@Work - I'm Not Procrastinating, I'm Gaining Momentum...

It's a digital world baby - and my biggest observation of what that means is that the amount of work all of us do has expanded exponentially.  Fueled by the ease of sending an email and systems that generate reams of data to review and be responsible for, isn't everyone's inbox growing?

Most would agree with that, and the key is finding a way to survive it, and eventually thrive.

I'm a big believer of getting my email inbox what I call "above the fold", meaning I like to work email, responding to and organizing requests into task and calendar events until my inbox doesn't have a scroll on it (I can see my entire inbox on my screen without scrolling).  Part of my system is fueled by reading David Allen's Getting Things Done (also known as GTD), which I would recommend to anyone.

One of the things that Allen's GTD teaches you is that you have to go through every email, piece of mail, etc. and categorize it in order to effectively deal with the deluge of stuff people expect from you.  Another key is that as you are going through and categorizing and organizing, if a request takes you less than 2 minutes, you do it immediately.

I've always found that doing everything you encounter that takes less than 2 minutes immediately via GTD has a momentum aspect that gets you confident to take on the bigger jobs.  Others are basing their own productivity theories off the science of doing lots of little things to gain momentum.  From the Wall Street Journal:

"The brainchild of Stanford University philosophy professor John Perry, structured procrastination involves doing small, low-priority tasks to build a sense of accomplishment and the energy to tackle more important jobs. Mr. Perry, a chronic procrastinator, suggests followers choose an important task, but defer work on it while tackling others. "Don't be ashamed of self-manipulation," he says.

Too often, Mr. Perry says, people focus on their biggest and most important duties, then waste time on unproductive tasks -- like surfing the Web and watching television. His Web site, structuredprocrastination.com, features a picture of the author "jumping rope with seaweed while work awaits." He suggests procrastinators fill their time with less formidable -- and more useful -- assignments, such as following up with clients, completing expense reports or catching up on industry news. He says the smart procrastinator can earn a reputation for productivity while giving in to the urge to delay.

What about the big jobs? Mr. Perry says either a non-negotiable deadline will force action, or the procrastinator will gather enough information and perspective to make them appear less daunting.

Mr. Perry's theory, based on personal experience rather than rigorous science, comes amid growing research on the psychological roots of procrastination and its economic cost. Psychologists who study procrastination estimate that 80% to 95% of college students procrastinate, and half do so routinely; between 15% and 20% of adults are habitual procrastinators.

Of course, the biggest criticism I've heard of productivity systems like GTD is that it's a gimmick.  The naysayers will tell you that they're just going to "GIT R DONE" (hat tip to Larry the Cable Guy..).  Maybe actually throwing the word "procrastination" into the title of a productivity system will cause the skeptics to give a GTD system a chance as well.

Remember - GIT-R-DONE..... Maybe that's a naming opportunity for a productivity system right there...

Comments

[Chris - Manager's Sandbox]

Kris - great article. GTD is an awesome system, particularly the two-minute or less rule. One of my favorite adaptations of it for email processing is Inbox Zero over at 43 folders: http://www.43folders.com/izero.

It's what I use, and I'd argue that by stopping with "above the fold" you're not being aggressive enough.

- Chris

[Troy Malone]

I love this article. I am studying procrastination right now and learning a ton. I wrote this piece last night: http://tinyurl.com/4r8uwx Funny how the titles are so close.

By the way, your link to his website is not working. It needs the "www."added.

Great article.

[Dan]

For implementing GTD you can use this web-based application:

http://www.Gtdagenda.com

You can use it to manage your goals, projects and tasks, set next actions and contexts, use checklists, schedules and a calendar.
A mobile version and iCal are available too.