It’s about time we stopped putting so much effort into putting out less effort when it comes to getting work done. We spend too much time and effort digging through articles, podcasts, and other content trying to find those little nuggets of wisdom that can have an immediate impact on our work. We get it…we have the same struggles. That’s why we’ve started a new series here at The Idea Pump called 60 Second Productivity.
The purpose, if you can’t tell by the title, is to gather as many tips, tricks, and hacks as we can find across the spectrum of tools and techniques that can be implemented in under a minute and immediately help you become more productive. Each day we’ll share a post so you’re always getting something new.
If there is a tool or topic you’re specifically interested in, make sure to drop us a line below and let us know. If you have your own tip, trick, or hack and want to share it with the world, you can submit it and it might be included in a future post (you’ll get credit!)
It all comes down to this…the little steps we take to make things easier on ourselves amount to big steps towards being more productive added together.
“Awww, do you need a nap?” We’ve all heard this said to a grumpy toddler at some point and time. Partially it comes from knowing that rest for them is good but also because it gives us some peace and quiet from their most recent tirade. What I wonder though is why “growing up” means that naps no longer carry their core benefits? Perhaps it’s the fact the name itself has such a juvenile and demeaning connotation of weakness. It’s time this changed.
When researching the definition of “nap” this misconception continues. Synonyms include doze, catnap, drowse, drop off, nod off, and snooze, all of which also carry the negative connotations of unproductivity and weakness. For some reason we have, as a society, decided that if a person is not powering through all needs for rest and rejuvenation they are lazy therefore unreliable. This, using the old term brought new, is malarkey.
Further research brings to the fore the concept of the “power nap” or Stage 2 nap which lasts 20 minutes or less and ends before the sleeper enters slow wave sleep. The concept and execution have demonstrated improvements in alertness, motor skills, and awareness after completing the shortened rest period. It is important to recognize the value diminishes significantly when the person at rest extends the period past 20 minutes as then they enter a deeper sleep cycle and encounter sleep inertia when they wake. There is a supplementary concept to the Stage 2 approach with the addition of caffeine prior to the rest period. Caffeine takes approximately 30 minutes to kick into full effect and when coupled with a time limited 20 minutes Stage 2 rest the benefits can and have proven to be substantial. While this is not something I personally do on a regular occurrence, I have experienced the combined effect myself when I have combined these two.
Back to the nap-shaming though. Here becomes the core question. If you indicate you’re going to take a “coffee break” or just “clear your head” why wouldn’t you do it in the most effective manner possible? How would you react if a colleague said, “I’m going to take a break” then went over to the corner, grabbed a chair, put their feet up, and dozed off for 20 minutes? On job sites where physical labor is common you’ll see this happen far more frequently than ever in an office space, and yet I’ll argue the mental exhaustion and stress from many information based environments is equally as taxing.
Is it all in the name? If “napping” had a fancier, more “click-baity” name such as “Stage 2 Rest Cycling” or “Short Duration Mental Refresh” would it be more palatable? I’m thinking it’s something far more basic than that. No matter what you call a nap, it comes down to accepting the fact that for a human to work at their optimal state regardless of what they are doing they need to be well-rested. The body when exhausted draws in it’s reserves and prevents us from overextending ourselves if possible. Why would we not want people to be at their best whenever possible, especially if the solution could be as simple as 20 minutes rest.
I know many people who say, “I can’t nap…I can’t fall asleep in 20 minutes.” Let’s clarify that myth now. For effective S2R (Stage 2 Rest…yes I just made up a new name) you only need about 10 minutes of actual rest time. If you allocate 20 minutes of time, close your eyes, and doze off for 10 minutes, it may take you 10 minutes just to get to that state. Even then the period of inactivity reaps its benefits. The lack of external stimulus can be calming, giving yourself an opportunity to clear your mind and provide a new perspective on problems and challenges. “But what if I can’t fall asleep?” Remember you’re not trying to “fall asleep” as per say. You’re giving your mind and body a chance to downshift to neutral for lack of a better analogy. You can’t force yourself to enter this state…you can only provide yourself the opportunity and environment to do so.
