Today I received an email from a friend who had been flirting with the concepts of Getting Things Done for quite a while. He had followed Lifehacker off and on, read a few articles elsewhere, and even tried implementing some of the concepts, albeit minimally, in his own life. What he observed, however, was that most GTD-users seem to be hyper-organized, hyper-busy, and lacking in perspective. He was right, and that’s exactly what David Allen observes in his new book, Making It All Work, albeit not quite as bluntly as my friend put it. GTD can, however, work wonders, if you remember to work the whole system. In fact, it’s pretty simple…
Continue reading “Why GTD Works, and What to Do When It Fails”
The nature of bootstrapping requires every entrepreneur to fill multiple roles at once. Often, one or more of these roles is outside of the entrepreneur’s previous experience and comfort zone. Whether its industry knowledge, technical experience, are core business skills that you need to build, it helps to have some tools to rely on to build a working knowledge of a new topic fast. That’s why our first ever Entrepreneur’s Toolkit focuses on learning and development. Here are some great resources to help you and your team bootstrap knowledge:
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What would happen if employees pressed managers for results as often as managers required them from employees? What would happen if you defined success as creating solutions, rather than completing tasks? What would happen if everyone in your organization stopped making excuses and started demanding results?
This is the Power of If.
It isn’t a pipe dream or a desperate plea for some long lost capitalist utopia. It’s what separates the best organizations from the crowd, and the best parts of every organization from the surrounding status quo. The great thing is, building on the Power of If in your company is easier than you think.
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We talk about virtual assistants fairly frequently at The Upwardly Mobile. But since it’s been a while, and since it’s more important now than ever to save time and money, here are 50 tasks you can give your virtual assistant that will help you save more of both. Have ideas of your own or stories about what’s worked for you and your virtual assistant? Post them in the comments.
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I fell in love with Getting Things Done about two and a half years ago. I was planning for an extended, six-month stay abroad in Germany, and I had too much to do and too little time to do it. The simplicity of disecting projects at the action level and sorting those actions by context helped me minimize stress and maximize productivity. Although I thought I knew how to work the system, I didn’t keep up with it after my trip. Now, after reading David Allen’s new book, Making It All Work, I finally understand that weekly reviews are the secret to keeping it all together.
Whether you use GTD or not, spending an hour or two each week on a weekly review will save you significant amounts of time and effort, and it will help you stay on track with your goals and avoid distractions. What makes the weekly review work so well its ability to give you perspective. Here’s a breakdown of how to conduct a weekly review and why the weekly review process works so well. I’ve included the template I use, so you can try (or retry) the weekly review yourself without too much effort.
Continue reading “An Ounce of Perspective: How and Why to Complete a Thorough Weekly Review”
I travel every week, work an average of twelve hours per day, and don’t get nearly enough sleep. Chances are that I remember that I need to call a friend when I’m supposed to be working on a proposal, that I remember about the groceries I need when I’m on a business trip and away from my home and the store, and that I think of a great idea for work during my scarce “free” time. The concepts in David Allen’s Getting Things Done have helped me keep the commitments I make to myself and others without going too crazy in the process. Sometimes, however, I need to remind myself not to get caught up in the system itself and to remember the ideas that really make the system work.
Continue reading “Planning… It’s All in Your Head”
Whether you’re a low-level analyst or a C-Suite executive, everyone has a boss. Even CEO’s have to answer to the board and shareholders, and miscommunication and differing expectations can make interactions difficult, especially during times of crisis. If you find yourself in a situation with an abrasive investor, board member, or boss in the coming days, here are some tips for dealing with them and improving the situation:
Continue reading “How to Deal with Difficult People in Power”
It may seem basic to many of us, but it always surprises me how few people actually do their homework before going into a meeting, let alone launching a product or starting a business. Whether you’re meeting with the CEO of a potential client, planning a launch of a new service, or trying to figure out how to solve an internal process problem, it’s important to have some background and know what you don’t know. That said, here’s The Upwardly Mobile’s quick and dirty guide to doing your homework:
Continue reading “Homework: It’s Not Just for School Children”
