Nicholas Bate

27 Productivity Boosters: 4, 5, 6

4. Work in sprints: head down, interrupts forbidden, eye on the clock. Then take a break: stretch, sip water and breathe fully. Bit like the gym? Absolutely, for the highest performance.

5. Make it a priority. Or not.

6. Awesome productivity is distilled down to what and when. How do you capture what? How do you know when?

Boosters 1, 2, 3.

TBC

 

Boost Your Productivity

the book, here.

ParadoxicalProductivity, The Definitive & Final Director's Cut Crib Sheet

1: Send Less E-Mail. Get less e-mail.

2: Tidy Up. Gain clarity.

3: Fewer People. Faster, focused and easier.

4: Use A Wall Planner Not Your Phone To Plan. The future, not just today.

5: You KNOW the problem: (1) Wake Up (2) Look Up (3) Get Real

6: Stand Up. Gain determination.

7: You Don't Need To Be Nice. Polite, loyal and on time definitely. But this ain't kindergarten.

8: Put the work in at the start. For an easy life later on.

9: Take A Break. It activates higher brain where the best work is always done.

10: Start at the end.Start with the result you want and work backwards.

11: Work Hard To Maintain The Relationship. Productive business needs trusting relationships.

12: Make Small, Big. And Big, Small. Get perspective/get a plan.

13: Know Your Rhythm. Follow your rhythm rather than just the Siren's call of pure urgency.

14: Re-claim your unique advantage. Stop & Think.

15: Hands & Heart. Engage both.

16: Be Here Now. Once you have decided, give it 110%

17: Love Mondays. It sets the tone for the week.

18: Write Small, Think Big. Be clear on what you have to do. And make it important.

19: Wrap Up Friday. Close it down, go home.

20: Motoring Monday. Rev it up. Hit the goals.

21: Shorter, Faster, Disciplined vs. Longer, Slower, Flowing. Meetings vs. Strategy

22: Jungle Kit vs. Correct Jungle. No amount of cool gear will help if you are in the wrong place.

23: There are lists. And there are lists. Balance the list of imagination, possibilities and can do with the one of action, checked & done and here & now.

24: The answer to any Productivity Challenge is stop. Fully.

25: Get In The Zone. A place where the world is ours: focus, energy and rhythm.

26: Mmmm. Quick Now, sure. But often slow later. Whereas Slow Now=Quick Later.

27: Lunch time is not e-mail time. It's time for a break: nutrition, navigation and nothing.

28: Brain beats chip; Rock may beat Scissors but Carbon beats Silicon.

29: Peak efficiency may be low effectiveness. That's where self-discipline comes in.

30: Any View is the wrong view. Spin the perspective. Suddenly our eyes are wide open.

31: Less x Fewer. To remain very, very productive we often need to do less. And when doing less to being considering fewer things

32: By Hand, In Person. If at all possible see the person, in person. The time 'wasted' is of course recovered many times over in a clearer understanding, a better bond and a mutually agreed way forward.

33: Paradoxically. Bizzarely. Yes is No. And No is Yes.

34: Re-boot your process frequently. Friction, entropy and a changing world and personal lifestyle mean whatever was working will soon-invariably-stop working.

35: Perhaps: “…to laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people…to leave the world a better place…to leave knowing even one life has breathed easier because you have lived…”

PARADOXICAL PRODUCTIVITY: the book

The detail here.

Bonus 1:  Professionalism 101

Bonus 2: How To Be Brilliant

Bonus 3: How To Be Brilliant at Business

ParadoxicalProductivity, Number 35

Perhaps:

“…to laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people…to leave the world a better place…to leave knowing even one life has breathed easier because you have lived…”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

ParadoxicalProductivity, Number 34

Re-boot your process frequently. Friction, entropy and a changing world and personal lifestyle mean whatever was working will soon-invariably-stop working.

Regularly ask: what is productive to me? When am I really thinking? Re-investing? Being creative? Feeling at peace with the world knowing I have done what needs to be done. And what I want to do?

ParadoxicalProductivity, Number 33

Paradoxically. Bizzarely. Yes is No. And No is Yes.

When you say yes to staying late and eating pizza with the team to get the pitch done you say no to kids bath time. When you say yes to a poorly run meeting you say no to your sanity. Any yes has many no consequences.

When you say no to your yoga class you say yes to less focus during the day. When you say no to coaching seesions with your team you say yes to possible employee demotivation. Any no has many yes consequences.

