How to Make 2009 More Productive by Doing Less

As I am writing to you today on 1st January I thought I would share with you how I plan to make 2009 a more productive year for myself than 2008, and how you can too.

Culling Time Wasters

The first place to look in becoming more productive is where you waste the most time.

My definition of “waste” in this context is activities that do not add much value but take considerable time. Spending time with my family is not a waste of time because we get value from it, while solitary “Tower Defense” web based game playing is likely adding zero value and just eating up precious time.

In the closing months of 2008 I took careful note of where my time was going. I worked out there were several areas I was spending time that could have been made more efficient. Keeping a time diary, even just scratched onto a scrap of paper or scribbled on a whiteboard can help you uncover where your time is going.

I found my biggest time leak was unscheduled interruptions.

For 2009 I will save time with:

Spam and Unwanted Email

Email turns out to be a big part of my day. I don’t want to go the Tim Ferris route; I take pride in answering my own email and having good turnaround times. So rather than outsourcing, autoresponder or support ticket system, I am working on reducing my inbox clutter as much as possible.

A big load on my inbox is newsletters. For many services or products you have to supply an email address, and of course you do not know which will turn out to send you junk and which will be good, so you can’t use a temporary address in case it is the latter. I am taking the advice of my friend Damian who has a catch-all email forwarding set up on one of his domains and signs up to each with a unique email address in the form “list-name@domain.com”. If I get spam to this unique address I will know where it came from.

My email list from address is changing, as is my contact form. I am also moving my family and friends email to a different account so work is split from home. Each source of email will be isolated and easier to prioritize.

Another way I am handling email spam or junk messages is when a newsletter asks for my first name I am using a particular variation of my name, so any messages sent to “Hi _______” will be fitered off to a folder before I even see it, so I can go through them at my leisure, if at all.

Work to Your Rhythm

I have discovered I am most productive for certain tasks at certain points in the day. The problem is I have actually been working against these patterns.

My normal routine was to get up, make coffee, check my email, then work through anything the email demanded, followed by my task list for each day, with phone calls scheduled according to the other parties convenience and taking account the appropriate time zone math. Of course my body and mind were telling me that was a bad way to organize things.

Check your mood, motivation and output when performing certain tasks during the day.

I found between certain hours I could output hundreds of words of writing, while others it was a struggle. At some times I could communicate easily and fluently, while others I wanted to hide from the phone. Logic escaped me at certain times and I just wanted to sleep, whereas at others I could solve problems that seemed impossible hours ago. Telephone calls, as mentioned earlier, saw me working at 2am because the other party was based in a far away time zone. Red Bull and coffee can only go so far.

Just by juggling my schedule I will get far more done.

Your body and mind will tell you when you should do certain things, listen to it!

Got Suggestions?

How can we make our 2009 more productive? Please share your tips, thoughts, experiences, ideas and comments …

Posted on January 1, 2009 by Chris Garrett 
Filed Under Productivity

Comments

16 Responses to “How to Make 2009 More Productive by Doing Less”

  1. Janis Miller on January 1st, 2009 5:47 pm

    Very helpful post, Chris, thank you. I will be following your example. Additional things I think will help me are a schedule of productivity, consistency, being more focused on my task list, and setting *measurable* goals.

  2. Jamie Lee on January 1st, 2009 5:52 pm

    I think that consciously weighing each decision as a matter of course can save a ton of time by eliminating habitual time wasters. For instance - deciding to step away from a YouTube binge because you know the time you reclaim will be put to better use pursuing your true goals.
    Good luck!

  3. Chris Garrett on January 1st, 2009 5:57 pm

    @Janis - Measurable goals are very important, and I think in addition knowing what you need in terms of resources, other tasks or education in order to achieve those goals.

    @Jamie - As much as it is hard, stepping away from YouTube/digg/comics/boing boing is necessary :) I am aiming to use those things as treats for succeeding with my to-do items!

  4. Sean Harry on January 1st, 2009 5:58 pm

    I’ve started planning blog posts ahead. WP has a feature where I can begin writing a post and when I search themes I can drop ideas in the post. I don’t have to publish them until they are complete. Now I have several posts I’m working on at any time. It’s a simple thing to do (and most of you may have already been doing it), but I find it is saving me a lot of time I used to spend procrastinating.

  5. Chris Garrett on January 1st, 2009 5:59 pm

    @Sean - Batching up posts when you are productive is a smart thing because it gets you into “writing mode” - I think multitasking is often damaging to productivity

  6. Darren Cronian on January 1st, 2009 6:01 pm

    Good post Chris. I think I spend way too much time on social media sites. In 2009, I want to up the number of posts I am writing so will be trying to spend less time wasting time with idle chit-chat on social media.

    For example I am going to only Twitter when I am going to and from work, so the time I have at home can be spent better on writing content and promoting my blog.

