Productivity in the trenches
I did an experiment in 2009—I named the year. In this case, 2009 was the Year of Progress. Guess what. I made more progress in 2009 than in any other year.
What caused so much progress in 2009? I attribute much of the success to dedicating the entire year to progress in addition to naming the year. Furthermore, I made myself accountable to progress by telling all of my friends and family about my idea and my upcoming year of progress.
Making yourself publicly accountable is a great way to keep from slipping.
In addition to naming 2009, I implemented a couple of simple productivity strategies that really boosted my output. The most important strategy was to keep a super simple, three-step to-do list.
The idea behind the list is to only focus on three action items every day. You must be able to accomplish the action item in one day. If you can’t, that goal should probably be broken up into several action items. Additionally, the lists all ask the same rhetorical question: If you could accomplish this one thing today, would you feel fulfilled?
That question forces me to identify the importance of the action items for the day. Am I just adding things to the list for the sake of adding things to the list or will I actually fulfill something by completing the action items? This is a really important part of the success of this little list—you have to be honest with yourself and take responsibility for your goals and the little steps required to realize them.
I’ve provided a PDF of my list template for you to use. I just print the template on a sheet of paper and cut out the individual lists. I have a stack on my desk at all times. Give it a shot and let me know if it works for you.



