A common thread I keep seeing while traversing the Internet is the struggle many of you face every day to get things done. I think the biggest problem we face in the modern world is the constant barrages of information. We are getting bombarded with junk email, RSS feeds, blogs, news sites, chat messages, comments, new announcements and new cool tools.
All of this makes our life increasingly complicated and whoever said that the Internet and digital will make life easier clearly lied. In fact they made life a lot harder and certainly more cluttered.
In pre-digital times we only had to deal with physical clutter which was bad enough. Today, we also have to consistently fight clutter of the digital kind.
This is enough intrusion for the most patient and organized human beings and unless we adapt some workable methods to strip ourselves of all the unneeded and unwanted clutter, we will keep turning in circles, while chasing our tails.
1.) Assess your bulk
The first step in taking control of your time and clutter is to assess the situation. This is the time where you have to be totally honest with yourself.
No cheating!
Clutter bulk can sneak into our lives almost without our own intervention. I said almost, since in the end we still have ultimate control. Look at the areas where you struggle most.
Once you have identified where you waste most of your time, follow the suggestions in the next steps to help take back control.
2.) Shed your excess baggage
Problem: Do you find it hard to wade through hundreds of emails to find the one from your business partner last week?
Solution: Clear your inbox. Use Gmail combined with the GTD Inbox to organize your Gmail account effectively.
Problem: Is your computer slow and takes ages to load and digest information?
Solution: Clear your hard drive. Get rid of those ebooks and other data from last year. Unless you really need to use the stuff on your computer regularly, delete it or back it up to an external hard drive.
Alternatively you can also upload documents, PDF files, spreadsheets and slide shows to Google Docs or Zoho. These are great applications to store your old work and I believe they are reasonably safe. The only thing I wouldn’t store is passwords or personal info, but I don’t see why you couldn’t upload your ebooks, reports, articles, notes, etc. to clear space on your computer and make it more user friendly.
Problem: Do you find yourself wasting hours every day with social networks?
Solution: While social networking is an integral part of how we communicate with each other these days, it doesn’t mean it has to rule your working day. If you find yourself fighting against the pull of yet another new cool looking social network, resist and stick to a maximum of two. Work them without wasting time.
Problem: Are you a chat-a-holic?
Solution: It’s cool to chat with our online friends. Plus it is so easy these days to connect with tools like Skype and Google Talk. But, be wary of the steal-a chat-monster. It can sneak into your day without you even noticing it and before you know it, you just “wasted” an hour talking to your buddy while the deadline looms over your head.
Set your profile to “not available” or “away” to deter those monsters if you are working.
You can do this. All you need is conviction. A want, fueled by your shame, anger, frustration.
Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials.
3.) Dare to bare it all - strip naked
Stripping naked involves ruthless shedding of all your baggage, take off your clutter layers and experience the feeling of true bliss - nakedness.
You will feel elated, clean, clutter free and a new sense of calmness will take hold of you once all those poisoned layers have been stripped.
4.) Hey sexy - how cool do you really look
Now check yourself out in the mirror. How cool do you look all of a sudden? I bet you fell gorgeous, sexy and wanton.
And you know what, all of a sudden getting things done becomes second nature to you. You are now a new born effective tasks management ninja.
5.) Happy ending - a new confidence
Not only will de-cluttering your life make you feel great, but by cleaning out all the unnecessary stuff from your immediate environment, you will experience a new found confidence.
At this stage you deserve a big pat on your shoulder and a cold beer, glass of wine or whatever drink takes your fancy. It’s time to celebrate the new you.
Go on - I know you want to.
Monika
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So true, Monika. Nothing like a clean expanse of desk top to inspire and motivate. A few minutes per day should do it, but I always seem to be in a rush to finish a piece of writing or get to the office on time. Small, daily steps. Small steps daily. My mantra now!
Thanks for the inspiration.
@ Ellen: oh I know what you mean by rushing around. Like you I prefer small steps, they seem more safe and work better anyway.
Finding excuses is so much easier when we try to tackle a big job at once. You know, the glass of wine with a good book in the sunshine, or fishing, watching TV or whatever takes our fancy.
Small steps are good….yes…the small step mantra, I like that.
Wake up call to Leanne. Leanne are you paying attention to what Monika is saying?
Well yes I am but I’m kinda busy right now to do all this. But Monika is right I do want to do this stip naked thing. Hey guess what I have next week off work - no excuses it is happening then. Will let you know how it goes.
