Confessions of a Productivity Geek

Productivity geeks love getting things done.  They love David Allen, LifeHacks, time tracking software, lists, GTD apps and gadgets that should (in theory) make them more productive.

They study sleep patterns, alertness, procrastination, positive psychology, and self management.

I love those things, and I do those things, because yes, I’m a productivity geek.  (I even have an expensive, ugly wrist watch that measures my sleep biorhythms).

And here’s my confession:

Despite knowing in my head how to be massively uber-productive, there are times when I deliberately ignore that knowledge.

• There are full work days when I don’t complete even one single item on my perfectly-prioritised to-do list – other seemingly critical stuff just springs up.

• There are times when I don’t look at my calendar, and then suddenly rush off late to an appointment (or cancel it because I’ve missed it).

• I’ve written about “not having favourites” in a to-do list, and yet I sometimes sacrifice important tasks for favourites.

• My sleep biorhythm watch tells me that I’ll sleep better if I don’t eat too much food late at night, but I still do it.

• My calendar tells me to go to the gym, and instead I go and order a meat-ball Subway with 2 macadamia nut and white choc-chip cookies (I did that today – admittedly I had a few other tasks to do in that time, too).

So, why the disconnect?  I can recognise a few reasons:

1. Energy levels are variable.  Being productive requires a minimum level of energy or things start to fall apart – even if you have a supposedly bulletproof, simple system that even a dummy can use.
2. Productivity techniques sometimes don’t match a person’s wiring.  (No matter how hard I try, my extroverted, creative tendencies make it hard for me to plug my way through a boring list – I need to consider this when preparing my tasks).
3. Human interaction is messy.  Things don’t always go according to plan.

For a change, I’m not going to suggest a list of solutions to this problem.  Other than constantly evolving and reassessing what works and what doesn’t, I believe that the solutions to the problem are limited because it is a natural part of the human condition.

Do you agree?

PS: Have you registered yet for our next event on 17 October – “The Art of Influence” with Tim Costello, CEO of World Vision Australia? Seats are running out.