Discover how to escape your inbox without missing urgent messages
Update: this has been downloaded over 10,000 times! In the mean time, I put together a web tool that helps people to spend less time with email. It helps me tune out email distractions so I can check my inbox twice a day, but still get notified of urgent stuff via text message. It’s my other project (called AwayFind), you can check it out here (it’s also free).
The original4-Hour Workweek Dreamline spreadsheet is available at that link. Below you’ll find a newly designed version that incorporates a lot of the feedback I received.
The most noteworthy new feature is allowing both one-time and monthly expenses. In the previous version, one had to determine the monthly cost of each of their goals. Now one can enter the full cost and the spreadsheet will divide that total by the number of months for the Dreamline:
Twitter is not just another social network, and it’s not for everyone. It’s userbase is mostly niche, the signal to noise ratio is low, and it takes a long time for some of its most useful features to prove themselves. Add to that that it can be a terrible timesuck, and one has to question its utility. But there is a purpose, it just depends who you are.
The motivation for this post was Geoff Livingston’s discussion of how the number of Twitter users “pales in comparison to major social networks.” That’s a reason why it’s hard to find your friends there, but it’s only one of the differentiators between Twitter and other social networks…
1. It can be hard to feel a part of Twitter
I’ve been on Twitter now for 3 months, though I would’ve liked to have been on it longer (as I’d been reading about it so much since SXSWi 2007). The problem was that I didn’t have friends on the site. Since my involvement in DC social media (geeks, designers, PR people, etc) I’ve developed relationships with many people on Twitter, but only a couple of my other friends are on Twitter. In my experience and from those who I’ve read, Twitter users are primarily in the tech and media communities.
2. Quality content is few and far between
Twitter serves a number of purposes: keeping in touch, discovering or sharing new information/links, offering or getting answers to questions, and passing the time. For those who use Twitter to keep up with a small group of friends it can be rewarding–it’s great to know what’s going on in (a manageable number of) people’s lives, but after following more than 75 people that quickly becomes a chore. The same can be said for discovering and sharing information–Twitter can be a good platform for learning or getting the word out, but there’s quickly too much information coming in (especially when combined with RSS and social news sites). More on getting the word out in point #3. Continue reading…
I don’t know how many times I’ve wasted hours on a computer without doing something productive. And the reason: I didn’t have a very specific purpose to log on. We’d all be better off avoiding the computer until we have a path in mind–after all, we don’t turn on the oven until we know what we want to eat.
There is a time for playing around online, but for most of us it’s not as often as we do it. Sometimes it feels like being at the computer is synonymous with working, but that’s far from the case. So here’s my recommendation: before you bring up your web browser or email program, decide exactly what you want to accomplish. You probably have a To-Do list or a calendar–consult those or decide on something else…yes, even email can wait.
The best approach I’ve found is to decide the evening before what I want to accomplish in the morning. Then when I get to the computer I’ll have something important to focus on, rather than taking new information in or “seeing what’s going on.” The tangents are best saved for when I have already accomplished something.
It’s far from rocket science to say, “work on something you have to do when you’re at the computer.” But the nuance I’m throwing in is that you should think hard about what that something is and focus on it before touching your mouse or keyboard. And if you can, set yourself a very strict goal of an hour (or something similar) to complete that task.
Now that I’ve got this blog post out of the way, I’m off to empty my inbox.
When was the last time you listed all your work responsibilities and ranked them according to enjoyment and value? If you’re spending much time on tasks that aren’t fun or valuable then you shouldn’t be doing them–automate, delegate, or eliminate them. And, if possible, try to get the things you enjoy most to produce the most value for you.
Example: my blogging. Two years ago when I started this blog I had little reason to write entries like this–most of the business I sought related to Microsoft Office productivity…and, to be frank, I no longer get a thrill out of explaining most Microsoft Office end user issues online. But I like writing about bigger issues and offering advice. Now that I’m working on a productivity application and have become more involved in certain circles, it makes business sense to write about this stuff. What I enjoy is aligned with where I derive value.
Counterexample: software development. I really enjoy solving technology problems…and getting my hands dirty with the code (when I’m familiar with the language). But it’s not a good use of my time because I can’t make much progress on a programming challenge when I have a dozen other projects to manage. Instead I now focus more on the architecture or user experience of technology problems, which gives me a similar buzz without the same timesuck.
I’d encourage you’d to make a list of all your responsibilities and figure out why you’re doing them, and what you get out of them. Consider Continue reading…
It’s interesting that we can be excited about discovering the most productive ways to do things…regardless of the impact it has on our productivity. It’s like hearing the secret to a magic trick–just because we’ve found it out doesn’t mean we can now pull it off on our own. It takes a little patience and practice. With that in mind I’m not going to give you another tip for you to gloss over, but instead invite you to look at some articles that have influenced me, some helpful tips from others, and some that I’m most proud of sharing–all of which can help you out.
Some influential reads/views:
Marc Orchant’s advice on putting things aside that you’ve started (discussion of Dave Winer and David Allen’s decision to stop blogging)
Chrono Cr@cker’s keyboard tips for “life without a mouse” [update, this article has been removed so I killed the link; thanks for the heads up, Amelia!]
