Thumb Rules of Productivity

I sometimes wonder why is PRODUCTIVITY still an enigma even when there's so much available on the subject in terms of research, tools and techniques ?

Maybe this post would provide both, a better insight on the above and a solution !

In many of my previous posts, I have covered a whole plethora of tools and techniques on Productivity (See Related Article: ) but still many clients reach out to me, totally confused about how to move ahead with these tools. I don't blame them because just about anyone is bound to feel overwhelmed confronting the wide range of tools and all that these clients need is a simple and easy way to get started somehow, somewhere but in a structured manner. My single piece of advice/ suggestion to them is to identify few "thumb rules" and get started. These "thumb rules" act as simple reminders to ensure that we are on the right path that lead towards productivity. Gone are the days when the only thumb rule for  WORK used to be "As much output as the input". This thumb rule doesn't hold good anymore in these times when we , on daily basis, face the challenge of maintaining focus on things that matter most to us. There's a need to look for "Thumb Rules" that are aligned to the changing times i.e. the VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) world. I share below few such "Thumb Rules" of Productivity that will make it easy for anyone to become judicious about investing effort and focus on the right things in life so that life remains under as much control as possible. 

First Things First 

The most important thing about life is that it is holistic in nature, which means its a cumulation of multiple aspects like Personal, Spiritual, Work, Family, etc. When our life goes out of balance, it's only by putting our focus on the right aspect/ area that we can bring it back to balance. If Family is out of balance, focusing on Work would not compensate for that. Unless we put our effort on the right element, we would not get the desired result and a certain hollowness or a sense of incompleteness will still exist in our lives inspite of putting our best effort. So, we need to look for that clue or indication suggesting what is causing the turmoil, chaos or confusion in our lives and then put it on top of our priority list. We need to always keep in mind that Productivity happens only when our Life is in balance. The WHEEL OF LIFE is a wonderful tool to identify which area/ aspect of our life needs immediate attention and once we know that then it's just a matter of choosing the right actions. 

Let me share a wonderful quote by Henry David Thoreau which will put things in the right context here. The quote is as below :

"It is not enough to be industrious; so are the ants. What are you industrious about ?"

Let's decide where we plan to invest our effort but also be cautious about identifying that "where" !

So, whenever we feel lost about the BIG picture in life, let First Things First be our guide in getting the BIG picture right.

Most Important Thing 

Talking about the situation when we are presented with the task of selecting from similar tasks, how do we do it ? This may not be easy because when all the identified tasks are similar in nature and have more or less similar impact, the confusion is bound to get louder. The best way to deal with such a scenario is to resort to the concept of "Keystone".  The Most Important Thing would be the one which triggers the other positive impacts too. (Related Article : Habits Build Happy Life ). When confronted with the choice of making impactful change in pour lives, we tend to pick up the a habit which triggers other good habits, likewise, from among the available important tasks/ things, we should opt for the one which triggers the rest. An example could be when we set ourselves the task of say Living Healthy. There are so many of us who set this as a resolution almost every year because we never get going on that due to our inability to identify the "Most Important Thing" from the options available. Few options available to us for the same could be - Joining a Gym, Start Exercising, Adopt Healthy Diet, Do Yoga, Wake Up Early. A good look at the options would reveal that it's not difficult to pick up the "Most Important Thing", which in my case would be "Wake Up Early".  I see waking up early taking more of most of the other identified tasks. Likewise, in a work situation, picking up the "most important thing" is about selecting the task that will play catalyst or that will trigger a sort of domino effect.  

Big Thing 

Many a times, even when we have identified the "Keystone" task, we still hesitate to go ahead with it just because its time consuming or slightly complex. We need to remember that avoiding this "Big Thing" , which we know is the most crucial one for us, will keep disturbing us and adversely impact our productivity. However hard we we try to make up for avoiding this "Big Thing" by way of selecting much simpler and less time consuming tasks, we would not be able to avoid the  loss that we may accrue because of this avoidance. Citing the an interesting concept to drive home the point - In the West, nothing is much worse than eating a frog in the breakfast (as first thing in the morning) and if we do that everything else we eat during the day tastes much better. Drawing  a parallel of this concept to our lives, we can say that doing the most difficult task (but the most essential one) first paves the way for us to be more productive because achieving smaller wins becomes much easier. Doing "Big Thing" first in no way connotes finishing it first, it just connotes starting it first and in time. A complex and a time consuming task may spread over multiple hours/ days and all we need to do then is to start it in time and work out some strategy to finish it in time. There are plenty of strategies that could help us achieve that and few ones could be read at - Beating The Productivity Paradox  

