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!

Organize IT recap for 02nd May 2008.

• The BBC is taking a look at how the internet has a potentially bleak future. The internet is such an integral part of my life nowadays. I’m on it everyday. I have this blog, I watch TV, listen to music, buy and sell, research and read… I could go on. It’s important that we don’t take the internet for granted.
• We are all familiar with financial budgets, but what about time budgets? Litemind has a good writeup describing how you can implement one. This approach gives you an objective way of assessing your life balance, and sounds much more practical to do than a time audit. Personally I try to pace myself as much as possible, mixing leisure with work as I go along. Ever tried a time budget? What were your experiences?
• Dumb Little Man has a ten point guide on how you can drop pounds and years off yourself. Normally I wouldn’t pay much attention to such posts but I liked this one for it’s practical and realistic advice. Start drinking green tea? Wow, I can do that right now. Cut out the white flour? That’s an easy habit to start developing. It’s not all about going to the gym every week, it’s also about your lifestyle.
• I like theories and formulas when it comes to the topics I write about, hence my formula for productivity and my procrastination guide. Productive Flourishing has a very intriguing theory of productivity that covers the time management loop alongside the principles of effective time management systems. Definitely worth an in-depth look. I’m going to see how my weekly planner stands up to it.

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.