Posts Tagged ‘Human Development’
Getting Things Done with Google Notebook
Everyone of us has a lot of things to do everyday. Organizing these stuff in a better way will sure help you get them done better and easier. People vary in their “task-keeping” scheme from To-Do Lists, Did-Do Lists, using applications as Microsoft Outlook, keeping data in their calendar or PDAs, or even sticky notes. GTD (Getting Things Done) is an easy, practical scheme to keep track of your tasks and actions.
Google Notebook is a perfect tool for processing your GTD lists. Why?
- Its contents are available from any computer where you’re logged into your Google Account; which is a main advantage for using Notebook rather than any other GTD desktop applications as Thinking Rock and iGTD.
- It automatically includes links in notes (including individual GMail messages).
- It can capture information anywhere on the web with a mature browser extension.
- It comes with Google’s signature killer search capabilities.
- Using Notebook’s collaboration features, you could allow your spouse or co-worker to drop things into your Inbox for you to process later.
Setting up your GTD Notebooks:
- Log into Notebook with your Google Account.
- Create five new notebooks: Inbox, Next Actions, Someday/Maybe, Projects and References. It would be better if you added “GTD.” to each title as in “GTD.Inbox” for sorting purpose.
- Add items to any section, or add section headers for known categories of your interest, as “Work”, “College”, etc.
Walkthough:
Each notebook has a different function:
- Inbox: The entry point to you GTD List. Unprocessed thoughts get dropped off here for dealing with later. Pop-up thoughts, half-baked notions and “Oh! I should…” go here.
- Next Actions: This is your immediate, actionable to-do list, a few specific items you’ve decided to carry out in the next few days.
- Someday/Maybe: Here’s where the things you might like to do someday – but you’re not committed to right now – get shuttled.
- Projects: Big jobs that are made up of a collection of subtasks are not next actions, they’re projects. For example, the “Clean out the office” job is made up of several next actions (i.e., “Take out the garbage,” “Rearrange the book shelves,” “Purge filing cabinet.”)
- Reference: Research into a topic that you’ll need to carry out a next action or refer back to for a particular project goes here. For example, this is where you’d store links to the hotel, flight information and maps of a travel destination.
Get started ..
- Get Firefox Google Notebook Extension.
- Each day, review unprocessed items in your inbox and like a good GTD’er, decide whether to Do, Delegate or Defer it.
- To move an item from your Inbox notebook into its right place in the system, from the drop down menu on the far right side of it, choose “Move.” From there you’ll be able to choose another notebook and section, as pictured.
- Let others drop things into your Inbox: You can share your Inbox notebook with your spouse, boss, partner or co-worker virtually. To do so, click the “Sharing Options” link on the far right top side of the notebook. (Word of advice: just share your Inbox, not your Projects or Next Actions list. In theory the Inbox is the single entry point into your GTD system, so it’s the only one others should access.)
– Source: LifeHacker.com
7 Rules for Maxmizing your Creative Output
Now, you have some work to do, and you want the best you can do out of it .. So, you go like “Boy, this thing’s gotta be really creative .. !!”
Ever thought how you could force that?!
According to Steve Pavlina, these seven rules will help you maximize your creative output ..
- Define a clear purpose ..
A simple, straightforward purpose like, “Let’s build a castle with these blocks” is all you need.
- Identify a compelling motive ..
The more compelling the motive, the more likely you are to summon high levels of creativity. Imagine that your inner creative resources are lazy, and they need a damned good reason to roll out of bed and go to work for you.
- Architect a worthy challenge ..
If a task is too easy, you don’t need to be particularly creative, so your creative self will simply say, “You can manage this one without me. Come back when you have something worthy of my attention.”
- Provide a conducive environment ..
You’ll find that certain environmental conditions make it easy for you to enter the flow state, while other conditions make it nearly impossible.
- Allocate a committed block of time ..
Imagine your mind is like a computer. The more you can take advantage of the computer’s resources, the more creativity you harness. To free up the most resources for your creative task, you first need to unload all nonessential processes.
It normally takes me about 15 minutes to begin to enter the flow state, and I’m solidly entranced after about 45-60 minutes. By the end of the first hour, I’m just getting into the task. My real creative output happens in hours 2, 3, 4, and beyond.
- Prevent interruptions and distractions ..
If you can’t keep yourself from being disturbed by urgent phone calls, emails, or drop-in visitors, you won’t consistently achieve and maintain the flow state. You must do whatever it takes to prevent unnecessary interruptions during your creative periods. If you work for someone who expects you to produce creative work but makes it impossible for you to tune out interruptions, fire your boss.
- Master your tools ..
When you’re in the flow state, you won’t be worrying about where your fingers need to be, what buttons you need to click, or what words you need to type. After your creative flow state churns out your first draft, you’re always free to go back and edit it later.
Get the creative, right-brain part done first. Then go back and do a logical, left-brain pass to make refinements and correct any problems.
Entering and maintaining the highly creative flow state is a skill, not a blessing, an accident, or a fluke. By making the rules above habits and adapting them to your situation, you can experience the flow state as a regular, perhaps even daily, occurrence. And once you learn to harness the power of flow, your creative output will soar.
RSS - Posts
