Organize IT recap for 09th May 2008.

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Organize IT recap for 02nd May 2008.

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Organize IT recap for 25th April 2008.

• Organize IT can now be found on Alltop under the lifehacks category. Thanks for including me guys! If you have problems with too many RSS feeds this site is a good way of distilling them down. One quick glance through the lifehacks page (or indeed under any category that interests you) and you can pick out top posts you like the sound of.
• Have you ever done a time audit? The idea used to sound appealing to me as it can provide useful information about how time gets spent. However I always felt it was a little too extreme for the average joe to both with (rather like planning out your day to the last minute). However, Genuine Curiosity has some interesting tips that may clarify what the whole process of auditing actually involves. Have you ever done a time audit? If so, how successful and useful was it?
• Tim Ferris, famous for the Four Hour Work Week, has some great advice about public speaking from Al Gore’s chief speech writer. If you have any doubt about your presentation consider what your point is and whether your speech explains why it matters.
• Scott has a very interesting idea of using a points system to measure productivity. While his examples revolves around being productive with blogging, the idea can be applied in many other areas. I’ve discussed rating yourself before, but this takes an alternative approach. I’m not sure what the scoring would be for day-to-day productivity, any suggestions?

Organize IT recap for 18th April 2008.

• On Wednesday I introduced the first stage of my Organize IT trigger list. Thanks to your feedback I have expanded it even further and I now believe it to be a huge, definitive list. I have also published it in PDF format for easy printing when you need it during weekly reviews. You can get hold of it here. Let me know whether you find it useful or not!
• Murphy’s law, also known as Sod’s law, is that old adage that if anything can go wrong, it usually will. It’s often put down to being unlucky, being in the wrong place at the wrong time and other unfortunate circumstances. However, now there is a scientific formula that will help you calculate the actual odds of being inflicted with Murphy’s law. It’s a bit tongue in cheek, but it does bring up some interesting points about how these quirks of fate actually have logical reasons for happening.
• We all know that exercise is good for you and it can make you both feel and look better. However, there is a lot more to it than that. PickTheBrain has ten extra points regarding the benefits of working out that you might not have considered. If I ever feel a little unfocused and drained a trip to the gym ironically tends to help with that.
• Recently I’ve put a lot of focus on the idea of having balance in your life. Rolf at Evomend has a very interesting look at the concept, applying it to the idea of destiny or self determination. The diagram in particular will give you something to think about.

Organize IT recap for 11th April 2008.

• The Scotsman has an article discussing how anxiety is just a normal reaction. It looks at the increasing attitude for over-medicating and over-diagnosing. While there is no doubt that for some people anxiety can develop into a disorder which can be debilitating, there seems to be a lot of people who just assume anxiety (and fear, unhappiness, etc) are automatically bad. We are humans, not robots. Let’s hear your thoughts!
• Who says you need eight glasses of water a day? At this blog I’ve always been an advocate of regular water consumption to improve your general wellbeing, but this article brings up some interesting points. For instance, much of our water needs can actually come from what we eat. It even covers the history of the hydrotherapy craze. How much water do you drink? Do you think it brings any benefits?
• If you are a fan of Moleskines, Put Things Off has the ultimate guide to the famous brand! Nick discusses what they are, why you should have one and what types are available. The post also comes with a ranking system that determines how addicted you are to Moleskines. Personally, I had a fairly successful experiment with a Moleskine but because I tend to scribble ideas down a lot, I just couldn’t come to terms with being scruffy in such an expensive notepad! I have an extensive collection of Moleskine hacks for those who are into that sort of thing.