I use to work for an organization that put a lot of emphasis on "excellence". This sounds like a good thing, but it was very poorly defined and tended to become an excuse for wreaking mayhem with the budget. Spending 100% more for a 10% gain toward perfection didn't seem like what I would define as excellence. As I thought I about it, I realized the the problem stemmed from equating excellence with perfection. Excellence is actually made up of more than one dimension. Perfection is one of those dimensions, but you must have another dimension that recognizes we are dealing with finite resources. Usually this is best represented as cost in monetary terms, but it could also represent … [Read more...] about Excellence – Perfection vs. Efficiency
Productivity
Ambient Sound Download – The Brook
Have you ever wished you could tune out background noise--maybe to drown out an annoying co-worker or just to stay focused? I know a lot of people use music for this, but personally I find music divides my concentration (a possible side effect of my training in music theory and composition). To help concentrate I need something that will stay in the background. Trying a bunch of sounds, I've found that water seems to be the most effective. Someday I'll probably get a fountain for my office, but until then I've created an MP3 file to help me concentrate. I'm making the file available as a special bonus to RSS and Email subscribers. If you'd like to download it, just subscribe to the … [Read more...] about Ambient Sound Download – The Brook
Group Interview – Productive Software
If you made a list of the software that helps you stay productive, what do you think people would be most surprised to find on that list? That is the question Productivity501 asked a number of productivity experts. Below are their responses. A little program called On The Job from Stunt Software. It's a simple time tracker and invoice generator for projects. But here's how I also use it: I have entered what would be my hourly rate based on my projects and income. Then, as I field phone calls, do tasks, and muck around, I click the starter button on the timer, the "Stop" at the end. The value of what I just did immediately appears on the screen. Wow. After one day of seeing how I was using … [Read more...] about Group Interview – Productive Software
Reader Question – Working from Home
Why would it be valuable to work from home? Lets say you commute 30 minutes to work each day. Working from home will save you at least 5 hours per week of drive time. If you apply this time to your job, you should be able to pull ahead of people who have to invest those 5 hours in driving to work. You can also choose to invest those extra 5 hours in sleep, your family, a hobby or whatever you like. Sometimes working from home can help you focus. Being out of the office means it is more difficult for people to distract you--they can't just pop into your office or cubicle. Of course if your home work environment is distracting, you may not see much benefit. If you want to know more … [Read more...] about Reader Question – Working from Home
When to Buy a Faster Computer
Computers are so closely tied to our efforts to be productive that it is valuable to take some time to think about how to maximize our use of these complex devices. There are many factors that impact one's productivity with these machines: The speed of the computer. (the raw ability of a computer to do tasks) The configuration of the computer. (settings, memory, physical placement, etc.) The software being used. (wordprocessor, spreadsheet, email, etc.) The training of the user. (informal, formal, software training, etc.) The maintenance performed by the user. (removing spyware, keeping things organized, doing backups, etc.) Each of these areas deserves their own post or … [Read more...] about When to Buy a Faster Computer
Optimal Time for Productivity
Often times our productivity on a given task is very much tied to the time of day. For example, I find that exercising in the afternoon seems to work best for me because it lets me unwind from the day. I've always found it odd that my most productive times for programming are after 10pm. There are obviously advantages to doing things late in the evening--fewer distractions, etc. However, even when I'm not going to be interrupted during the day, I still can't seem to get into the "zone" as much as I can late at night. I think I've finally solved the mystery. When I'm working on a task that where I don't know how long it will take, I generally do better when I don't have any hard and … [Read more...] about Optimal Time for Productivity
Writing Down Goals
Marston online has some comments on research related to productivity. The most interesting comment was: The researchers wanted to know what accounted for the dramatic difference between that top 3 percent and the others. They found that of all the possible variables, the only difference between the top performers and the rest was the the top 3% wrote down their goals. The research was done by the Ford Foundation, but I haven't been able to locate that particular study. … [Read more...] about Writing Down Goals