@ Leanne: *smacks Leanne on the bum. You naughty girl, listen to Monika. Hehehehe…. I see you’ve given up on the multitasking super hero stuff. Good choice too. And then they tell us women are natural born super tasking goddesses.
Oh well, let me know when you do your strip and how it all went anyway.
My biggest problem was clearing my inbox: I couldn’t find e-mails I was looking for, I’d forget to respond to one e-mail or another, etc. At one point I contemplated deleting everything and starting anew…heck, I almost just abandoned the account and created a new one! How’s that for cheating???
Anyway, I bit the bullet, strapped myself down, and took the weekend to get it all done! It was challenging. But some good music and an escape every-so-often for a walk around the blog-o-sphere kept me on track.
@ Ricardo: Emails are the worst. Talking about having a messy inbox. You know what the fastest way to email zen is? …
…answer, uninstall an important part to outlook from your computer and lose it all at the click of a mouse. LOL, true story. I did that last year and not only lost my contacts, but also my messages.
Instant weight loss going from 700 emails to 0.
This taught me an important lesson or two and since then I keep on top of my inbox. I make it a priority to clean it up pretty much every day, it only takes a minute or two anyway.
For those of us old enough to remember, didn’t they say computers would herald in the Age of the Paperless Office?
HAH! What a joke!
Back when they used typewriters and carbon paper, a report might only go through one or two revisions before it was issued. People thought more carefully about what they wrote.
Today, with email and laser printers, the same report will go through umpteen revisions. Each manager wanting to add in their two cents, nitpicking every nano-detail.
The net result is the same report, except it took much longer to write. And we killed five trees in the process.
Sometimes, I think we’re moving backwards.
@ Friar: For sure we do (moving backwards). Although I never worked in a corporate environment I can see this by the speed (or lack of it) of which official mail moves. I think a snail would be faster and more inclined to line up for the Olympic Games.
Even though we have emails and technology, builders quotes still involve three actions:
1.) a visit to the house to assess the situation
2.) an email with a quote
3.) a physical letter to back it up
I mean duh…wasn’t the Internet meant to cut out paper clutter in the first place? At least that’s what they brainwashed us with back then.
Monika:
Right before I clicked on your blog, I had a minute to myself. I thought, I’m going to write a blog post (I feel guilty for not having written one today.) I opened my blog and sat for another minute. I realized I had nothing to write. Then I thought, I have been reading so many people’s blogs and commenting so much that now I have nothing of my own to say.
And then I must have mentally shrugged, because I went to my Google page of subscribed blogs, and clicked on yours.
Incidentally, your message is just what I needed. I am normally a neat-freak. But when it comes to wasting time, I have a lot of baggage I could dump. I hesitate to say reading others’ blogs is wasting time, but I do it so much that I become counter-productive. I can’t work efficiently, I can’t produce my own stuff, and I end up burnt out and overwhelmed by all my distractions.
While I’ve read productivity posts many a time, and also done pretty much nothing afterward to put the advice into practice, I’m glad I found this post. Your words have inspired me, at the end of my day, to clean the slate for tomorrow, at least, and plan a productive day. Thanks.
@ Steph: I know exactly what you mean. I tend to fall into the same “trap” occasionally myself and I really liked how you phrased the resulting feelings you get when you said
“I have been reading so many people’s blogs and commenting so much that now I have nothing of my own to say.”
I can very much identify with those feelings since I do feel like that when I read blogs BEFORE I do my work. Not only does it form a mental block due to over stimulation but I also feel there is nothing else to say.
Silly really, but somehow I think this might actually be a common feeling for many.
Cleaning up your slate at the end of the day sounds great. It helps you to start each day properly and goes a long way in keeping you focused (unless of course you check that email first, or the RSS feed)
[...] long post has nothing more, really, to do with productivity (for a great productivity post, see “It’s Time to Strip Naked.”) It goes past that: because of it, I now have free time to put this fantasy editing site into [...]
I agree with Steph and can waste hours reading others people’s blogs - but I learn so much so I am torn too. Now Monika its fine for you to be running around the house naked in sunny Queensland - but I am not doing it in Perth at the moment - its pretty chilly here at the moment!
