Comments on: Working Smarter, Not Harder http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder Sat, 17 May 2008 00:46:55 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.2 By: Basil Vandegriend http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-127 Basil Vandegriend Tue, 28 Mar 2006 22:56:55 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-127 Yes, I've read Peopleware as well - it is quite good. Yes, I’ve read Peopleware as well - it is quite good.

]]> By: Stephane Grenier http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-123 Stephane Grenier Tue, 28 Mar 2006 22:03:36 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-123 Thanks for the great book suggestion. I'm just in the process of finishing to read his other book Peopleware which is also very good. Regards, Stephane Grenier http://www.FollowSteph.com http://www.LandlordMax.com Thanks for the great book suggestion. I’m just in the process of finishing to read his other book Peopleware which is also very good.

Regards,
Stephane Grenier
http://www.FollowSteph.com
http://www.LandlordMax.com

]]> By: Matt Morgan http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-102 Matt Morgan Mon, 27 Mar 2006 16:18:25 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-102 'First Things First' is about personal leadership. 'Getting Things Done' is about personal management. If you think about the whole schema of Covey's 7 Habits, 'First Things First' is habit three. Getting Things Done falls within this 'habit' as a rubber-hits-the-road management tool once you have your priorities. ‘First Things First’ is about personal leadership. ‘Getting Things Done’ is about personal management. If you think about the whole schema of Covey’s 7 Habits, ‘First Things First’ is habit three. Getting Things Done falls within this ‘habit’ as a rubber-hits-the-road management tool once you have your priorities.

]]> By: Dwayne http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-15 Dwayne Mon, 30 Jan 2006 03:28:32 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-15 It always amuses me how little of this type of skill is taught in school. It seems like every generation/crop of professionals is expected to learn it on their own. The "tyranny of the urgent" is a time-management issue going back seemingly forever, yet its not taught, except perhaps implicitly via workload. Same goes for controlling your response to modern (in)conveniences, such as e-mail and cell-phones, which have a false urgency all their own. You should also check out Gerald Weinberg's writings on the cost of task-switching. If I recall correctly, trying to switch among even 3 tasks makes you lose 40% of your productivity, and the loss goes up more-or-less exponentially with the number of tasks. It always amuses me how little of this type of skill is taught in school. It seems like every generation/crop of professionals is expected to learn it on their own. The “tyranny of the urgent” is a time-management issue going back seemingly forever, yet its not taught, except perhaps implicitly via workload. Same goes for controlling your response to modern (in)conveniences, such as e-mail and cell-phones, which have a false urgency all their own.

You should also check out Gerald Weinberg’s writings on the cost of task-switching. If I recall correctly, trying to switch among even 3 tasks makes you lose 40% of your productivity, and the loss goes up more-or-less exponentially with the number of tasks.

]]> By: Basil Vandegriend http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-11 Basil Vandegriend Thu, 26 Jan 2006 21:02:57 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-11 Thanks for the book suggestion. I'll add it to my reading list and check it out. Thanks for the book suggestion. I’ll add it to my reading list and check it out.

]]> By: Brian Vandegriend http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-10 Brian Vandegriend Thu, 26 Jan 2006 04:53:39 +0000 http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/working-smarter-not-harder#comment-10 While I find that "First Things First" is a great book for the high-level principles of time managment, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen presents more a useful guide for personal organization - i.e. how to handle multiple projects with large amounts of information, how to increase productivity by getting all the loose ends out of your mind and onto paper, etc. This is a must read book in my opinion for all professionals. While I find that “First Things First” is a great book for the high-level principles of time managment, “Getting Things Done” by David Allen presents more a useful guide for personal organization - i.e. how to handle multiple projects with large amounts of information, how to increase productivity by getting all the loose ends out of your mind and onto paper, etc. This is a must read book in my opinion for all professionals.

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