Quotes About Productivity

Once we get those muddy, maddening, confusing thoughts [nebulous worries, jitters, and preoccupations] on the page, we face our day with clearer eyes.

Doing less meaningless work, so that you can focus on things of greater personal importance, is NOT laziness. This is hard for most to accept, because our culture tends to reward personal sacrifice instead of personal productivity.

This is very similar to Derek Sivers's (page 184) "Don't be a donkey" rule. In a world of distraction, single-tasking is a superpower.

after Ben Franklin's famous quote: "Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy,

The perfect day is caffeine for 10 hours, alcohol for 4. It balances everything out perfectly.

This doesn't mean you want to spend your time doing it. If you spend your time, worth $20–25 per hour, doing something that someone else will do for $10 per hour, it's simply a poor use of resources. It is important to take baby steps toward paying others to do work for you.

THE KEY TO having more time is doing less, and there are two paths to getting there, both of which should be used together: (1) Define a to-do list and (2) define a not-to

In my case, I use spam filters, autoresponders with FAQs, and automatic forwarding to outsourcers to limit my e-mail obligation to 10–20 e-mail responses per week. It takes me 30 minutes per week because I used systems—elimination and automation—to make it so.

The really efficient laborer will be found not to crowd his day with work, but will saunter to his task surrounded by a wide halo of ease and leisure. There will be a wide margin for relaxation to his day. He is only earnest to secure the kernels of time, and does not exaggerate the value of the husk.

2. I'm just caging my monkey mind on paper so I can get on with my fucking day.

many forms of meditation in the world. Like when I study and work really hard, where it takes the ultimate amount of concentration, I can only do it for 45 minutes, maybe an hour. "I also figured out that I could use my workouts as a form of meditation because I concentrate so much on the muscle, I have my mind inside the

First of all, if we're serious all the time, we'll wear out before we get the truly serious stuff done. Second, if this book were all stern looks and no winks, all productivity and no grab-assing, you'd remember very little. I agree with Tony Robbins (page 210) that information without emotion isn't retained.

Effectiveness is doing the things that get you closer to your goals. Efficiency is performing a given task (whether important or not) in the most economical manner possible. Being efficient without regard to effectiveness is the default mode of the universe.

Because I'm in control of my time. I'm on top of it. 'Busy,' to me, seems to imply 'out of control.' Like, 'Oh my God, I'm so busy. I don't have any time for this shit!' To me, that sounds like a person who's got no control over their life.

Slow down and remember this: Most things make no difference. Being busy is a form of laziness—lazy thinking and indiscriminate action.

The Effective Executive,

FollowUp.cc: For automating email follow-ups and reminders. I use a close cousin called Nudgemail,

1) Define a to-do list and (2) define a not-to-do list. In general terms, there are but two questions:

Parkinson's Law dictates that a task will swell in (perceived) importance and complexity in relation to the time allotted for its completion. It is the magic of the imminent deadline.

Falta de tiempo es falta de prioridades.

Every time people contact me, they say, 'Look, I know you must be incredibly busy . . .' and I always think, 'No, I'm not.' Because I'm in control of my time. I'm on top of it. 'Busy,' to me, seems to imply 'out of control.' Like, 'Oh my God, I'm so busy. I don't have any time for this shit!' To me, that sounds like a person who's got no control over their life.

NR: To prevent work for work's sake, and to do the minimum necessary for maximum effect ("minimum effective load").

all information and interruptions that are irrelevant, unimportant, or unactionable.

Man is so made that he can only find relaxation from one kind of labor by taking up another. —ANATOLE FRANCE, author of The Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard