Category — hacks

I’ve tried to be a "good blogger" about having normal-ish post titles that at least don’t actively obscure the post’s content…but when it comes to the simple "update" posts that I don’t expect people to be searching for, the gloves are still off as far as I’m concerned.  ;)

First, if you’re interested in Uber Time Management, you should know that my opinions ought to barely even count as such, considering what’s going on with me right now.  (This is a much better source, if you want more details on the concept.)  I can’t really elaborate because it’s ALL still way up in the air, and that’s precisely why any attempts at "scheduling" I make during this time should be–I think–viewed as successful or not relative to the complete and total holy crap chaos that everything is TRYING really hard to be.

Details below that there cut.  ;)

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Okay, now THIS is exciting:

I’ve been looking for a way to manage my time during the next few months — my daily schedule is about to change and I’ll need it to be as productive and results-focused as possible; but let’s face it, I’m so scattered and multitasky most of the time that even with 20 hours a day to mess around with, I usually end my days by working until it’s nearly bedtime, and still not getting enough done.

I think I might put this idea to the test! Would anybody like to try it with me?

This past summer, for example, I completed my PhD in computer science at MIT. Simultaneous with writing my dissertation I finished the manuscript for my third book, which was handed in a month after my PhD defense and will be published by Random House in the summer of 2010. During this past year, I also managed to maintain my blog, Study Hacks, which enjoys over 50,000 unique visitors a month, and publish over a half-dozen peer-reviewed academic papers.

Put another way: I’m no slacker. But with only a few exceptions, all of this work took place between 8:30 and 5:30, only on weekdays. (My exercise, which I do every day, is also included in this block, as is an hour of dog walking. I really like my post-5:30 free time to be completely free.)

I call this approach fixed-scheduled productivity, and it’s something I’ve been following and preaching since early 2008. The idea is simple:

* Fix your ideal schedule, then work backwards to make everything fit — ruthlessly culling obligations, turning people down, becoming hard to reach, and shedding marginally useful tasks along the way.

The beneficial effects of this strategy on your sense of control, stress levels, and amount of important work accomplished, is profound.

via Time management: How an MIT postdoc writes 3 books, a PhD defense, and 6+ peer-reviewed papers — and finishes by 5:30pm | I Will Teach You To Be Rich.