You’re an Overwhelmed, Flighty Space Cadet. Here’s Why

Today I’d like to talk about productivity hacks and tips that I have come across over the years. If you do not know already, I am a big productivity geek. I subscribe to the philosophy of Getting Things Done (GTD) by David Allen. I have read countless things from Merlin Mann and other prominent productivity experts coming across a lot of things over the years.

I’d like to talk about something that is extremely important to getting things done. That is showing how you can be reliable and you’re going to do the things you say you’re going to do. Let’s say you are in a meeting and a lot of things are being discussed. So, let’s say Suzie says, “Can you do this Adam?” You say yes, but do nothing. You think that you will make a mental note and complete the project later. You are well-intentioned, but you are asked something after the meeting by someone else and you quickly forget to do what was originally asked by Suzie. Phone calls, emails, etc. come in and by the time the day is over, you go home and have forgotten to do what was needed by Suzie.

Suzie will have to follow up with you and then you remember that you haven’t completed the project. This means that you become one of those flighty people that others will not look upon you positively for. They’ll slowly begin to realize they can’t rely on you to complete projects. Thankfully, there are ways to get around these scenarios. It’s about taking on a personal project management system.

One of the first steps to creating a personal project management system, you must consider a system. A system will have an input, it processes things, and have an output. To remember everything, you need to get the information into the system. Create an input where you are adding the minimal amount of info to remember what you need to do.

Let’s say in that meeting Suzie asked you to install software on the server. Instead of making a mental note, make a note on your smartphone or a notepad to remember the project. Make a small note so that you have a reminder to actually complete the project. This is known as the capture phase.

Find a quick capture system in order to capture tasks you need to complete. Once you have a system down that works for you, then you can take time each day to review your…