One Thing at a Time

We live with the "Busyness" paradox (Related Article: Busyness - The Utopian Paradox ) where pretence seems to rule over actual action and an outcome of the same is the myth of multi-tasking where engaging ourselves in multiple tasks is perceived to be more productive. A little self check would reveal that multi-tasking is lot more time consuming and less effective than mono-tasking because it consumes far more effort and resource in shuffling among the tasks, getting to refocus ourselves and to refresh our memory about the task. Research has also shown that at any given point of time , we have the ability to address/ deal with a single thought only. So, rather that getting enticed/ lured by the prospect of multi-tasking for better productivity, sticking to one task at a time would yield best results and this in no way suggest to leave aside the other important tasks. Through proper priortising and scheduling (Related Article: Beating The Productivity Paradox ), we can manage to be more effective and productive by addressing One Thing at a time.  

Suggested Reading

• First Things First by Stephen Covey

• Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy  

• The One Thing by Gary Keller

Let's get our "Thumb Rules" in place and hop on the bandwagon of Productivity !

N.B. : The images used in this post has been sourced from the internet

The Productivity Triangle - A Simple Framework For Getting Productivity Right

The road to productivity is not always smooth even when we are equipped with an arsenal of a range of productivity tools. There will  always be instances when productivity tools will fail to do the job for us (boost our productivity) and leave us at crossroads. During this state of confusion, the most important thing we need to do is to curb our tendency to fall prey to self-doubt or engage in dismissing the capability of the tool(s). Rather, this is the moment to brood over whether we are implementing productivity in the right manner i.e. in a holistic way and not in isolation (under the influence of some assumption(s)). The most basic assumption that we fall prey to us is that a framework is not essential for becoming productive and all that we need to do is to fit in the missing pieces (productivity tools)  and "lo and behold", we will be enroute super productivity !

(Related Post : Beating The Productivity Paradox )

Well, life does not operate on assumptions and if becoming productivity was as simple as picking up

a tool and implementing it, then we wouldn't be discussing about productivity being a holistic concept. Randomly handpicking a tool/ a set of tools to address the productivity gaps is not enough and that would never give us adequate and appropriate results. The need for a basic structure/ framework productivity arises due to the fact that our choices (related to productivity) could have far reaching impact on an individual's life and personality. The presence of a basic framework will ensure that "right effort is put on the right thing(s) at the right time".  

Here's a simple and easy-to-use Productivity Framework, called the "Productivity Triangle", to ensure the following:

• a proper understanding of the key impact elements of productivity 

• building of a holistic perspective in us,  towards productivity 

• taking the right approach to address productivity appropriately 

Let's look at the elements and application of the Productivity Triangle/ Framework

• SELF - This refers to the individual and his/ her existing capability, more of a status-quo check.

• TASK - This refers to the identified activities that need to be focused upon

• TIME - This refers to the total time available for finishing the identified tasks 

For getting the Productivity right, it's important to understand how each of the above relates to the process of effective productivity. 

When we talk about SELF, it's essential to do a personal status-quo to understand one's strengths and weaknesses (SWOT Analysis helps in this case) so that effort that gets put in by the individual 

commensurates with his/ her available resources(s). At any point, every individual possess certain competencies, skills and knowledge which make up the existing "resource toolkit" for the individual. A "Know Our Self" activity gives an insight about these available resources and also sets the limit for us in terms of defining our scope of control. Attempting to execute a task that requires skill or knowledge beyond our existing set of capabilities would prove to be quite detrimental for our productivity as it will only lead to an unsuccesssful attempt. Please note, that the concept of "Self" extends to include teams, groups and organisations also, based on the context.

Talking about TASK, a wrongly attempted task would lead to expending our effort and resource but with no conducive result. At times, we may focus on a task that's easier to attempt but may not be the one that should be on priority. So, getting to know more about the TASK helps in picking the appropriate one that will impact our life positively and progressively, thereby improving our productivity. There are times, when we tend to pick up a task (from our to-do list) just because it  seems easier to complete or at other times, pick up a task randomly, without any consideration to its importance in the scheme of things at that point of time. Prioritising tasks leads to better productivitybecause we have a limited reserve of energy and focusing energy on the right tasks will yield better results.

Lastly, i talk about TIME, which is another important element but which happens to be a limited resource. If Productivity is Efficiency, then Time is the deciding factor because a general notion is that the more we accomplish in a defined time duration, the more efficient a.k.a productive we would be. The productivity challenge, in context of time, lies in either incorrectly calculating the required time duration for a task or the inability to give uninterrupted time to the task. Inability to manage time adversely affects productivity. 