It took me a long time to get useful and readable sites on my mobile phone. To save you the trouble, here’s what I use and why. I’ve organized them in order from practical to fun, and then at the bottom I’ve listed some other helpful sites that I haven’t experimented with as much…
Google – www.google.com/m – does this really need an explanation?
Metro [Your stop] – www.meenster.com – This is the only DC specific one on the list, but knowing how many minutes until the next train is immensely helpful for planning when I leave. The other day it was 12 degrees out and it saved us from standing outside for 18 minutes. It also helps me to decide whether to transfer an extra time or just walk (hooray for underground internet access!). I have separate favorite links for the stations I use most often (thanks to Justin Thorp for this, though it works just fine without an iPhone)
Weather – mobile.srh.weather.gov – navigate to your local zip code and then store it there as a favorite
Wikipedia Mobile – www.wapipedia.org or axa.instinct.co.nz/wiki – I use the latter site more, but they both are useful and do the same thing. If you’ve ever tried wikipedia’s main site on a mobile browser you’d know how horrible an experience that is
Orbitz Flight Status Search – mobile.orbitz.com/mobile/App/ViewTravelWatchHome – When I’m checking on a friend’s flight status, this is immensely helpful. Since Southwest isn’t listed there, however, I just go to Google and type “Southwest 1234″ where 1234 is the flight number
Yelp Mobile – mobile.yelp.com -When I need a restaurant review at the last second, this is the place to go
The most surprising part of building a portfolio for our new web site was that many businesses didn’t understand the value of links to their websites. When I’m so involved with all things social media, it often surprises me just how wide the information gap is when it comes to online PR/SEO.
In planning our portfolio, we asked each of our clients if they would be comfortable with our offering a few paragraphs, screenshots, and a link to their website. Once we had a draft available, they had the opportunity to tweak. They all accepted their case studies…but there was one thing that slowed a few down:
“I have asked our PR people to take a look and get their blessing since you are linking to our site.”
“I assume the link to the website is no big deal but I’ll want to check.”
“Doing the study is fine but I cannot promise that you’ll be allowed to link back to us.”
All of them came around–but the hesitation surprised me. Linking to their website is PR and SEO–so long as they respect the image we’re projecting of ourselves and we say nice things about them, they have nothing to lose and at least something to gain.
So here’s my very basic advice for those new to participating online Continue reading…
I can’t stop reading about the MacBook Air, but that’s because I’m a geek who loves sexy technology. Deep down I know that, like the iPhone, it doesn’t really make me more productive. While I do connote portability with productivity (in that portability enables mobility), a few ounces one way or another doesn’t play a role in my travel decisions. We’re in a world where there’s fashionable technology and dull-looking technology…but we’re missing the point. Or at least my point: technology should help us to get work done first and foremost.
Regularly I’ll toss my Dell M1210 into a Waterfieldsleeve case with an extra battery and a book. That’ll get me 8 hours for 6 lbs (or 4lbs before the other stuff) with more power than the MacBook Air. Tack on my Motorola Q with an extra battery and I have unlimited free internet if I can’t find a hotspot. What more would I need? (oh, I’ll bring my 1st generation iPod Nano along, too.)
But that’s not really doing my comparison justice. With the MacBook Air I can’t bring along DVDs for a planeride (plus I have two headphones jacks on my Dell). The very thin keyboard, like the iPhone’s missing keyboard, is an adjustment that I wouldn’t look forward to. And the pricetag isn’t exactly forgiving. Continue reading…
The recent fare hike by WMATA (DC Metro) further irks me with regard to how they handle parking–both in terms of a failed ideal and poor application of technology. Many of Metro’s incentives are in the wrong place and their technology could be applied to fix it. Parking during short trips and late nights is expensive but overnights and week-longs stays can be free. What makes this particularly frustrating is that it wasn’t always this way, and SmarTrip cards could have improved the situation.
Let’s look back at how things worked before the SmarTrip cards (at least in College Park, which after my researching seems fairly similar to the overall system). If I wanted to metro into the city in the evening (departing after 7), the parking lot was free. If I wanted to take a short trip during the day, meters were available to me. All parking was paid for by cash.
But a lot has changed since those days–Metro made a number of improvements:
Metrorail operating hours were extended on both weekdays and weekends
SmarTrip sped up the process of moving through stations and exiting the parking lot
Many stations have added garages
(And though unrelated to this article, the electronic time indicators (and manyonlinesystems) improved the trip time estimating process (despite Metro’s decline in timeliness))
Two prime reasons for these changes were:
To make it easier to park (before it was harder to get a space, and it took a long time to check out)
To provide a safe way home for people (i.e., mitigating drinking and driving)
Is there any doubt that email is a serious timesuck? I've built a small web tool that helps you to get the heck away from email—so that you can do real work on the job, or vacation in peace. If you like what I write about here, I think you'll enjoy AwayFind.
about technotheory
I am Jared Goralnick, Founder and CEO of AwayFind, a web startup that helps people to stop checking their email.
Productivity, the future of email, and building ecosystems are my passions. I organize Inbox Love & Ignite DC, and mentor at 500 Startups & Founder Institute. I'm open to speaking opportunities.
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by Jared Goralnick
