Stress-Reducing Productivity Hacks
Stress-Reducing Productivity
Nearly everyone is juggling more than ever and just trying not to drop the most fragile things.
I started out making a short post for LinkedIn about David Allen’s book *Getting Things Done - The Art of Stress-Free Productivity”. After I hit the word limit, I realized it warranted a bit more!
The system David Allen shares in his book *Getting Things Done - the art of stress-free productivity* has had a major impact on my life over the past 15+ years.
What is Getting Things Done?
“David Allen’s work-life management system that alleviates overwhelm, and instills focus, clarity, and confidence.”
IT’S SIMPLE!
There are a lot of things I am not, but I AM uber productive.
I am not a naturally organized person. No, you can't see pictures of my home as proof. I do have references that can speak to my natural state of clutter and piles!
As the same time, my inbox is usually just a handful of in progress messages. Sometimes zero messages. Never more than what I can view on my screen all at once. I don't have stacks of mail accumulating. My to do list is focused and manageable. Why? Because of the systems I adopted and adapted back in the early 2000s. Why? Because my stress was reduced exponentially as I became more productive and able to keep up with the priorities in life.
This isn’t a cure-all for pandemic-level to do lists and the anxiety that accompanies it all.
When I come back from vacation or life is particularly chaotic, and I get a sense of overwhelm, I recognize it and then use my system. The two most valuable aspects of the system for me:
Identify the next action required to move something forward (e.g. find a phone number, buy stamps, get clarification, etc.)
Decide which category something falls into:
Do it!
Delegate it - this includes when you're waiting for something from someone else; unless I've scheduled a followup for a specific date, I review and follow-up on Fridays
Defer it - calendar it for when you can most reasonably do it within the timeline required; I save lots of articles I want to read, topics to research, etc. to a *Friday Follow-up* folder
If you can find a few minutes for yourself, watch the TedX talk. If you already know the systems, download any of the hundreds of cheat sheets and workbooks out there to refresh your memory. Commit to trying just one of the ideas for a day and then a week!
David Allen TedX (22 minutes)
