Brick by Brick

Productivity is a journey.

Too often the desire to do things perfectly holds me back from ever starting. For others, it's easy to keep moving and hard to slow down for reflection.

When you can pair the two together, you'll be unstoppable—always pressing forward, always adapting to challenges.

Just get started. Habitually reflect and revise.

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Maximizing your output on any given day almost inevitably leads to fallout the next day, with a significant drop in energy, focus, and overall productivity. Our minds and bodies need time to recover, whether we think so or not—just like runner after a marathon or a college student after a frat party.

Time is limited, but digital tools disconnect us from the true cost of each task on our list—which makes it hard to spend time wisely. A time budget helps you make and execute a plan to spend your time well.

Keeping a time budget also forces you to face how you spend your time, for better or worse, so you can learn from past mistakes and celebrate past victories.

A break can feel like a waste of time, because it doesn’t directly produce anything of value. But that’s not true.

A good break produces something hard to get anywhere else: energy and focus.

The point of a break is not to temporarily stop working. The point is to rest so you can return to your work with renewed focus and energy.

Digital tools are great, but they have upsides and downsides. Two problems with digital: it's too easy to add things and too easy to keep things.

This episode will give you four strategies to keep your digital collections from growing out of control.

If you are going to accomplish your ambitious goals, you will need clarity. You have to be clear about how much time and energy your goals require and how much you can spare.

Juggling illustrates why adding more of something can actually be worse. We can apply this idea to our to-do lists, our reading lists, and more.

How keeping your focus narrow can help you to live a life of greater impact.

An Agenda helps you keep track of all the demands on your time—both tasks and appointments. It helps you plan better, forces you to face limitations, and helps you reflect and grow.