This video was entered into an AARP video contest and is one of the smartest, most encouraging videos I’ve seen in a long time. Be sure to watch all of it to get the full message. It will surely give you something to think about.

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Organize IT recap for 09th May 2008.

• The Growing Life has an alternative productivity manifesto which will really make you think about GTD, productivity, your job and how it all affects your life. The post says that since World War II productivity has doubled so we should be working twenty hour work weeks. Instead we’re working more than medieval peasants did. Scary.
• Scientific research into procrastination continues. Study Hacks has a look at current research and what advice it can give students on how to overcome burnout and mental malaise. Combined with the formula for procrastination, that should give you a strong base for better focus.
• Taking phone calls seems pretty simple right? However there are ten ways you should never answer the phone. I know a few people who ignore the phone when it rings. Very annoying. Do you ever make these mistakes?
• I’ve somehow amassed a small collection of binder clips from work over the last few months. I’ve never used them but I still feel the need to keep them because they just look so useful. Thanks to Cranking Widgets I may finally be able to put those clips to good use!

On Monday when I discussed how you can simplify the actual practise of Getting Things Done, rather than focusing on a GTD lite approach that misses the point, one suggestion was to stop messing around looking for the latest clever program and hi tech solution. Instead pick up a pen and paper and get on with it! If you need any more persuasion here are my top seven suggestions.

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There are a lot of simplified versions of Getting Things Done out there, in response to a large number of people who think it is complicated or difficult to get into. However, the problem is GTD is already a very streamlined system and as is the case with simplifying anything you have to make considerable trade-offs to achieve it. Before you start looking elsewhere for answers consider simplifying your actual usage of GTD. A lot of people make it more complicated than it needs to be.

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Good month for Organize IT. All stats continue to grow and it’s great to see you all leaving comments, subscribing to the RSS feed, talking to me on Twitter, etc. The community is growing! Remember, you can now contact me on LinkedIn and Facebook too. I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks for the support.

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