My S2R process has evolved over a number of years but in a nutshell here’s how it works: when I find myself losing focus, overstressed, or basically needing a break I tell the Amazon Echo sitting on my desk to set a timer for 20 minutes. I lean back, put my feet up, and close my eyes. That’s it. No fancy prep, no special teas or concoctions (though I do love a good tea), no mantras or background white noise needed. It’s taken quite a while to teach my body and mind that when I take these simple steps it’s time for everybody to take a break. Sometimes I slip quickly into S2R, other times I spend the entire 20 minutes awake and aware with my mind wandering. In either case, the worst thing that has happened is I’ve spent 20 minutes giving myself some time for me. The best case the alarm sounds, my eyes open, and I feel refreshed and ready to go back to work.
There is no disputing the factual evidence that S2R (napping) has benefits. There is also no doubt we don’t provide ourselves the opportunities to reap these benefits because of the perceptual stigma around the name itself. So next time you feel like you need a nap and are afraid you’re going to get some grief, just tell them your’re testing a new productivity strategy called S2R. I know it means nothing different than taking a nap, but does that really matter? Now go and get some rest so you can be productive.
Kevin Tofel over at About Chromebooks penned an excellent article recently about how, even after 10 years, people still don’t have a good idea of what Chromebooks are truly capable. As someone who lives the Chromebook life (I work every day on one for multiple hours a day) I can tell you without hesitation there is little a Chromebook cannot do that requires a Windows or Mac machine in the normal course of events.
The shift to “work-where-you-are” thinking has helped push Chromebooks further into their own, coupled with the overwhelming demand in educational circles required by at-home learning. This is a period where circumstances as well as advancements (more prevalent cloud based services, expanding connectivity, and more) have combined to create the perfect storm of reasons to have and use a Chromebook.
We see this demand reflected in pricing and availability of these units but also in the number of models, designs, and manufacturers making a greater impact in the space. If you are considering a machine purchase, or perhaps expanding away from a dedicated desktop unit to include something mobile, or even to supplement your laptop with something that is more directly functional and reliable, a Chromebook should absolutely be in the mix.
I challenge you to make a list of the demands you will place on a machine, Chromebook or otherwise, and carefully review how you expect those demands to be met. This understanding of your needs will make the decision making process far easier and ultimately, I believe, will put a Chromebook on equal if not superior footing to traditional OS based machines in the lion’s share of cases.
In this period of remote schooling, remote working, and remote living we’ve come to count on video conferencing solutions more than ever before by an order of magnitude. Unfortunately, most of these platforms aren’t ready to work at these levels and collapse under the strain. What can you do when the lights go out and you’re unable to deliver content the same ways you have in the past?
Idea #1 – Create a “safe space” for your content
If you’re teaching a class and know some of the content will be delivered virtually but aren’t sure everyone will be able to access the content equally (for various reasons) try creating a “safe space” for your students to go to in case things break. If they’re dropped from a session they should know the session will be recorded and posted for them to review afterwards rather than wasting their time and yours trying to get back into a virtual session. Posting content, reference links, materials, videos, and audio recordings to a tool not dependent on a video connection is an excellent plan B for keeping people engaged.
Idea #2 – Use tools that provide offline sync
If you have access to tools such as OneNote, you can use it’s offline sync capability to create the “safe space” I mentioned earlier. Creating a notebook for each student and then posting content in that notebook for them means they can connect to the notebook when they have connectivity restored and the content will sync down to them to work on offline. As they work, their updates can be automatically synced back to you for review and evaluation. Leveraging tools designed to work when connectivity is spotty is a great way to keep things moving along.
Idea #3 – Smaller is better
If connectivity is an issue go for bite-sized chunks rather than full meals when it comes to your content. Recording an hour-long class can be tough to get through without technical issues, but if that class covers six major topics breaking it down into six 10-minute recordings is technically easier as well as more reliable. Think about it this way: people have gotten good about binge viewing content on Netflix and Disney, so why not put some of those skills to use for you and your content?
Trial and error
We’re in a period where there are few good practices and even fewer best ones. Take time to save time where you can and simplify whenever possible. There’s nothing more difficult than keeping a distracted student engaged and one operating from the comforts of home is that much more distracted.
To paraphrase a line from Frank Herbert’s DUNE, “I see plans within plans…”. This is what you have to do to make your way in this new world.
Microsoft has been pressing the concept of Citizen Developers over the past few years; power users with the ability to build low-code or no-code solutions using their Power Platform in Office 365. While I’ve always been an advocate of spreading knowledge and skills to a broader audience especially within the business, the power of the Power Platform does raise concerns and considerations that must be addressed to avoid a chaos scenario of solutions.
