post: How Can You Get Into The Zone More Consistently?
• Post: 8 Tips to Avoid Distraction and Boost Productivity
• Post: Multitasking Is Your Nemesis: Stop It

The post How to Reclaim 3 Essentials of Productivity first appeared on The Excelling Edge.