Steps to effectively implement the productivity triangle

• Whenever faced with a productivity challenges, identify the element to be addressed, whether it's Self, Task or Time

• Once the element is identified, it's time to identify the challenge/ issue pertinent to that element. The challenge could even be related to multiple elements, which then needs to be addressed appropriately

• If the challenge is related to SELF, take a stock of resources needed to accomplish the task and then about the existing ability of the individual. If it matches, then go ahead with executing the task and if a gap exists, then it makes sense to upgrade that identified competency, skill or knowledge. Doing a SWOT Analysis helps in identifying our strengths and weaknesses

• If the challenge is related to TASK, then ensure to prioritise the tasks and then work on the top most priority item. Using the tools like Pareto Principle, Eisenhower Matrix, 5/25 Rule helps in setting the right priority.

• If the challenge is related to TIME, then check whether a correct estimation of time needed for the task has been done or not. Once estimation is in place, then make use of tools like Pomodoro, Timeboxing to ensure giving undivided attention to the task that needs to be completed.   

Let right productivity approach take precedence over productivity tools !

N.B. : The images used in this post are sourced from internet

Action Priority Matrix (APM) - When Prioritisation defines Productivity (Part 4) !

One of the most common dilemma that we face daily in our life is to accomodate the ever growing number of activities within the limited amount of time that we possess. Our "wish list" never tends to cease and is always brimming with ideas, projects, goals, dreams, opportunities and possibilities. We reach a point when every "task" in our "wish list" starts to shout for our attention and our inability to build "priority" leaves us overwhelmed and exhausted !  

This is when we may get tempted at ask ourselves - Is there a way to deal with this and find out which item to focus on and which one to discard, because every item in the "wish list" may not be worth our attention/ time / effort ?

Playing with plentiful (of ideas/ tasks) is playful only when we know how to "prioritise" them. We may generate plenty of ideas through Brainstorming, Brain Dump, and other techniques but unless we are able to filter the wanted from the unwanted, we will always be struggling to be productive. In our daily life, it's not difficult to find instances when we struggle to focus and prioritise the tasks on our "to-do" list / "wish" list. To quote a real-life personal example, i find it really challenging when i have to decide which new ideas pertaining to writing, blogging, training or coaching do i work upon because you need to be creative and innovative all the time. During earlier times, i used to randomly pick up the idea and work on it but with not so satisfactory results. There wasn't any logic/ reasoning to my prioritisation of the tasks. But adding few "prioritisation based" productivity tools has really helped me be in better control of things i need to work on . During my previous posts, i have covered a few important "prioritisation focused" productivity tools - Eisenhower Matrix, Pareto Principle, Warrent Buffet 5/ 25 Rule. Here, in this post, i am sharing about another productivity tool from the same category (Prioritisation) that has helped me immensely in making optimum use of my time and other resources. The tool is known as Action Priority Matrix (APM).

Related Article: Beating the Productivity Paradox (A compilation of tools for Super Productivity)

Action Priority Matrix (APM)      

It's a very simple tool/ technique, more of a visual representation to help us define priority for the tasks at hand. As the name suggests, it's a matrix to help us decide which tasks to act upon and which ones to discard. The other two terms are also self-explanatory - Action stands for Execution and Priority refers to Preference. So, the APM tool/ matrix helps us in deciding the preference for acting on tasks at hand. The tool is also known as Impact-Effort Matrix. Let's study it in detail

APM (Action Priority Matrix) is a 2x2 Matrix with 2 scales - "Effort" on the horizontal axis and "Impact" on the vertical axis. The Matrix is divided into 4 quadrants and based on the scores obtained by each task/ activity on theses 2 scales of Effort and Impact, the activities are plotted in the Matrix and fall in one of the 4 quadrants. The objective is to identify the tasks that give the maximum return with the minimum effort. Let's look at what these 4 quadrants represent -

• Quick Wins (High Impact, Low Effort) - These are the low hanging fruits and provide the best value for little effort. The tasks falling in these activities should be focused upon as much as possible and should always be the priority.   

• Major Projects (High Impact, High Effort) -  These tasks provide good value/ return but consume lot of time/ effort/ resource. The tasks in these quadrant are second in priority. The strategy for these tasks should be to finish them as early and efficiently so that they do not consume all our energy, time and resources. The key idea is to not let one "Major Project" crowd out too many "Quick Wins" tasks. As soon we finish these tasks, we should release all the effort and resources associated to make them available for the "Quick Wins". 

• Fill Ins (Low Impact, Low Effort) - Since these tasks do not create any big value or provide any major return, these could be taken only when some spare time is available else they should be delegated or dropped.

• Thankless Tasks (Low Impact, High Effort) -  Because of the little value they provide and high resources they consume, these tasks should be completely dropped to make time available for something better (in terms of tasks).

