RSSNovember 21st, 2007
The Importance of Getting Better
For those of you that are passionate about your work, and love what you do every day, this post is for you. I get really excited during the holidays for a number of reasons. Personal things aside, one of those reasons is that I get to spend some of my downtime reflecting on work and hopefully learning some new things along the way.
The purpose of this article is to reiterate the importance of continuing education. No matter how “busy” you think you are, part of becoming great at something means making time to get better at it.
Google led the way in this regard years ago, when it started requiring employees to spend 20% of their time working on projects unrelated to their job. Employees get to work on stuff they chose, and learn a great deal in the process. And the result? Many of Google’s current products stemmed from ideas created by employees during their “20% time”.
Here are 3 ways you should be continuing your own education on a daily basis:
1. Reading Books and Industry Magazines
I am not a natural born reader, but I have learned to absolutely love it. Each day I attempt to spend at least 30 minutes reading something that can provide insight into my work. Even if you only have five minutes of downtime, see if you can pick up a book or trade magazine and learn something.
My first suggestion is to purchase an Amazon Prime membership. This allows you do get books at a great price, get free 2-day shipping and make the purchase in one click so you can get back to work. They have a 30 day trial, and I highly recommend checking it out.
I am currently making my way through 3 things at the moment. First off, I am reading a book called Maverick by Ricardo Semler. It has nothing to do with web development, but everything to do with building a great company. In short, it is a phenomenal story about how his company broke all the rules and became to this day one of the most successful companies in the world.
Another book I have just started is Web Analytics an Hour a Day by Avinash Kaushik. I definitely don’t have an hour a day to look at analytics, but maybe this book will provide some insight into the subject that I need to know. I definitely need to get better at it.
Lastly, I have been making my way through the latest issue of Internet Retailer, which is my favorite resource about the web and oh-so-exciting world of e-commerce. The cover story this month about shopping comparison sites and data feeds has sparked a great idea for our team that we will pursue in 2008.
2. Reading Blogs
If you are reading this article, you most likely don’t need to be told what a great resource blogs are for continuing education. I would simply encourage you to actively be reading a lot of blogs, like 50-60 of them. A good way to find some of the industry-specific blogs out there or other popular blogs is to browse technorati.com.
Reading blogs regularly depends on a great feed reader. We were all sad to see Newshutch shut down recently, so Google Reader is our feed reader of choice currently.
3. Look to Improve the Process
I have mentioned this before, but try not to ever go through a task without attempting to do it better, or find a new way to do it. Learning new things is definitely uncomfortable, but it’s the only way to get better. It is a MUST.
For example, I have committed to coding a layout over thanksgiving using the new blueprintcss framework. I’ve never used it before, and frankly, I am perfectly happy with the code I wrote for our layouts. But what if this is better? What if it can teach me one thing about CSS? Then it’s well worth it. Make it a point to think outside the box and find ways to constantly improve your process.
Not only are these 3 things crucial to becoming great at something, but they will make you a lot happier and more confident. Doing these things is usually fun, and it is a great break from the daily grind. Schedule at least 10-20% of your time from here out to work on getting better, and I think you will see an immediate difference.
Have a great (and educational) Thanksgiving!!
Posted in Business - No Comments
November 8th, 2007
6 Keys to a Winning Workflow
For any manager, establishing a workflow that maximizes productivity and keeps current tasks in order is everything. Over the last couple of years, I’ve spent a lot of time reading and researching techniques others use to establish an effective workflow, or method of getting things done. While there is no “one size fits all” method, I believe everyone can learn from new ideas and do what seems to work for them.
I typically commit to practicing a new productivity technique for at least 2 weeks, to force myself to give it a shot. New ways of working are always uncomfortable at first, but it’s absolutely worth it if you find something that works for you.
Need motivation? Finding a winning workflow can result in less stress, more free time and will also give you the opportunity to communicate better with those that you work with. That should be enough reason for anyone to try something new.