Paradoxically. Bizzarely. Yes is No. And No is Yes. Just so long as we remember.

ParadoxicalProductivity, Number 32

By Hand, In Person.
As soon as Alexander Graham Bell invented the first telephone, people realised although it was brilliant and handy it was, well, a bit odd. There was a sort of barrier. It was difficult to 'connect' with a person sometimes. Living in the world where the electron is king we are well aware of the same potential challenge with e-mail. That's why sometimes, paradoxically, it is more productive to drop a hand-written personal note. Or if at all possible see the person, in person. The time 'wasted' is of course recovered many times over in a clearer understanding, a better bond and a mutually agreed way forward.

 

ParadoxicalProductivity: The Director's Cut Crib Sheet 1-31

1: Send Less E-Mail. Get less e-mail.

2: Tidy Up. Gain clarity.

3: Fewer People. Faster, focused and easier.

4: Use A Wall Planner Not Your Phone To Plan. The future, not just today.

5: You KNOW the problem: (1) Wake Up (2) Look Up (3) Get Real

6: Stand Up. Gain determination.

7: You Don't Need To Be Nice. Polite, loyal and on time definitely. But this ain't kindergarten.

8: Put the work in at the start. For an easy life later on.

9: Take A Break. It activates higher brain where the best work is always done.

10: Start at the end. Start with the result you want and work backwards.

11: Work Hard To Maintain The Relationship. Productive business needs trusting relationships.

12: Make Small, Big. And Big, Small. Get perspective/get a plan.

13: Know Your Rhythm. Follow your rhythm rather than just the Siren's call of pure urgency.

14: Re-claim your unique advantage. Stop & Think.

15: Hands & Heart. Engage both.

16: Be Here Now. Once you have decided, give it 110%

17: Love Mondays. It sets the tone for the week.

18: Write Small, Think Big. Be clear on what you have to do. And make it important.

19: Wrap Up Friday. Close it down, go home.

20: Motoring Monday. Rev it up. Hit the goals.

21: Shorter, Faster, Disciplined vs. Longer, Slower, Flowing. Meetings vs. Strategy

22: Jungle Kit vs. Correct Jungle. No amount of cool gear will help if you are in the wrong place.

23: There are lists. And there are lists. Balance the list of imagination, possibilities and can do with the one of action, checked & done and here & now.

24: The answer to any Productivity Challenge is stop. Fully.

25: Get In The Zone. A place where the world is ours: focus, energy and rhythm.

26: Mmmm. Quick Now, sure. But often slow later. Whereas Slow Now=Quick Later.

27: Lunch time is not e-mail time. It's time for a break: nutrition, navigation and nothing.

28: Brain beats chip; Rock may beat Scissors but Carbon beats Silicon.

29: Peak efficiency may be low effectiveness. That's where self-discipline comes in.

30: Any View is the wrong view. Spin the perspective. Suddenly our eyes are wide open.

31: Less x Fewer. To remain very, very productive we often need to do less. And when doing less to being considering fewer things

The detail here.

Bonus 1:  Professionalism 101

Bonus 2: How To Be Brilliant

Bonus 3: How To Be Brilliant at Business

ParadoxicalProductivity, 31

The first time-as a child-we met the little triangle above we were surprised we didn't spot the two 'the's. And then we think little more about it. But it's a reminder of just how damn weak we are at multi-tasking. To both read/understand the message (which requires flow and momentum) and proof-read (which requires fragmentation and analysis) is not possible. One fails. Just as accidents are four times more likely (in the UK) when a driver texts whilst also trying to stay aware of traffic. Or someone in your presentation is using a smart-phone and then reveals that they have clearly missed the key point. Or the focus becomes on hit the sales number at any cost rather than why the number is not being hit.

Paradoxically to remain very, very productive we often need to do less. And when doing less to being considering fewer things. Which of course requires judicious use of 'no'. And that requires us feeling comfortable with who we are and what we are achieving.

Productivity=less x fewer.

ParadoxicalProductivity, 30

Any View Is The Wrong View. Some like to take the helicopter big picture perspective. Some love drilling down until they know the depth of tread on the car tyres. But whatever view is your favourite, whatever perspective the project team is taking, whatever filter through which the market data is projected, widen or shorten or lengthen the lens. Spin the perspective. You may be shocked at what it reveals.