    Today, I am putting the final touches to a schedule where I will try and split tasks into days of the week. I am trying to be more organised, and have created a monthly schedule which gives me targets.

    We’ll see if it works.

  7. Chris Garrett on January 1st, 2009 6:03 pm

    @Darren - I hope it works for you :) I think social media is important but there comes a point where you get diminishing returns, I think Scoble discovered this in 2008 with Arrington’s “intervention” :)

  8. Darren Cronian on January 1st, 2009 6:10 pm

    @Chris - I think Twitter has played a massive part in building my brand, and to help people know about the writer behind the blog. I find though that most of my followers are from the US - there’s nothing wrong with that, but i am trying to increase my consumer readership here in the UK.

  9. Barney on January 1st, 2009 6:16 pm

    My best writing time is in the morning. That’s when I like to write blog posts. But once I’ve written a good post, my creative energy dips. Unfortunately, morning is also the time when a lot of work-related emails come in and need dealing with. So I really need to prioritize. Job? Or blogging?

    And I don’t always find batching posts is easy to do. I get the urge to write about a topic - and I write then and there, if I can - but I don’t really have a systematic approach to writing for my blog. Well, it’s a personal blog.

    But I’m starting a new human rights training business with a colleague and the blog for that business will require systematic attention.

    Twitter, of course, is the great distractor. I love Twitter, but it really does take my focus away from other, more important, computer-based work.

    Oh well, I shall struggle on. Great ideas in your post, Chris. I shall follow as many of them as I can.

  10. Rajeev Edmonds on January 1st, 2009 6:19 pm

    Great Post Chris

    Like D. Cronian, I’m also spending much time on social media sites. I need to cut that and schedule it.

    Posting frequency is another area I have to look upon. Recent guest post at Problogger ‘How To Write Fast’ can help immensely in increasing my posting schedule.

  11. David A. Shaver on January 1st, 2009 7:12 pm

    Do What Needs To Be Done When You First See That It Needs To Be Done
    Most plans to get the most done involve scheduling or time studies. In trying to think outside this box I found the best plan for me is to use what you could call “Procedures & Triggers”. For example I seem to get the best article ideas when I am working on something else so I keep a notepad handy and accessible from whatever computer I am working on and write down this article idea or even begin on the article and then go back to what I was doing. If I wait till I have time to write this article I will have forgotten the main points of it.
    A big part of this is simply to work as much as you can or do things that make your creative ideas flow and accomplish your goals.
    The most basic point of all this is do what needs to be done when your first see that it need to done. When you have several large tasks to be done just prioritize them and start work and work till they are done. If you are at an impasse on client A or Article A go on the next.

  12. Chris Garrett on January 1st, 2009 7:43 pm

    @Barney - Going with your inspiration is a good thing to do, but continuing while you still have it can set posts up for future when you might not be so inspired :)

    @Rajeev - I think a lot of people are finding a balance between social media and their blogs, I think blogs provide a lot of value that people are only just rediscovering

    @David - Having a notepad handy is a great tip, I have one of those moleskine notepads with me most of the time as you never know when an idea might hit.

  13. lawrence berezin on January 1st, 2009 9:09 pm

    Here’s 4 things I do that helps a forgetful 60 year old guy, and may help you:

    1. Have a plan and stick to it. I’ll wake up some days and start working on the first thing that enters my mind. It’s off to the races. I’m more productive when I take a breath, and find a spot to insert that “first thing” into my plan where it belongs

    2. Lead, collaborate and delegate. Have faith in the people you work with. Collaborate and delegate by emplowering people in your tribe to do their fair share of the work. You can’t wear every hat, and perform each function well. Ask Pat Bowden, owner of the Denver Broncos, who recently fired Mike Shanahan.

    3. Use your right brain. Think before you act. Think before you write. I find that Monday’s great idea is almost unrecognizable on Tuesday. My best ideas come in the shower (metaphorically speaking) when I allow my right brain the time to think freely. After internal brainstorming, I’ll wake up my left brain to construct a framework to execute the idea

    4. Don’t reinvent the wheel. How many of your tasks are repetitive? Formulate a template and use it.

    Thought provoking post. Great conversation. I enjoyed participating

  14. Martin Assmann on January 1st, 2009 9:25 pm

    I absolutely agree with you! One of my personal goals for 2009 is to bring work and leisure in balance so productive will be a very important point. I plan to do this with prioritization, reduction and automation.

  15. Barney on January 2nd, 2009 12:19 pm

    Thanks for the good advice, Chris. Perhaps being more systematic in my blogging would be a good aspiration for the year.

  16. Chris Garrett on January 8th, 2009 5:53 pm

    @lawrence - Great advice, I find most often I start with whatever feels urgent rather than being organised about it, I need to follow you guide there

    @Martin - Prioritization is crucial, not only in productivity, but also not feeling overwhelmed

    @Barney - Absolutely :)

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