by Matt Perman
You cannot get everything done. Things will be left undone.
Therefore, be intentional about that. If things are going to be left undone, be sure that it is the right things that are left undone.
How do you do that? It’s one of the reasons you should have a list of goals, projects, and actions that represent a complete inventory of your work. By seeing everything that you have to do, you can identify more easily — in light of the big picture — what to delegate and what to just plain get rid of.
by Matt Perman
Project completion often comes in waves: 3 projects completed one day, 0 for the next two, then 1 more completed, and so forth. (I’m speaking of projects here in the GTD sense of multi-step but non-routine outcomes, rather than the more traditional sense of “fairly large initiatives that produce a unique service, product, or result.”)
It’s probably unavoidable that project completion will always come in waves to some extent. But in the midst of this, it’s easy to forget that if you consistently completed just one project per day, that would really add up. It would mean:
Many of those projects would be small 1-3 hour things. But in the midst of that mix would also be several very large projects as well.
If your project list seems long and you sometimes struggle to identify what is best to do next, it can be helpful to remember this: Pick one project each day that you can complete, and get it done. Then pick another somewhat larger project, and do a decent chunk of it.
Even if you feel like this is small progress, over time this will really add up. After even 10 days, you’ll probably feel that you are actually moving along at a pretty good clip.
Last of all: It may be risk to say this in the event that there are people out there clearing out 1,000 GTD-defined projects per year, but in my opinion, anyone who can consistently complete 240 projects a year just might be a productivity super star. (Assuming that those projects are the right things to be working on!)
by Matt Perman
To keep Basecamp from getting lost in all of your Firefox or Safari tabs, you can create a Basecamp icon on the menu bar on your Mac. That way, you can launch it just like any other program, without first having to launch your web browser. Simon Dorfman explains how.
You can also use this approach to create stand alone menu bar icons for other sites that you use a lot, such as Gmail or your blog admin page.
(HT: Josh Sowin)
by Matt Perman
Sprinkled throughout Getting Things Done are short call-outs with useful quotes from people and short summaries of insight from the section. These are an easy-to-overlook but very useful feature of the book.
I thought it might be helpful to list some of these call-outs from chapter 3, “Getting Projects Creatively Under Control.”
You’ve got to think about the big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction. — Alvin Toffler
The goal is to get projects and situations off your mind, but not to lose any potentially useful ideas.
The most experienced planner in the world is your brain.
Have you envisioned wild success lately?
If you’re waiting to have a good idea before you have any ideas, you won’t have many ideas.
Outlines were easy, as long as you wrote the report first.
When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. — Will Rogers
Don’t just do something. Stand there. — Rochelle Myer
Fanaticism consists of redoubling your efforts when you have forgotten your aim. — George Santayana
People love to win. If you’re not totally clear about the purpose of what you’re doing, you have no chance of winning.
Celebrate any progress. Don’t wait to get perfect. — Ann McGee Cooper
Often the only way to make a hard decision is to come back to the purpose.
If you’re not sure why you’re doing something, you can never do enough of it.
Imagination is more important than knowledge. — Albert Einstein
The best way to get a good idea is to get lots of ideas. — Linus Pauling
A good way to find out what something might be is to uncover all the things it’s probably not.
Plans get you into things but you’ve got to work your way out. — Will Rogers
by Matt Perman
Here’s a good quote cited in Getting Things Done:
Simple, clear purpose and principles give rise to complex and intelligent behavior. Complex rules and regulations give rise to simple and stupid behavior.