Tara Rodden Robinson :: The Productivity Maven

Getting back in the groove

In case you haven't noticed (and I hope you have!), I was away for a while. I traveled to Louisiana then to Costa Rica for both business and fun. At Louisiana State University, I gave a talk to the faculty and students called "How to Get More Done With Less Stress." It was a thrill to get their feedback and I'll be rolling that talk into a podcast in the near future. In Costa Rica, we had a short vacation, then attended a symposium on tropical forests and climate change held at La Selva Biological Station. What I learned there left me with a strong sense of urgency to work harder on behalf of our planet and its people. I'm both sobered and inspired; you'll be hearing more from me on this topic soon as well.

All this running around has challenged my GTD practice and reinforced just how valuable it is. In prep for travel, my mindmaps and checklists were total lifesavers. I didn’t forget anything I needed to do before I departed home and no critical items were left behind. That’s gotta be some kind of record.

While I was on the road, I kept up with critical emails (yes, even in the Costa Rican rainforest, I had wifi) and as of this moment, there are fewer than a dozen emails to process. On the way home yesterday, I fired up MindManager and did a weekly review on the plane. I’m traveling again later this week so I have two days (today and tomorrow) to get reset. My mindmap for “between trips” is open in front of me to keep me on track and out of panic mode.

This just goes to testify at how valuable GTD can be to keeping everything running no matter what, no matter where, no matter the circumstances.

Deep Survival, GTD-style

I’m re-reading Laurence Gonzales’ terrific book, Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why. Gonzales describes the phenomenon of “perceptual narrowing,” a sort of tunnel vision of the mind that reduces perspective and induces disorientation. You get locked in on one tiny detail; you look up and you don’t know where you are. You get lost. Urgency turns into emergency. Thoughts hit hyper-drive, frantic action blossoms into over-reaction. You’re out of control—overwhelmed.

In day to day life, you’re not likely to get lost in the wilderness like some of the people Gonzales describes. Instead, you’re more likely to get overwhelmed by commitments, deadlines, information, and other stressors. Your body doesn’t know the difference, though. So what should you do?

• Consciously pause and assess your situation. Where are you? What are you supposed to be doing? Take inventory of what’s in front of you.
• Capture your open loops into your trusted system. Make sure your system remains trust worthy. This is akin to a mountaineer checking his ropes and other essential equipment. If you fail your system, you system will fail you.
• Be fully present and practice deliberate calm. This might include reminding yourself that you can handle whatever’s coming at you.

Yes, the river may be raging, but you’re wearing your life vest: GTD. Flip over on your back, toes up, and enjoy the ride.

40-Days Forward 2009, Day Forty: You Made It!

Congratulations! Today marks the end of 40-Days Forward. If you started at the beginning, you’ve had 40 days to reflect, plan, let go, and give. You’ve taken a look at yourself, practiced observing, listening and gathering feedback. You’ve inventoried your strengths and realized some of your non-negotiables. After exploring your passion, purpose, and energy sources, you combined your knowledge to create a wheelhouse for yourself. In letting go, you’ve considered outcomes and limitations, having your way and needing to be right, pretending not to know and taking things personally. Giving rounded out the 40-Days experience: attention, thanks, acknowledgement, and credit have been given and (hopefully) received.

From your emails and our conversations, I know that you’ve had some big ah-hah’s and insights. Your journey has unfolded in unexpected ways: some joyous, others difficult. Through it all, we’ve been companions on the way: I’ve walked the 40-Days Forward path with you. This is the third year I’ve done 40-Days Forward. Last year, letting go challenged me. This year—perhaps it’s a sign of our times—giving was the steeper slope. My most important lesson came in giving myself credit, learning to celebrate and own achievements and milestones rather than rushing past them, discounting their significance, failing to take in the meaning of what I’ve done.

As you arrive at the end of this period of learning, take a moment to enjoy the view. Look back and review what you’ve experienced and learned. What will you take with you into the next 40 days? What will you leave behind?

Reflection, planning, letting go, and giving are activities that can form the backbone of your daily practice no matter what your circumstances may bring. If you use these tools wisely and well, you will find a greater freedom in yourself, a deep confidence, and a stronger center—your fabulous wheelhouse—from which to direct your actions and move toward your dreams.

40-Days Forward 2009, Day Thirty-nine: What You Give

Giving, like all activities, has a dark side. Generosity can be misused as an attempt to buy influence or affection, manipulating someone’s emotions, boosting the ego, or assuaging guilt. What you give may also come back to you, transformed, as when you give out gossip and get back distrust and fractured friendships. It seems to be an almost universal law: whatever you give, you get back. Thus, soured generosity doesn’t yield sweet relationships and instead comes back to haunt the giver in unexpected ways.

As you experience this last day of 40-Days Forward, take a moment to inventory all that you’ve been giving. What’s behind your generosity? Is it about you or about the recipient? What do you expect your gift to bring back to you?

40-Days Forward 2009, Day Thirty-eight: Generosity of spirit

Generosity of spirit comes, in part, from the deep knowledge that happiness is abundant and inexhaustible, success of another is good news for all, joy is an infinite resource. Today, spend a moment celebrating someone else’s accomplishment. Give them your full attention and drink in the pleasure of their achievement. Listen and offer hearty congratulations—say it like you mean it, say with the certainty that the rising tide lifts all boats.