Best Practices
The term is loaded but the phrase “best practices” can make a huge difference when it comes to creating long term supportable solutions vs. short term throwaway solutions. There are a number of professionals out there (Laura Rogers, Shane Young, and others) who can easily educate you on how to build Power Platform based solutions but are you educating within your organization and developing internal best practices to follow?
Documentation
Documenting the construction of Power Platform based applications is not the easiest task because of how the applications themselves are configured and built. For a Citizen Developer to build a long term solution they need to be cognizant of the fact they may not be the developer who supports their application a year from now. Even more common, if they’re a skilled citizen developer, they may be called to task to support someone else’s application. Dedicating time and process to proper documentation can make the difference between spending an hour troubleshooting a problem and spending a day.
Standards
By it’s very nature, the Power Platform pushes a developer into certain design standards to allow for scalable and responsive design. Organizationally, coordinating your citizen developers around design standards for solution types, business branding, and usability helps mitigate the chaos and encourages a shorter learning curve when users are working with solutions built by different developers.
Nothing new under the sun
These are not new concepts; they have been around the developer community from the beginning days of computing. Where this is new is that non-developers have to learn the value of this effort and adopt it as part of their everyday methodology. It is in this that seasoned developers can be advocates of good development habits and procedures as citizen developers become more mainstream.
I’ve been working from home for more than three and a half years now and over that time I’ve found that maintaining the motivation to get things done can be just a challenging as in an office. Recently I’ve started to try some new things to get me going and I thought I’d share my successful/unsuccessful efforts here.
It’s easy to fall into a level of comfort when working from home. No business casual dress code needed if you’re not seeing people after all. But I’ve found that staying in the “casual” mode too long tends to create inertia in the brain and doesn’t let me do my best “business work.” My solution…get dressed.
Now, I’m not talking about putting on a suit or anything like that. The simple act of putting on a dress shirt can change my mindset completely when it comes to focusing. I’ve heard the process equated to putting on a uniform in sports…you get your game face on. Combining this with the option to do video calls more frequently, and I’ve found “gearing up” can be just the catalyst I need to get over a hump of inactivity.
Put away the bunny slippers, put on some good clothes, and go comb your hair. It’s amazing what mixing things up a little bit will do for your productivity.
What gets you motivated working at home? Share in the comments section if you please!
An interesting discussion popped up on Google+ today talking about evaluating productivity advice based on the provider of the advice over the advice itself. While I may be over-simplifying the concept, it inspired me enough that I believe it is worth further investigation. I do agree with the commenter there is a segment of the “productivity movement” tending towards saleable advice, but that is to be expected in any venue of expertise. I spend a great deal of time in the project management space and you find the same perspectives there. The challenge I raise to this is, do we discount productivity advice based on if we do not agree with the adviser?
My stance, and what I recommend to others, is to take a three-pronged approach to evaluate productivity advice. The three tenets of the evaluation are:
Relevance – Practicality – Repeatability
By using these measures you can determine if a productivity hack, solution, tool, or whatever has a good chance of contributing positively to your personal productivity for an extended period of time.
Relevance
Does the advice have a relevant point of reference in making an impact in your daily life? When you review your list of “productivity issues” do you see one that matches the solution the advice recommends, or do you see the solution and look for a problem for it to solve? I’ll use the example of Inbox Zero for my own reference here. While the approach of having all email addressed and resolved in a timely manner can be a huge boon to many, it’s relevance to my own needs is minimal. Seeing the posts and solutions (some excellent by the way) I moved to see if implementing Inbox Zero methodologies made sense. For me, the end result was additional work with no increase in productivity. Not a failing of the solution, or of my own, but a failing of relevance. I was solving a problem that for me didn’t need to be solved.
Practicality
Can you execute the advice without creating an adverse increase in your work efforts? Many systems are complex and comprehensive, promising grand repositioning and resolution to many productivity needs and problems. They require commitment and application for their success, and their failure comes not from the system but from the application. For example let’s look at the popular approach by David Allen, Getting Things Done. There are a huge number of advocates of this solution and just as many people who have successfully implemented it into their daily lives. When I applied my own evaluation criteria to the approach (after several attempts to make it work for me) I found the effort needed to implement the solution was never going to be practical for me. Again, it is not a failing in the solution nor is it a failing in myself, but rather a recognition that my personal needs and style required a different solution.
