The concept of “sunk cost” is often lost outside of economics–but if we dropped more things from our lives we’d be happier and more productive with our time.

Sunk cost: When one makes a hopeless investment, one sometimes reasons: I can’t stop now, otherwise what I’ve invested so far will be lost. This is true, of course, but irrelevant to whether one should continue to invest in the project. Everything one has invested is lost regardless. If there is no hope for success in the future from the investment, then the fact that one has already lost a bundle should lead one to the conclusion that the rational thing to do is to withdraw from the project.

Skeptic’s Dictionary

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Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Productivity
Article Tags: 4-Hour Workweek, lifehack, Productivity
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Six months ago I turned off automatic email downloading on my phone; it was one of the best decisions I’ve made. Having access to email on the go is helpful (as is web access), but downloading email automatically does more harm than good.

Instead, consider checking email only when you have the time to act on it, or when you’re looking for a very specific, timely message. I list instructions below on how to disable auto-check…but first, here are ten reasons:

1. Battery life. Constantly checking email kills your talk time. Since turning off "automatic synchronizing," the battery life on my Motorola Q (Windows Mobile) has more than doubled from "I hate this worthless phone that doesn’t last a day" to "oh, I forgot the charger, no big deal"
2. Setting expectations. Anything you can do to train your contacts that you are not their slave is to your advantage. Writing back in a few hours (preferably at your desk) is perfectly reasonable (my thoughts on being responsive vs being available)–don’t let people think you’re always available for them

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Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, AwayFind, Business, Email, Productivity, Technology
Article Tags: 4-Hour Workweek, 4HWW, activesync, iPhone, palm, Productivity, push email, synchronization
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The last article I wrote explained how we shouldn’t make others feel that “we’re busy”–that their time is less important than ours. Being perceived as being in high demand may help to command respect, but you can accomplish that without feigning busyness or sacrificing those you care about. This post is generally in response to Skellie of skelliwag.org [great site], who commented:

If others perceive you as being in high demand, as having a full schedule and generally having a lot of work, your perceived value/talent goes up. Clients want you more. Clients want to pay you more. It’s a social proof thing — if everyone wants you, you must be good. Freelancers who never seem busy, who make themselves available all the time, tend to get treated like they’re not busy for a reason…. [M]anufacturing some of that busyness can be good for business!

I completely agree–the key is to recognize the difference between being responsive and being too available. I personally respond to every email/call I receive, but I won’t do it right away. Most problems don’t need to be solved that quickly, and most projects are not due today. Clients and coworkers may make us feel that way, but they ultimately will respect a consistent response within a reasonable amount of time. In other words, I try to be responsive but not readily available.
Responding right away may come off as eager. (more…)

Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Productivity, Professionalism
Article Tags: 4-Hour Workweek, 4HWW, getting things done, gtd, Productivity
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We have a problem when we equate busyness with productivity (or, worse yet, success). We have a problem when we let people know we’re fitting them in to our schedules. We’re all busy people, and some of us might be considered productive, but none of us have the right to make others feel less important. A productive person is one who gets a lot done but doesn’t feel busy (or make others feel that they are).

I was talking with one of my employees about how much I had to do and when I would be able to get him some feedback. A few minutes after our conversation I cringed–I may have leeway with when I get him the feedback, but he didn’t deserve my listing out my to do list. He has just as much to do, if not at work then in other places, and I should never let my “busy life” be more important.

I got a phone call last week and the client exclaimed, “I’m so lucky I got you on the phone…I know how busy you are.” Maybe he meant it as a compliment, but it sort of irked me. Here I am trying to feel on top of my life/schedule…and I’m making an important client feel like I don’t have time for him. No, that’s not quite what he said, but it bugged me. It’s not that I’m not busy, but I want it to be clear to people (especially friends and, well, prospects/clients) that I have time for them.

It’s all about the approach: (more…)

Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Business, Productivity, Professionalism
Article Tags: 4hourworkweek, busy, busyness, fourhourworkweek, getting things done, gtd, Productivity, psychology
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I don’t know how many times I’ve wasted hours on a computer without doing something productive.  And the reason: I didn’t have a very specific purpose to log on.  We’d all be better off avoiding the computer until we have a path in mind–after all, we don’t turn on the oven until we know what we want to eat.

There is a time for playing around online, but for most of us it’s not as often as we do it.  Sometimes it feels like being at the computer is synonymous with working, but that’s far from the case.  So here’s my recommendation: before you bring up your web browser or email program, decide exactly what you want to accomplish.  You probably have a To-Do list or a calendar–consult those or decide on something else…yes, even email can wait.

The best approach I’ve found is to decide the evening before what I want to accomplish in the morning.  Then when I get to the computer I’ll have something important to focus on, rather than taking new information in or “seeing what’s going on.”  The tangents are best saved for when I have already accomplished something.

It’s far from rocket science to say, “work on something you have to do when you’re at the computer.”  But the nuance I’m throwing in is that you should think hard about what that something is and focus on it before touching your mouse or keyboard.  And if you can, set yourself a very strict goal of an hour (or something similar) to complete that task.

Now that I’ve got this blog post out of the way, I’m off to empty my inbox.

Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Productivity, Technology
Article Tags: 4HWW, Productivity
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At the end of this I list specific tips for escaping from information overload, but first I address why and how I’ve chosen what I personally read.