@ Lissie: Ah shucks, you wish. Actually it’s freezing here at the moment. You know, we do have winter too, LOL. While I’m typing this the oven is pumping out heat (gosh, I really don’t want to think about my power bill this year) and the sun is shining with a blue sky.
I know, some of us really have a hard life. In the summer, yes, any day but in winter, no way.
Monika,
This is such an important thing to do, to be productive. You & I have chatted a bit about this before, about how easy it is to let these things drive a wedge in between us and our productive work.
A couple of things I’ve done which help are to:
1. Turn off notifications from just about any email or social application I have - or turn them off completely - but with notification off, I can leave them running, because I
2. Use a multiple desktop application (built into my Mac, but you can get them for Windows, and just about any Linux has them built in) - so I put my important work tasks on one desktop, and the “play play” stuff on another one, and then I
3. Use (when appropriate) full screen tools like Q10 which you blogged about a while back.
If this isn’t quite good enough, then I also turn off the sound!
The other thing that really helps me is to do some of the things you mentioned in your post on Writing Prep Rituals (which I’m going to go comment on right now).
Thanks for the words today,
Brett
@ Brett: Great tips. I admire folks who can run multiple desktop applications as if they run down to the shop to get some milk. The mere thought of it leaves me in cold sweat. Hehehehe….yes I know, you keep saying it’s easy but you know this stuff.
Tech.. me… mmmhh…. I know, I will need to learn this when I get my Mac, because there are some things I like from Windows which I wouldn’t want to miss.
I find it’s not really my workspace or electronic clutter that’s the problem. I’m totally in control of my work space.
It’s the TV. The Fridge. The couch. The sun outside. The fish jumping in the water, begging to be caught and fried up. THOSE…I can’t turn off or get rid of.
I’m a victim of my own lack of discipline.
I think one of the problems is is my writing/books are a hobby. I don’t need to earn a living doing this…it’s just for fun.
Though sometimes my projects feel like “Work”. Which I don’t necessarily feel like doing anymore, after 7.5 hours of penance at the Widget Factory.
What can I saw? I’m a complex man, I have have “Issues”
Like my Tag Line says, Someone should give me a good TALKING to…!
Friar: Hey, man, we’re all distracted by the things we’d rather be doing! Some might say no to them better than others, if necessary, but I think most people find the things they love to do much more appealing. Hence productivity posts and frustrated posts by freelancers and others who can’t seem to concentrate on the task at hand (and who aren’t because they’re posting or commenting!).
You’re not alone, dude. The good news is, doing those things you love (fishing, painting, writing, doing up cartoons, blogging, commenting, drinking with Brett, watching TV) make you a happier Friar. Without them you’d be a dull boy.
@ Friar: LOL, a man with issues, who would have thought this. I love this comment, it’s hilarious and just shows how much human you really are.
I see though how your lack of discipline can affect you because you are blogging for a hobby. I’m sure at work you are somewhat disciplined so I totally understand why you wouldn’t want to be in the evenings.
Nothing wrong with that at all. I give you permission to go and catch that fish.
Hi Monika - Thanks for this. My hard drive is cluttered with so much crap and my inbox gets me down so much that I don’t even read my emails everyday. I’m definitely going to try GMail and GTD inbox.
@ Cath: Google Docs or Zoho are a great tool too to keep organized and keep those docs away from your computer if you can bear to upload them.
I love it, my hard drive is pretty clear and I can access all my stuff from any computer with an Internet connection worldwide.
Clutter?
What Clutter?
Are you talking about the 17 un-answered emails..
The “pile” of notes and sh!t on my desk..
Maybe you mean the 10+ browser pages I have open..
or the 22 social networking comments I have been trying to answer..
or my twitter messages and my un-answered blog comments..
OK, I’m in..
That’s right, you heard me..
I’m shuttin it down..
baring it all..
and I’m “Getting Naked”..
and when I return..
it is going to be to a clean desk, “one” project, “one” email, “one” comment, and “one” page at a time
“PROMISE”
In the meantime..
I’m going to follow your most important suggestion..
I’m going to grab that “lightly salted, Grand Gold margarita” and go chill by the pool..
I just hope I don’t piss off the neighbors by prancin around in my birthday suit
Thanks for the “much needed” and “right on time” suggestions Monika!
You Rock
John
ps: “Damn (peekin in the mirror).. I am lookin a little “buff, sexy, and wanton” ain’t I” lol
@ A Master Networker: This is seriously funny, I’m still aching from laughing. John, you’ve got a great knack with words and the way you leave interesting, light and funny comments, keep them coming.