Repeatability
Can the advice become a repeatable contributor to your daily productivity methodology? We have all fallen prey to the instance of the “hot hack.” The simple, quick trick that promises to solve a productivity issue in short order. The challenge often comes from these hacks not being truly sustainable over the long term. An example of this for me became the “shared solution.” Many methodologies recommend improving your productivity by engaging others in your system. Shared notebooks, shared notes, shared tasks, shared lists, etc. The thinking is by engaging another in your process, you lessen the direct load on yourself and thereby become more productive. Personally, I’ve found this to be true IF (and that’s one really big if) the person or persons being engaged to share your same vision of the solution and a common willingness to participate. In the professional space, the org chart can be used as the stick to reinforce the use of a shared solution, but in the personal space, there is rarely such an incentive. You may be able to get a person to participate once, but making that success repeatable to multiple individuals and instances is a different matter entirely.
Evaluate based on what not who
Anyone can recommend a productivity solution, hack, or idea to me and I will evaluate it for myself based on the criteria listed above. Who that recommender is bears no impact on my evaluation. What is most interesting about this is many of the ideas I have adopted over the years have come from posts online, from people I have never heard of, but whose ideas whether their own or shared from another, have met the requirements and made a difference for me. I will admit if a person’s repeated advice fails my test I’m much less likely to pay attention in the future. So as I started this missive, let me recommend you evaluate what you see and read and determine for yourself what will work.
In the world of productivity there’s always a running debate around task management. Should they have reminders? Do they get scheduled? How do you track them? How do you follow-up? Before delving into that type of discussion let’s focus on helping define exactly what tasks are to you and how you can get a grip on them.
The term “task” is a loaded one in my dictionary, because it immediately conjures the image of something hard, something that needs to be “managed,” and something that needs a “manager.” Let’s change the definition a little and see if that helps grant us a better perspective. Instead of a task being focused on work to expend, let’s focus it on objective to be accomplished. Each task we complete should be an accomplishment, no matter how minor. (You have no idea how often completing the task of “getting my morning coffee” is the biggest accomplishment of the day. Now, with our new outlook on tasks, we can change even more rules.
When we look at tasks there are really two types in my book: tasks you assign yourself and tasks assigned to you by someone else. The biggest difference is the second type, assigned by someone else, involves just that…someone else. Part of the task accomplishment process then has to include the other person in the mix to be considered an accomplishment when complete. Let’s take a closer look at a basic userflow (one of my favorite terms) for the two types of task:
Task A – Assigned by me
Identify the task –> Document the task –> Plan –> Execute –> Document accomplishment
Task B – Assigned by someone else
Receive assignment –> Review assignment –> Acknowledge assignment –> Capture the task –> Document the task –> Plan –> Execute –> Document –> Report accomplishment –> Confirm or review accomplishment
If you are in a situation where a task takes longer than planned, you add in a loop for “Report Status –>” after Execute and go back to Execute to continue working. See how much more complicated things get when we introduce another human in the equation? This is where so many of our “task management” solutions fall apart. As professionals, we strive to find the one system, the one miracle pill, to address both Tasks A and B. They’re a rare beast by any measure. So how do we do this? There has to be a way. My opinion…it all comes from a change in perspective.
Communication vs. completion
Let’s take Task B from earlier since it’s the complicated one and break it down into two main areas: action and sharing.
Receive assignment –> Review assignment –> Acknowledge assignment –> Capture the task –> Document the task –> Plan –> Execute –> Document –> Report accomplishment –> Confirm or review accomplishment
Interesting change in what the task effort looks like, isn’t it? Out of the 10 steps to carry out the task, only two focus on the “doing” of the task. The rest are either receiving, sharing, or documenting (for future sharing.) When we look at our tasks this way, we can see putting energy into the task itself is not where the bulk of the work is derived. The heavy lifting comes from the communication back and forth to keep both parties engaged. Now this is just if you’re working with one person on a task. Think about what happens when we add two, three, or more.
Creating the stages in a solution for managing tasks from others must include steps to close the loop on the communications. Updates, snapshots, etc. are all part of the accomplishment of the task, but for more than just the “doing.” If you are going to establish a reputation for being the type of person who gets things done, others have to know you are doing just that. It’s up to you as part of your solution to make sure information about the successes are getting back to the right people in a timely manner so your reputation for quality work grows, rather than just becoming the person who can really crank out the widgets.
When you’re designing your “task management solution” always keep this in mind; the work you do is only a fraction of the work you share.
Doing the right things in the right ways at the right times
You must be logged in to post a comment.