![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Finally back to feeling pretty normal after vacation. Poop is almost normal, I pretty much remember what I'm doing at work, and flexibility (which had really, REALLY degraded) is back to normal except for my spine. I bet I'll be sore tomorrow though, following my first 'normal' weightlifting session in weeks. :b
Any core dump of today has got to include more exitement about Getting Things Done (the link is to the book this time, not the wikipedia entry). In case the title doesn't make it clear, the book is about how to be productive; how to get things done; in a fairly stress-free manner, organized, and with a clear mind. And it seems like a good system -- not only inspiring but fairly practical. There are some interesting thoughts scattered throughout (example, talking about the importance of having a trusted to-do list outside your brain so that your brain doesn't have to keep reminding you of stuff all the time: There's really no need to ever have the same thought more than once, unless you happen to enjoy having that thought. Hmmmmmmmm). There are annoying aspects to the book, though, and the worst one in my mind is that it aims itself so obviously at high-level executives and CEOs. The things in the example project lists, for example, have things like "determine executive compensation packages" as well as "build treehouse in backyard for kids." I wish that there were a version of the exact same book with examples aimed more at a normal working-class person, because there's nothing in the system that makes it not work for the average schmoe. I can totally see the benefits of it for, say,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
savage_rose... and me, of course! Too bad it's such a snooty-sounding read.
Anyway, as for the system: I'm not done reading yet and I haven't started implementing, but so far the thing that's rung most true for me is the idea that most people use their various "in-boxes" (physical, electronic and mental) for a giant stack of cruft, not just stuff coming in but anything else that needs to be done at some point plus possibly some reference material. This is so because people don't have a trusted system for putting work-in-progress into. And yes, that would explain my tremendously bloated email in-box at work... I just never thought of creating folders as nice and general as "Reference" and "In Progress" and "Waiting for someone else". I think I want to do that first thing Monday morning.*
( Roiling head, emotional abuse and an SUV run amok, for those who want this post to be even longer )
* at work, not gmail... and yes, fellow nerds, I see your minds at work already phrasing comments about how searching is changing all this, but let's have this argument after you've read the book too. I'd love to talk about it with more people.
Any core dump of today has got to include more exitement about Getting Things Done (the link is to the book this time, not the wikipedia entry). In case the title doesn't make it clear, the book is about how to be productive; how to get things done; in a fairly stress-free manner, organized, and with a clear mind. And it seems like a good system -- not only inspiring but fairly practical. There are some interesting thoughts scattered throughout (example, talking about the importance of having a trusted to-do list outside your brain so that your brain doesn't have to keep reminding you of stuff all the time: There's really no need to ever have the same thought more than once, unless you happen to enjoy having that thought. Hmmmmmmmm). There are annoying aspects to the book, though, and the worst one in my mind is that it aims itself so obviously at high-level executives and CEOs. The things in the example project lists, for example, have things like "determine executive compensation packages" as well as "build treehouse in backyard for kids." I wish that there were a version of the exact same book with examples aimed more at a normal working-class person, because there's nothing in the system that makes it not work for the average schmoe. I can totally see the benefits of it for, say,
savage_rose... and me, of course! Too bad it's such a snooty-sounding read.Anyway, as for the system: I'm not done reading yet and I haven't started implementing, but so far the thing that's rung most true for me is the idea that most people use their various "in-boxes" (physical, electronic and mental) for a giant stack of cruft, not just stuff coming in but anything else that needs to be done at some point plus possibly some reference material. This is so because people don't have a trusted system for putting work-in-progress into. And yes, that would explain my tremendously bloated email in-box at work... I just never thought of creating folders as nice and general as "Reference" and "In Progress" and "Waiting for someone else". I think I want to do that first thing Monday morning.*
( Roiling head, emotional abuse and an SUV run amok, for those who want this post to be even longer )
* at work, not gmail... and yes, fellow nerds, I see your minds at work already phrasing comments about how searching is changing all this, but let's have this argument after you've read the book too. I'd love to talk about it with more people.
