how to forget

We’ve done a few posts on improving one’s mental abilities, i.e memory, focus, etc.  But what happens when you want to do just the opposite?  I need to forget a particular phone number. Pronto.  Any tips/tricks you might suggest?

P.S. Yes, I’ve tried booze.  No, it doesn’t work.

Walk Breaks

Everyday after about 2 hours into the morning and about 2 hours into the afternoon I lock my computer and go outside for a 10-15 minute walk.  Today, I adventured out onto a new route and I ran into two other sets of office walkers.  Anyone else here utilizing the walk break?

your dream job

Lately, I’ve found myself ruminating over how bored I am at work.  I have no passion for my job whatsoever.  Thankfully, I have several outside projects (UM included) that truly motivate me and will someday liberate me from the soul crushing world of corporate America.

Several years ago, it would have been hard to believe it’s possible to make a living doing what I’m truly interested in and naturally driven towards.

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Productivity: Putting in Time

It has become clear to me that success is a factor of three things: choosing the right focus, getting lucky with that choice, and putting in the time to make it happen.  The crux of this matter is the follow through of the third step.  The decision making and luck are both quick and fun parts, but putting in time is hard work.

The greatest thing I’ve found about putting time in is that if it happens regularly, it is hard not to succeed.  From playing the piano to learning the latest technology, all that really needs to happen is to allow focused time for these activities.   To ensure that the time does get put in, I’ve come up with a few devices to make it happen. Read more

props to microsoft

With all the love we’ve been dishing out lately for Apple/Steve Jobs/Mac I need to take a moment to give a big ups to the fine folks at.. GASP - Microsoft!  No, really.

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Productivity: Getting It Done First Thing

Every morning as I’m getting out of bed, I see the sun slowly rising, shining its amber hued rays into my window.  I make my bed, put on my bathrobe, and head to my office area.  Before the instant message windows fly open or the email alerts ring, I get to work.  And it’s the most effective part of my day. Read more

to do list / schmoo list

Being rather new to the self improvement / personal productivity realm, I’m quickly recognizing some of my limitations. A good example is with regards to Greg’s recent piece on keeping a to-do list of needs & wants.

This is an excellent technique for defining differences between these two equally important elements of life.
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My problem is one of surplus.

My ADHD / scatterbrained mindset has me constantly thinking of so many things that require my attention, that trying to whittle them down to two categories is tough.

Having it on the computer was another stumbling block for me, since I seem to have my productivity epiphanies at odd times (walking from the bus stop, in the middle of meetings, etc).

I recently came up with an easier way to keep track of things that might appeal to anyone else out there who’s easily distracted.

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grand central telephone service: most effective use

Back in December, UM fan and friend Jess wrote a great review of online telephone number-juggler Grand Central.  I was hesitant at first, but finally set myself up.

(There is a short wait to get a number, as they’re in ‘beta’.  I think it took about a week to receive mine). 

Being that they haven’t yet integrated text messaging (which in some ways makes it completely worthless; hopefully Google’s acquisition of GC will allow this in the near future) I’ve found one key use for it so far:

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Productivity: Needs and Wants

For the last two weeks I’ve been talking about getting what you really want by resisting urges and collecting desires.  Today I’m going to share the todo list that I’ve been using to make sure the necessities get taken care of as well.  Instead of creating a simple todo list, I have a file that I start fresh everyday and save as needsandwants.txt. Read more

Productivity: Resist the Urge to Multitask

At my very first job I remember my boss advising me that I would be wise to learn how to do more than one thing at a time.  This advise, like many other ideas passed down upon my youthful ears, I absorbed without question.  Now, I do the opposite, and I get more done.  With these tools, I’ve helped to untrain years of practice. Read more

Productivity: Do What You Really Want

Some days my time slips away from me as I let my wandering mind lead me from one activity to the next.  Sitting idly in front of the computer or lazing in front of the TV, an urge comes and I follow it to the kitchen for a snack.  Later in the evening when pondering how I spent my day, it is easy to realize, I could’ve probably done a lot cooler stuff with my day.  After a few trials, I’ve worked out a method to combat this. Read more

oldversion.com

One of the best things about upgrading to a Mac (hopefully within a month or so!) will be the seamless upgrade of iTunes when new versions are released.  There have been SEVERAL window’s iTunes updates that have practically crashed my computer, given me general heart failure, and sent me scrambling to roll back.  This sometimes involved scouring message boards in forums looking for links to prior versions.  In other words, a huge pain in my ass.
Oldversion.com is exactly what it sounds like; a site that attempts to catalog and archive every version of many popular programs, including iTunes.  Smart.

