The Deliberate Life

Commitment

Something in human nature causes us to start slacking off at our moment of greatest accomplishment. As you become successful, you will need a great deal of self-discipline not to lose your sense of balance, humility and commitment. — H. Ross Perot

Getting Things Done Requires Discipline

One of the key personal attributes needed for superior achievement is discipline.  Steve Pavlina has an excellent six-part series of articles on just that subject.  Take look.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done, Self Improvement, Success

The Secret of Success

Do you know "the secret" of success?  Unfortunately, there isn't one single characteristic, insight or skill -- and that maybe the "secret"!!  Michael Hyatt at Working Smart offers a few insights to one of the most important traits that any successful person must have if they intend to be successful.  It's responsiveness.  Is it the most important?  I'm not so sure, but it's certainly critical.  However, people will even forgive poor responsiveness. . .if, and it's a big if. . .if the value gained is so substantial that it outweighs slow response.  People will wait years for the opportunity to purchase a very rare, exotic sports car and you could argue that a builder is responsive to their customers' need when they have a two year waiting car. . .of course, part of the appeal is to be on the list.

For most us, our customers or bosses aren't quite so forgiving.  Unless you're absolutely indispensable, you better develop the discipline and be responsive.  Read Michael Hyatt's article here.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done, Self Improvement, Success

Beyond 'Getting Things Done'

A few days ago I posted The Olympic Ideals, the enduring personal qualities espoused by the U.S. Olympic Committee.  However, when you examine them more closely you quickly recognize that these five 'ideals' -- Vision, Commitment, Focus, Discipline and Persistence -- are not qualities unique only to sports.  The Olympic Ideals really represent the personal qualities required for exceptional achievement in all fields whether sports, business, or life.

These personal qualities differ from skills -- such as leadership skills, management skills, interpersonal skills, writing, etc.  Skills can be taught -- Getting Things Done is a great program or process for organizing one's self.  The process, the skill set, is actually very simple, straight-forward -- in fact it's laid out in a flow chart in the book.   The ideas and recommendations outlined in Getting Things Done are not really new.  Personal productivity coaches, consultants and writers have presented them in one form or another for decades.  David Allen has just repackaged those ideas in  more contemporary 'package' that appeals to today's busy professional.  That's not to diminish his effort in any way.  Getting Things Done is an excellent book, a great system and can be effective for anyone.  BUT, it requires commitment, discipline and persistence if it is to be truly effective in your life.

If you've tried Getting Things Done, and it just didn't work for you -- think about it.  Why didn't it work?  Was the system flawed or incomplete?  Or, did you lack the commitment or discipline?  People often say the weekly review was their weakest area in applying the concepts.  That's a discipline issue, not a flaw in the process.  The cure -- keep trying, be persistent.  It takes time to develop the discipline -- the new habit -- to reap the benefits.

It seems simple.  And it really is.  But, the difference though subtle is significant.  Too often, many of us going looking for that magic bullet, that trick or gimmick that we help us improve, but more often than not we're trying to treat a symptom and not the root cause of our problems.  When we don't see immediate results we become discouraged and give up -- we don't persist!

When you're really looking to make a significant change in your life look beyond the symptom and be wary of the quick fix.  Find the root cause.  Do you really have the Vision, Focus, Commitment, Discipline or Persistence needed to achieve that change, that dream?  Unlike skills, these qualities can't be taught -- they must be developed and applied over time.  Don't give up -- just keep on going and, eventually, you'll exactly what you want.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done, Self Improvement, Success

Planning to Get Things Done

I ran across the following passage from What Clients Love by Harry Beckwith.  I haven't read the book, but it's next on my list.  Planning, whether business planning, career planning, life planning or financial planning, often doesn't receive the respect or attention it deserves.  Quite often the reason -- yeah, we did a plan, put on the bookshelf and never touched again.  Planning, like organizing is the prelude to action.  The better the planning, the better the preparation, the better the performance.  It's not about the plan, it's about the process and what you learn.  Good planning is critical and every plan should be reviewed, assessed and revised - continuously.  But it should never take the place of action.

Most people assume that business plans will tell them what to do.  Few businesses, however, follow their plans.  Things change, assumptions change – and plans change with them, as well they should.  Yet, businesses still plan.

Why?

Because the value of planning is not in the plan, but in the planning.  Planning teaches you and your colleagues about your business, market, customers and each other.