Did you know that with your last sentence you now make me want to check out your sexy bod. I blame you if I can’t get any work done today. LOL
*off she goes fantasizing about a certain Master networker’s buff body.
“WooHOOOO” lol
@Monika
The fishing season here is so short. It lasts till November, but really, its’ only fun Mid-September (after which it gets dark outside after work, and/or too cold to sit down in a damp canoe).
Make Hay, while the sun shines, so to speak. I make the most of it while it lasts.
Thanks for the permission to go fishing!
My writing will pick up in October, when the weather turns damp and wet.
Very cheeky Monika!
I’m pretty good with email and with my physical workspace but I really fall apart when it comes to excess digital information.
You see I collect ebooks (and real books) and clip web pages and star articles in my feed reader and they all seem very important and useful yet I don’t quite get around to reading all of them but I don’t want to take them off the reading list but the list just keeps getting longer!
Even after I have read them and think, ‘oh that’s very useful I think that will come in handy in the future’, I have no way of keeping track of the information so that you actually remember to use it when the time comes!
Any ideas? Please!
@ Bec: Maybe you should try Evernote. You can clip websites, portions of it, images and more to it by using their bookmarklet. What i really like about them is the ability to organize your clips into folders or tags.
For ebooks this will not work though. If they are small enough you could upload them to Google Docs, otherwise external hard drive is what I use.
Well, I was on an “information diet” even before Tim Ferris (of “Four Hour Work Week” fame) suggested we go on one. It’s possible to waste a lot of time, especially since ye olde Internet came to exist in it’s modern form. I give myself some play time, but for the most part, I try to focus on my own sites first.
Also, I avoid online chatting at all costs. I know it’s weird, but it’s amazing how much you can get down when there aren’t IM boxes popping up in your face every 2 minutes.
@ Lindsay: That is very smart of you. I know what you mean by online chat windows popping up. I do love chatting to my friends, but often I have to set my status to busy in order to get work done.
I suppose it’s more of a matter of organizing my day. Do the work first, chat later. Of course, this is in an ideal situation.
Hi Monika,
Just finished wasting a whole morning and accomplishing nothing as I dropped in for a read! I’m one of the worst time wasters I know but if I had to regiment my daily work I’d be miserable and that won’t do. So I stay happy as a pig in s**t wallowing in ever more time wasting but enjoyable diversions from the work that I know I have to do. Once I get these website making enough I’ll be able to drop the writing, which is becoming a chore - and I don’t like chores!
Now is a good time to shed clothes with temps pushing toward 40ºC as we sweat it out in this heatwave in Spain!
As much as I’d like to go down to the pool right now, I’ve still got to write these rotten articles. Still, its better than working on a building site!
Take care,
Terry
@ Terry: Hey, I just remember I didn’t answer your last email. Bugger, so sorry. I will get back to you ASAP. You are lucky to have a heatwave, we are freezing our a**es off right now.
You would probably laugh. It is about 17 degrees inside our home and the heater has been pumping out warmth all day and we are still freezing, despite ug boots, fleece jackets and all. LOL, I would gladly trade with you right now (but only the heat).
I know what you mean, just see this as your ladder, I know you’ll be able to sit back and take it more easy one day. Plus you’ll have more time for your gigs then.
Hi,Monika,
Good advice. I always try to manage time by eliminating the non-essentials, but sometimes I’m hooked. The web seems like a great gambling place, and it’s such a time-waster at times. BTW Grizz asked me to visit your site.
@ Mrinal Bose: Welcome and thank you for stopping by and following Grizz’s advice.
*thanks Griz
It’s nice to see new faces like yours. You are right of course, the “problem” for many of us is that the time wasters are actually things we love doing, this makes it even harder to be strict.
[...] Mundell’s The Writer’s Manifesto Blog features an entry called “It’s Time To Strip Naked”, which even has a photo of some kind of corset in the lead-in. Naughty clickers hoping for some [...]
It’s good to see that people who freelance also have to work through the “chat-a-holic” issues. In the corporate world these are people that just barge into your workspace and decide to talk for 15-20 minutes.
FYI, did you know it takes 7-9 minutes to get back on track after being interrupted? Even if it takes 1 second for a question to be answered, it will still take time to get back on track with what you were working on.