Productivity: Filling Your Deficiency Needs

With just a few days left in New Orleans, my temporary land lord moved us out from one house to another just down the block.  The quick uprooting and added stress started me thinking on the basic human needs and the consequences of not maintaining them.  This then brought up memories of learning about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in high school psychology class. Read more

poll: primary workplace - office or remote?

Knowing that the majority of our readers pull paychecks from some sort of IT related work, I’m curious: are you primarily working from home / remote or at the office? 
The future of all tech work is so obviously in the comfort of a remote work arrangement.  The benefits on both sides (employee: comfort, no commute, less stress, more flexibility with hours, etc.  employer: less overhead for office space/infrastructure, more productive workforce) are huge.  Not to mention the overall benefit of improving the environment by reducing traffic on the roads.

When, oh when will more executive teams wake up?  Sigh.

the 15 minute wake up call

I used to be a snooze fiend. Again and again I’d hit the pause button on my alarm, sometimes tacking on 45 minutes to my nightly sleep. Two things have rescued me from this unproductive habit; first, a return to using my beloved Axbo Sleep Phase Alarm Clock and second, implementing the “15 minute wake up call”.

The Axbo will set you back (a worth every penny) $300 USD. The 15 minute wake up call on the other hand is something you can start using immediately; for free.

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Productivity: Subtle Improvements

For a while I had a friend in my life who was a nutritionist. I often quizzed her on healthy food choices and inquired about her interactions with her clients. One thing she told me surprised me and has stayed with me since. It went something like this.

“Greg, the people who come to see me aren’t interested in eating healthy. It’s not about doing things like eating flax seeds or goji berries. It’s about convincing them that maybe they should only have one soda a day instead of three and then going from there.”

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Productivity: A Year of Goal Trials

Earlier this year I started getting up at 6:30am.  I gave this pattern a 30-day trial and at the end found the behavior added value to my life.  I thought it would be a good idea to keep trying different habits, one a month, for the rest of the year.  At the end of the year I could have 12 new habits impacting my life in positive ways.  However, when February came and sailed half way through without a new trial, I decided it was time to get ahead of the curve. Read more

Productivity: The Change Vacation

The hard thing about altering behavioral patterns is that the mind adheres to a consistent daily sequence.  When most everything stays the same, the normal system resists when just a few patterns change.  It’s slow hard work that most recommend you need many repeated days before change crystallizes.  However, if everything changes then the resistance to change is weakened.  This is the theory behind intensive meditation retreats and lengthy personal empowerment seminars.  I apply it to travel. Read more

Productivity: Buddy System Goals

I’ll readily ask a friend to grab a drink, meet some girls, or go out for a weekend in Vegas.  However, until recently,  I was hesitant to ask if they wanted to join me in a goal.  Since I’ve done this though, I’m not looking back. Read more

Productivity: 9am Status Update

For the past week I’ve been keeping a video diary. Every morning I turn on my computer, open my webcam software, and record about 2 minutes of myself entailing my plans for the day and reflect upon yesterdays experiences. It’s been helpful in identifying patterns in my life that need improvement, but the most help came when I decided the pattern that needed adjusting was the video recording itself.

Instead of the usual ramblings, I am now recording a status update each morning promptly at 9am. Consider it a self policing status meeting. Diverting the focus from what I want to do, I’m now recording what I actually did get done, and in a very limited scope. Read more

Giving Goals a Day Off

For the past week I’ve been head in to a new diet and exercise regime.  Part of the program is to take one day off a week to eat whatever I want.  After enjoying a deliciously large slice of new york style pizza, I started thinking about the falls I usually take when making changes in my life. Read more

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