Like writing a book, writing a plan teaches you in a way that nothing else can.

So keep planning.  As you implement your plan, your customers and prospects will react, and their reactions will teach you more.  Among other things, their reactions, carefully observed, will reveal what clients want – and love.

Plans teach.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done, Self Improvement

Getting Things Done with "Simultasking"

Getting Things Done is about personal productivity.  It's about being effective with your time and getting the most out of every minute.  One way to do that is "simultasking" -- participating in two distinctly different activities that support two different goals -- simultaneously!!  I don't consider this to be the same as multi-tasking.  To me, when I hear the word multi-tasking I think of doing two or more things while not being very effective in either.  Some people can do it, and be effective, but I would assert they are a very small minority.

Many people already "simultask", unfortunately they do it in the wrong place, at the wrong time and mix the wrong tasks.  Talking on a cell phone while driving is a perfect example.  You are being efficient, but you are putting yourself and everybody else on the road at risk.  Of course, like many I've committed this sin more than a few times, but it's not a habit and I generally resist the urge to do so.

Another example, one less dangerous, much more effective and actually good for you is audio and exercise.  The audio part being e-books, podcasts, and music. . .oh, and of course some form of exercise.  My activity of choice is a treadmill -- you can't run into anyone and, generally speaking no one will run into you.  And the best thing about it is -- once you get into the habit, which is actually very easy to do, you don't want to stop.  You actually look forward to that 30 minute, 60 minute or longer "mini-vacation".

I get my best ideas on a treadmill.  There's something about the activity and audio that really gets the creative juices going.  My instrument of choice is the Apple iPod -- a 40 gig version I received as a Christmas gift a couple of years ago.  I love it -- it screams quality and has served me without fault.  Of course there are less expensive MP3 players out there, but for me it's the iPod or nothing.  I have over 3000 songs,  every audio book I own and more than a few podcasts with gigs to spare.

For audio books, I recommend Audible.com.  They have several purchase plans from which you can select, a huge library and quality recordings.  For music, of course I use iTunes -- plus my own CD collection.  And podcasts on just about every conceivable subject can be found somewhere on the Internet.

So how do you get started. . .

• First select your weapon of choice.  If I were in the market today it would be the Apple iPod Nano -- 4 gigs -- it works with Macs and PCs.  Flash memory, no skips and it will hold enough books and music to last you a few marathons and longer on a single charge.  Be sure you have a mix of books and music - when your mood changes, so can your choice of entertainment.

• Second, get a subscription to Audible.com.  It starts as low as $9.95/year which gets you 30% discounts on  their recordings and more.  Or go with one of the monthly plans if you get really hooked.

• Third, pick an activity that requires little or no thought, judgment or response -- running on a treadmill is mine -- elliptical machines, stair climbers, rowing machines and  exercise bikes all provide the same effect.  Outdoor sports work, but you have to be more alert to the activity going on around you.  If you do choose running, either on a treadmill or outdoors, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Galloway's Book of Running, Second Edition.  A great book, easy to read and you'll never have to worry about injuries if you follow his advice.

• Fourth, build your library.  Follow the advice given by George Ambler at The Practice of Leadership in, How to Select and Read for Professional Development.  What works for books will work here as well.

• Fifth, get in the zone.  Focus on your professional development, physical fitness and creativity and enjoy doing it all simultaneously.  Suddenly exercise becomes painless, or as close to it as it can be and you'll just feel better physically and mentally, and you just might learn something new on the way!!

Coming soon -- my favorite audio books and some podcast recommendations for personal and professional development.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done, Self Improvement, Success

Get Productive with 5 Minutes

For many of us, getting things done often means developing little tricks to get us moving.  Here is nice little article from Brad Isaac at Achieve-IT! that just might help you to get things going.  Here's The Five Minute Productivity Breakthrough:

Do you have something you are putting off?

You might be putting off excercise.  You may be putting of writing a business plan.  Maybe it's something else.  Whatever it is you are putting off can be achieved if you simply put 5 minutes toward achieving it.

I can almost hear a collective sigh.  "Only 5 minutes?  Brad, you've lost it this time." 

Have I?  Not really.  If I can get 5 minutes of solid, no-nonsense, best effort, you'll get more done.