Steps for using the Action Priority Matrix

• Identify the tasks/ activities to be completed, which could be your "to-do" list, wish list or any other similar list comprising of your tasks/ activities

• Score the identified tasks on scales of Impact and Effort. The scale could be 1-10 (1 standing for lowest and 10 standing for highest)

• Based on the scores obtained, plot the activities in appropriate quadrant in the Matrix

• Prioritize the activities with "Quick Wins" tasks getting the highest priority in terms of time/ effort, followed by "Major Projects". The "Fill Ins" fall in priority only when there's scope for more (after Quick Wins and Major Projects) and "Thankless Tasks" get eliminated.

Few Tips to Remember

• Though "Impact-Effort" scale is used in the original format, a different variant of the scale could also be used, if need be. The "Impact" could be replaced with "Revenue", "Development of certain Skills or Knowledge" or any other measurable entity. Similarly, "Effort" could refer to Time, Money, Man-hours, etc. 

• The scale of 1-10 used to score tasks/ activities could also be replaced with any other convenient scale of your choice, such as from A (Low )- E (High).

• Key focus while "proritizing" should be on avoiding the "crowding out" effect, which means not letting the non-priority tasks eat out the resources of the priority tasks.

• Action Priority Matrix may not be the perfect solution to complex problems/ solutions but is always a good starting point 

• The Action Priority Matrix has a lot of resemblance with the Eisenhower Matrix, which is based on the Urgent - Important Scale

Application of Action Priority Matrix (APM)

The Matrix has application, not just in area of personal productivity (decision making, problem solving, time management), but also in domains of Healthcare, Product Development, Project Management and Team Building.,  Among the many benefits of APM, a consensus based approach to problem solving/ decision making is very helpful, where based on a mutually decided set of scales, the "priority" can be arrived at.

During one of the Blog writing campaigns, i used this Matrix and my Quadrants looked like this (as mentioned below)

• Quick Wins - writing a blog post
• Major Projects - writing a book
• Fill Ins - reading blogs beyond the prescribed number
• Thankless Tasks - Browsing the internet with no agenda

So, don't think too much about finding the right context for applying Action Priority Matrix (APM), just start from where you are and with whatever needs to be prioritized or worked upon in sequence.  

Beating the Productivity Paradox

It doesn't take much thought and effort to realise that we live in strange times of "Productivity Paradox", where the pull of everything that's considered to aid us in becoming more productive is actually pushing us away from productivity (in various ways). Think about all the apps, tools, softwares, and many similar tech-enabled gadgets, that promise to make our lives seamless in every possible way but ultimately leave us confused and exhausted.

Somehow, inspite of all our efforts, most of us still struggle to match the speed of this advancement that's permeating our life (both at a professional and personal level). Since desperate times call for desperate measures, a lot of us take recourse to the conventional short-cuts (the path of least resistance) of working hard or working more to make up for the lost productivity rather than take the road less travelled of addressing the other "work" based aspects.

It's easy for anyone to notice a drop in productivity and one of the simplest ways to determine the same is to be observant about any decrease in the quantity/volume/ amount of output for any specific  set of input. Simply put, the moment we feel that we are not getting the desired result for our effort is an indication of a drop in productivity. Of course, defining the "desired result"is crucial as we need to ensure that it commensurates with the effort. 

Identifying Unproductivity is easier than correcting it. The VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) world that we are a part of is too demanding and eats up a great chunk of our resources, ranging from our attention to energy to time, and so on. Addressing the Unproductivity effectively is a matter of identifying what aspect of our "effort" we need to target. This "missing link" holds the key

to resolving the issue comprehensively and this missing link could be Focus, Efficiency, Clarity, Goal, Effectiveness, Prioritisation, Time Planning.  

When we deal with a high-pressure multi-dimensional world that's also complicated, complex and distracting, then a uni-directional approach to address productivity issues is bound to fail. What we need instead is a multi-pronged approach, using a multitude of tools, techniques and strategies, that covers every conceivable aspect of productivity. 

Getting better at handling technology is definitely an enabling factor to deal with Productivity/ Unproductivity but more important is to understand what that tool aims to address from among the various aspects that comprise our "work". Here's a compilation of various Personal Productivity Tools  (not necessarily digitally driven but definitely supplemented/ complemented by technology)  that address different aspects of Productivity and prepares us well to beat the Productivity Paradox effectively. 

Wheel of Life - SWOT Matrix - Brain Dump - SMART Goal Setting 

Mind Mapping - Pomodoro - 5 Second Rule - 5/25 Warren Buffet Rule

Eisenhower Matrix - 80/20 Pareto Principle - TimeBoxing - Parkinson's Law

Action Priority Matrix (APM)

"Focus on being productive instead of being busy - Tim Ferriss"