Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Genuine Curiosity

Author Dwayne Melancon is always on the lookout for new things to learn. An ecclectic collection of postings on personal productivity, travel, good books, gadgets, leadership & management, and many other things.

 

Do you like a speckled ax?

I'm reading Walter Isaacson's "Benjamin Franklin: An American Life" right now, and it's interesting how relevant it is to some of the things I'm focusing on (and struggling with). I'd always heard that Franklin carried a notebook with him, and that he wrote down his virtues (core values) and systematically worked to improve himself in those specific areas.

What I didn't know was how tempted he was to not do those things. For example, one of the virtues he struggled with was:

"Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time."

Hey - that sounds like something I'd like to do, and something I work on!

How relieved I was to find out that Franklin had trouble with that one, too. According to Isaacson's account:

[Franklin] likened himself to the hurried man who goes to have his ax polished but after a while loses patience and declares, "I think I like a speckled ax best."

I certainly identify with that one. Pick up this book (click on the title above to see it on Powell's, the best bookstore in the world) if you haven't read it - it's very well done, and great for aspiring productivity geeks like me.

Next time I'll talk about how Franklin kept score to track how well he did with his Virtues.

Read More

Caveat Mentor

Along the lines of my last post, I've been talking with some folks about business mentoring. Based on those conversations, I have a strawman set of ideas I'd like to float out there:

Mentoring is about intent

Start the relationship with your mentor understanding what each of you intends to give and get in this equation. It is even more powerful if you write down the intended results and what each person is committing to do (or not do) in the relationship.

Mentoring is not aimless conversation

Mentoring is best when focused on a particular improvement area, or a series of finite focus areas. For example, if you have one aspect of your life or skills you'd like to be coached on, decide on a goal for that area and focus on it until you consider it "done enough" to close it off, then move to the next area of focus.

Mentoring is about openness

If you are the mentor, be open and direct with the "mentee." If you are the mentee, remember that you asked for this help and try to apply what your mentor is suggesting.

It may take a while to build mutual trust, so stick with it for a bit if it feels uncomfortable at first.

Mentoring should not be vague or scary

If you are seeking a mentor, don't get too caught up in the "I'm not worthy" trap. Writing down a specific thing (or things) you would like to learn from the mentor will make this easier for both parties.

Review your objectives with your prospective mentor so they can let you know whether they can really help. 

If you are asked to be a mentor, don't get too caught up in the "I'm not worthy" trap. You're being asked out of respect (and admiration), and you probably have some good perspective to share.

Mentoring is about commitment and mutual value

Don't enter into a mentoring relationship lightly. Both sides must commit to the relationship and do their part to keep it productive and on course. In a productive mentoring relationship, you should walk away from each meeting feeling energized and supported, even though you may also feel challenged and humble.

Those are some of my observations so far. I'd love your input  on other aspects, omissions, or things you think I've gotten wrong.

Also, one of the things I haven't cracked the code on just yet:

How do you find a great mentor?

I've been fortunate in my life in that I find myself in the midst of Great people and have been able to get some great mentoring along the way. Maybe it's just "tuning my radio to the right frequency" and I listen to the mentor channel. I don't know.

For those of you that have sought your own mentors and found them, what worked?

Read More

Great advice on The Master Task List

Over on "Working Smart," Michael Hyatt has a great article on The Master Task List that really hit home for me. This is another area where I've seen some positive overlap between the various time and priority management systems.

With the Franklin Planner, I began using a Master Task List back in the late 80's. In hindsight, I don't think I used it very well. I revisited it in a different form with Covey's system - again, no luck.

The Master Task List (under a different name with a slightly different set of mechanics) showed its face again in Getting Things Done, and finally started to click. I've even been sticking with it.

And then, bam! I read Michael's article and saw a nuance that kicked it up a notch. It seems I've been using my master list as a place to house the projects I want to get to so they don't get lost. I now realize I've been missing a critical piece - I haven't been treating the "good hygiene" aspects of my life the same way.