For the last few years I was in two book clubs, before that I ran my own, and my yearly resolutions have usually had a “read more” clause. Not this year. I still love reading, but I’ve decided that it must be either a pleasant escape or practical for work. Cutting back has been tough for me, because I enjoy the newspaper, classic fiction, contemporary nonfiction, philosophy… I could read for days and days . But I’ve canceled my Washington Post subscription, I’m focusing on the authors I enjoy most, and constantly trimming my RSS.

One of the reasons why I’m so into “productivity” is because I usually feel I have too much to do. There’s nothing more daunting than a pile of unread books and periodicals that grows ever larger. So I’ve cut back on my inputs and focused on leaving time for reading things I truly enjoy. Never letting too much material get in front of me in the first place has been the key.

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Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Happiness, Productivity, Social Media
Article Tags: 4hourworkweek, books, brijit, fourhourworkweek, informationdiet, literature, Productivity, reading, sunkcost
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Like many, I find getting out of bed the worst part of the day. Over the years I’ve tried a few ways to make the process easier, and here are my findings. I owe most of this advice to Steve Pavlina (this post, in particular), but I’m going to reiterate it (since it was years ago) and add my own notes.

I’ve always wanted to be a morning person: I’m most productive in the morning (especially since I don’t check email), no task seems too large when the day’s ahead of me, and it’s the most practical time for me to exercise. A note about that last part–working out in the morning means only one shower/getting-ready per day (since it’s post-workout) and an early run almost never gets in the way of other commitments (whereas lunch and early evening are cluttered with various activities). So my goal has always been to get up early enough to run, eat, and start or arrive at work by 9:00.

Steve Pavlina’s advice is the key: get up at the same time every day, and go to sleep when you’re tired. And, equally important, (more…)

Filed under: Productivity
Article Tags: hacks, Productivity, sleep, tips
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It’s interesting that we can be excited about discovering the most productive ways to do things…regardless of the impact it has on our productivity. It’s like hearing the secret to a magic trick–just because we’ve found it out doesn’t mean we can now pull it off on our own. It takes a little patience and practice. With that in mind I’m not going to give you another tip for you to gloss over, but instead invite you to look at some articles that have influenced me, some helpful tips from others, and some that I’m most proud of sharing–all of which can help you out.

Some influential reads/views:

• Marc Orchant’s advice on putting things aside that you’ve started (discussion of Dave Winer and David Allen’s decision to stop blogging)
• Merlin Mann’s video on Inbox Zero (of his speech at Google)
• Kathy Sierra on how to be an expert

Some great lists of tips:

• Steve Pavlina’s 33 productivity tips (there are 66 more on the bottom of the page)
• Dave Cheong’s 18 ways to stay focused at work
• Chrono Cr@cker’s keyboard tips for “life without mouse”

Some of my best tricks:

• My list of helpful mobile websites (if you browse the internet on your PDA/iPhone/etc)
• My tips for how to process email without being a jerk
• My advice for how to keep a small wallet

If you have any links to resources that you feel would be helpful, please do share them below.

Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Productivity, Technology
Article Tags: Productivity, tips
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I made a list yesterday of everything I have to do. It felt liberating at the time, and it still does now. Here’s the why and how.

The most important lesson I took from Getting Things Done was that the key to productivity was to get your thoughts out of your head and into a system. For instance, while you’re working on a proposal it doesn’t help to think about the bills you have to pay or the presentation you’re delivering in an hour. Those items belong in a system that you can trust–so that you won’t forget your bills or your presentation, and you can focus on the task at hand. David Allen referred to this as Mind Like Water.

Yesterday my mind was not at peace–it needed to be emptied. I felt I had to write a blog post, to work on AwayFind, to organize my photos, to work on taxes, to see a movie, to read–I was stuck and overwhelmed. So I went through the exercise–I started with blank 8.5×11 sheets of copy paper and listed, line-by-line, everything I could think of that I had to do. I didn’t categorize or order anything, I just purged. When I felt I had everything I could think of, I looked around my house, and then at my Outlook and Basecamp calendar and to-do lists–I didn’t want to miss anything. Four pages later I felt in control.

That afternoon I tackled a few easy things on the list and crossed them out. This morning I’ve completed more, placed a bunch on my project list, scheduled a few as appointments, and delegated many of them. I even came up with and planned an idea that some of you might appreciate: (more…)

Filed under: 4-Hour Workweek, Business, Productivity
Article Tags: david allen, getting things done, gtd, mind like water, Productivity
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I can’t stop reading about the MacBook Air, but that’s because I’m a geek who loves sexy technology. Deep down I know that, like the iPhone, it doesn’t really make me more productive. While I do connote portability with productivity (in that portability enables mobility), a few ounces one way or another doesn’t play a role in my travel decisions. We’re in a world where there’s fashionable technology and dull-looking technology…but we’re missing the point. Or at least my point: technology should help us to get work done first and foremost.

Regularly I’ll toss my Dell M1210 into a Waterfield sleeve case with an extra battery and a book. That’ll get me 8 hours for 6 lbs (or 4lbs before the other stuff) with more power than the MacBook Air. Tack on my Motorola Q with an extra battery and I have unlimited free internet if I can’t find a hotspot. What more would I need? (oh, I’ll bring my 1st generation iPod Nano along, too.)

But that’s not really doing my comparison justice. With the MacBook Air I can’t bring along DVDs for a planeride (plus I have two headphones jacks on my Dell). The very thin keyboard, like the iPhone’s missing keyboard, is an adjustment that I wouldn’t look forward to. And the pricetag isn’t exactly forgiving. (more…)

Filed under: Business, Design, Productivity, Technology, Tools I Use
Article Tags: iPhone, MacBook Air, mobility, Productivity, travel
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