And then I read a blog post on Daily Blog Tips that contains an idea that I think will help me solve my problem. It was about laziness and productivity. In it the author, Bamboo Forest, describe his own complacency and lack of motivation to write his blog posts and pointed to a number of excuses that he couldn't really excuse. And then he found his answer. He used a timer to make sure he stayed on track and didn't wander off into YouTube-land or other distractions. And it worked! He finished more projects, and became a happier and more fulfilled person...and probably had some time left over to watch a few videos...
I have recently thought about a using a timer. I used a timer once, but it was annoying. My kitchen timer clicks and rattles while it is ticking, and then the buzzer is the kind of noise that would make a deeply sleeping slug jump. I could not see myself going back to that. However, Bamboo Forest has solved this little difficulty by creating a site called Online Timer -- Tick Tock Timer. You open a window in your browser and input the amount of time you want to spend on say, writing a blog article or watching YouTube videos. The clock silently ticks away (you can open it in a separate window and watch it if you like). And when your time is up, your computer will gong. It's a pleasant sound, much nicer than my kitchen timer.
This is going to be one of my new favorite tools to keep me from meandering all over the web when I'm doing research, and to keep me from spending all day reading blogs. I will check back with the results of my new found time-management system and let you know if it's working for me.
Do you have any favorite tools that help you be productive?
Natasha: I followed the link to Daily Blog Tips, and it does have some very nifty ideas, doesn't it? Strange thing is, I just signed up for payperpost and sponsoredreview today. Not sure I really understand how either one of them work, but we'll see. I really don't want to advertise anything on the blog, except maybe chocolate; I could advertise chocolate.
ReplyDeleteI do like the timer idea, though I might suggest he make it so it can also be set to go off at a specific time, so if it's 1:13, and you want it to go off at 2:00, you don't have to sit there and do the math.
As for time management systems, because my brain will not stay on one project for very long, what works best for me is to work on one thing until the brain starts giving me fair warning that it will shut down in ten minutes if I don't knock it off. Then I go onto a different project, so in any one day, I might go from writing a blog post, to working on whatever chapter of the "Daniel" book the brain decides it wants to work on, to washing the dishes, to practicing a stand-up routine or the pain relieving workshop presentation. I can't simply make a schedule, because I don't know what the brain will want to work on at any one time, so I've learned to go with the flow.
I think most people's brains work much more consistently than mine does, and they probably don't need to be this lose, but it's entirely possible that somebody might benefit from this method, so people are free to borrow it anytime they want.
I toggle between projects, too. WHich is why I want to make sure I spend at least a full half hour writing -- it's so easy for me to run off to add a layer of resist to a scarf, then vacuum the floor, then water the garden, then the mail arrives...and my article remains unwritten because I am so easily pulled away.
ReplyDeleteMy goal right now is to do a writing or editing task, then something physical like housework, then back to writing or editing, then painting.... in this way, I get things done without getting too stiff and it gives my brain the variety it needs. Also, I can bribe myself with creative stuff by completing household chores that I hate....one half hour of painting after vacuuming... seems to be working fairly well...for the past week. The house is cleaner, too.
http://www.pomodorotechnique.com/
ReplyDeleteThis is an advanced version of the timing concept. Has helped me a bunch!
Cool! I'm loving my timer so far!
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