Michael shares a sample of his Master Task List on the site, and says you need to turn them into actions. Yes, the things on his list are things you do, but they are more like the things I'd do if I did the things I should do.

In other words, starting and maintaining a Master Task List will probably be the first thing on my new Master Task List. Thanks Michael.

Read More

Caution: Merging traffic

One of the challenges I've encountered with all the workflow and prioritization techniques I've used and studied is around how to "merge" it into your life.

There are a several aspects that have been challenging to me:

Merging my new workflow into projects and activities already under way

Merging my new approach into effective interactions with others who aren't using this new workflow

Merging new (hopefully better) habits into my old habits and weeding out the old habits that are counterproductive

If I combine bits I've picked up from Covey, David Allen, and others, my key take-aways for how to manage this merge are:

Use your new method diligently for at least 21-30 days to help establish it as a habit.

Make your new systems and associated commitments visible, if you can - for example, let your family and at least some of your co-workers know what you're up to (and why you might be acting funny).

If you want to go a step further, find a "workout partner" that will take on the new system with you.

Keep the system as simple as possible (or as complicated as necessary, but no more than that) so you don't give it up because it's too hard to maintain.

Begin with a clear "short list" of things you want out of the new system - whether that's better life balance, improved productivity, increased focus, better results, more meaning in your life, etc. - and track progress against that short list.

Keep track of the "wins" as you go - they will help you keep going (I've heard that every time you play golf, there usually at least one shot you make that gets you back out on the course the next time - look for those shots in your life, as well).

Share what you learn with others. This has a couple of benefits - you get more moral support, and by teaching others you are compelled towards mastery of the topic.

If you have problems, don't give up. Get back on your program and spend some time reflecting on why you lost momentum, and what you can do to tweak (or trim) your system to make it less likely you'll get stalled again. This is "Weekly Review" time for GTD, and "Sharpen the Saw" time for Covey-ites.

My list is just scratching the surface - what have you learned?

The bottom line is that all of this is worth it. A friend of mine this week reminded me of a verse from Proverbs: "You use steel to sharpen steel; and one friend sharpens another." - I think it's a good symbol for how we need to find the right ways to improve ourselves, and our friends can help.

And you can always hope that you're the friend that your friends turn to when they need sharpening.

Read More

It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools

In my previous post on GTD I mentioned that I was a time management junkie. My problem is that I've always been a "binge time manager" in that I'd use a tool very diligently for a while, then I'd stop. Then I'd invariably move on to a new tool after some period of disarray and frustration.

On my quest for the silver bullet of day planners, I tried lots of things. The boxes in my garage are like a museum for this stuff - I have Franklin Planners of every shape and size (and even several calculator page finders), Covey planners from before and after the merger with Franklin Quest, about every type of PDA you can imagine, and a ton of desktop software to go with it.

Why so many variations? Sometimes it was the different approaches the systems espoused ("Let me try it this way - that will work."); sometimes it was a different form of the same thing ("If it were smaller, it'd be easier to carry" or "If it were larger, I'd be able to write more things in it"), and sometimes the gadget freak in me won.

Some of these things were great, some weren't. None of them was the lasting solution I sought. Of course, it must've been the tool's fault, right?

When I discovered GTD, I found that it "fit" me better than the other solutions. Part of the reason is that it works regardless of the tools you use. You can use "caveman" tools like yellow legal pads and file folders  -and GTD works. You can use high tech gadgetry (I still love that stuff - more on that in the next few days) - and GTD works.

The bottom line is that David Allen's system is revolutionizing the way work gets done. I've connected with co-workers who have also improved their results with GTD, and we're all using different things for trusted systems.

So, is it perfect? In some ways, yes, in other - no. But it's the best I've found.

More on the imperfections in future posts, as well - and my opinions on how many of the imperfections are not the tool's fault.

(Oh - and by the way - those piles of things in my garage? They really ought to be gone - but that's on my Someday Maybe list so I don't have to worry abou that right now).

Read More
Copyright 2005-2015 Dwayne A. Melancon, all rights reserved. Licensed under Creative Commons - see the "About the Author" page for details.