1. Processing To-Dos
I believe the idea of processing is the most important element of the David Allen GTD methodology, for those that are familiar with it. Processing centers around one central idea: if you think of a task to do, you have to find the quickest way possible to get it out of your head and onto a medium that will remember the task for you. Then get back to what you were doing.
I use a number of tools in order to free my mind from having to remember any tasks. When I’m working, I use iGTD to add new tasks. When I’m at a meeting or outside of the office, I process using a simple sheet of paper or Jott myself a message.
One key to processing is known as the 2-minute rule. This rule states that if it takes 2 minutes or less to accomplish, just stop everything and get it done. In the end, it saves time to knock it out rather than have it sit on your list.
2. Have a To-Do List Before the Day Begins
This idea allows you to end the work day on a positive note, and make way for a quick start the moment you come back to work. Before calling it quits, simply write down a schedule of tasks you want to accomplish the next day. I use a post-it note for my tasks. They should be in the order you want to get them done, so you can run right down the list.
When done correctly, you should be able to hit the ground running the next day, already knowing what’s on your plate to accomplish. This also has an extraordinary mental impact on motivation throughout the day, as you persevere and do everything possible to finish the list.
I completely understand that there are good days and bad ones. Sometimes you can get everything done, and sometimes maybe you only get 2 things done. But either way, write a fresh list for the next work day at the end of the current day. It’s a great habit!
3. Start with a Big Project
In The 4-Hour Workweek, from Tim Ferriss, he talks about the concept of setting out to finish 2 big projects each day. The most important part is to START the day with one of them. By start, I mean before checking email, before signing on to a chat client or before making any phone calls. The moment you start work, you don’t do ANYTHING until that first big project is done.
Starting the day by knocking out a big project immediately fills you with a sense of urgency to finish it so you can move on. Once finished, it turns into a great sense of accomplishment, and momentum moving towards other tasks. If the rest of your day takes a turn in another direction and you don’t have the opportunity to cross anything else off the list, at least you knocked out that first big project. That’s a big deal, and should be considered as an essential part of an effective workflow.
4. Less Email
Let me go ahead and preemptively address the people that feel they are the exception to the less email rule. Because you are not. Anyone that says, “my job depends on email”, or “I need to be available if something happens”, is consciously choosing to be less productive.
Every time you look at your email, that’s at least 5-10 minutes you lose on the task you were working on. Looking at email takes you out of your current thought process, and it takes while to get back in. Distractions like email that impede progress on your to-do list are the enemy of productivity. You have to find ways to isolate yourself in blocks of time in order to finish tasks as quickly as possible.
I try to only check and respond to emails twice per day, and that’s it. I even schedule email checks in my to-do list so that I know exactly when I can get to it. It is much easier to deal with all emails at once, rather than a few minutes at a time when your mail client makes a noise.
I’m not the only one that realizes the detrimental effect of email. Intel recently made waves in the business world with “Zero Email Fridays”. That’s right, no email at all for Intel employees on Friday. I personally think they are on to something.
5. Less Meetings
This is a fabulous principle that I learned from Jason Fried, of 37signals. There are tons of great ideas about meetings, and how to make them more effective. I don’t have time to get into them all, but the idea is to minimize this kind of communication, because it is a drain on personal productivity.
I’m not asking you to be rude or cold about meetings, because they are necessary sometimes. Just be smart about them. Make sure there is a great reason to meet someone face-to-face. Otherwise, a phone call will do just fine.
One thing that has been effective for me is to try and schedule all meetings and personal appointments on the same day each week, one after the other. That way, if I am dragged out of the office and away from my to-do list, I can accomplish all that I need to for the week in one trip.
6. End with something Fun
One critical thing that I have learned recently about an effective workflow is to end the to-do list with something you want to do. Human nature makes us capable of accomplishing about everything we WANT to accomplish on a to-do list in a given day. So I’ll bet if the last thing on the list is something you don’t want to do, then you somehow won’t have time to get to it that day. Conversely, if you really want to finish the last item, somehow we find a way to get it done.
Whatever your workflow look like, try to do it consistently each day. Try to improve on it and experiment new things, and you might surprise yourself!
Posted in Business - 3 Comments