It works very much like Isaac Newton's theory (cool first name by the way). Newton's law states an object in motion, tends to stay in motion unless acted on by some external force.  All we have to do is get ourselves in as much motion as possible for 5 easy minutes and the rest will take care of itself.  You can do 5 minutes can't you?  Sure you can.

Read the rest of the article here.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Getting Things Done

Eliminate the Negative to Get Things Done

Tolerations.  In the coaching world, the annoying little problems, unproductive habits, clutter (both physical and mental) and stressful relationships are often referred to as 'tolerations'.  It's the stuff we don't like, but have learned to live with.  They also represent the roadblocks that prevent us from getting things done -- personally and professionally.  If you want to be more productive, focus more on what you really want to do, then you have to take action to get free of your tolerations.

The late Thomas Leonard, one of the leading proponents of the modern day coaching profession and founder of Coachville, offers 'The Top 10 Strategies to Eliminate Tolerations Forever':

One of the most important things to do when you decide it's time in your life to become a TFZ (Toleration-Free Zone) is to develop and implement TFZ Strategies that not only help you reduce your tolerations, but also help new ones from 'appearing.' You don't want to spend the rest of your life chasing down tolerations. The right strategies can help prevent tolerations from cropping up.

This Top 10 List are the strategies I use to keep my tolerations at bay. You'll want to adapt these to fit for your personality and situation, of course, and add new ones that work best for you. But, it's a place to begin your thinking.

1. Outsource your problems.

Personal or business problems, dilemmas or confusion can all be outsourced. By that, I mean that you can hire someone who understands the nature of the problem and help you fix it in relatively short order. So, you'd hire a coach to help get you unstuck, a therapist to help you heal, a consultant to make a recommendation, a bill-paying service to handle the paperwork, a CPA to handle the taxes, a lawyer to solve a legal toleration, a physical to help solve a medical toleration.. Sure, it's not free to outsource your problems, but think of the opportunity cost to you if you keep your tolerations around you -- your creativity is zapped, your energy is drained, you don't feel very good and the best people/opportunities stay clear because they don't like what they see or feel from you.

2. Bring in help.

Most tolerations are caused because we are too busy or tired to take care of things properly when they occur and thus be become a toleration. Bring in a house clearning service, hire a professional organizer to get your papers in order, work with a trainer to handle your body, get someone to babysit you each week if you have to, as you clean up your clutter. Hire the neighborhood kid for gardening, have the store deliver your food for you, have someone 'on call' for concierge duties/errands. It's all do-able IF you're willing to stop suffering.

Note: Part of the process of bringing in help is to establish systems that keep things handled automatically so that you don't have to remember or manage them.

3. Understand the nature and source of tolerations.

Tolerations don't just happen by themselves -- something causes them. YOU do not cause your tolerations -- it's something else, I believe. I'm not saying that you shouldn't take responsibility for your problems or for tolerating, but I'm convinced that tolerations occur due to ignorance, circumstances, evolution gaps, overstimulation from our environments, the need to succeed, etc. Hey, I know all about personal responsibility, but that's not the focus here. It might be helpful to understand that there is a dynamic occuring that is causing most of your tolerations. People so often think they are causing their own tolerations, but I don't think this is very true. We've evolving as individuals and as a society and tolerations are reminders that we've a ways to go in order to adapt to our new environment, called chaos. Over time, we'll all become TFZ's -- it will be a basic lifeskill. But in the meantime, is is the progressive types that have the edge because we can get this skill first.

Get Organized in Your Reading

"The man who reads nothing at all is better informed than the man who reads nothing but newspapers."  -- Thomas Jefferson

What a great quote!!  Unfortunately, for many of us the newspaper is often the only reading we get to do in our often too busy day.  This quote is also the opening line of an interesting, and very practical article by George Ambler at The Practice of Leadership entitled, How to Select and Read for Professional Development.  Think of it as "how to gets things done" for professional reading.  George provides a simple approach built around five considerations for selecting books for your professional development.

Take look -- it's a great approach and should be a habit developed for those serious about their personal and professional development.

"Read only the best books first lest there not be time enough to read them all."  -- Walden Pond

GTD gMail

I'm on the hunt for interesting and unique approaches for living the GTD life.  Here is an interesting paper on using Google's gMail for implementing your GTD system.  Have you got a cool tip, method or technique for using GTD in your life?  If so, let me know.  I'm building a library of online resources and ideas to share with others.