Post-Its and Productivity

Randy Weber — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 01:30:41 +0000

I found this gem of wisdom on Lifehacker. My take-away is this: If you try to do everything, you’ll accomplish nothing. So focus!

Or, as infamous trial attorney Johnnie Cochran might say: “It the task doesn’t fit, you mustn’t do it.”

Technology and Me – A Day in the Life of

Randy Weber — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 05:16:40 +0000

This is the third post of three about technology changes over the last decade. First I covered what I was using in 2001 and what I’m using in 2010. Second I covered what I consider to be the biggest changes for me over the last decade. Today I’m covering how these changes have affected me on a day-to-day basis.

A typical day for me begins with the following before getting out of bed:

1) turning off my alarm (iPhone 3GS)

2) start download of the day’s WSJ This Morning podcast (iPhone 3GS)

3) checking the temperature (iPhone 3GS)

Once I get out of bed:

1) I get dressed to take my dog for a walk while listening to the WSJ podcast that has finished downloading.

2) I feed myself and my dog while continuing to listen to the WSJ broadcast.

3) I connect my iPhone to some powered speakers and finish the WSJ podcast as I shower and get dressed for

work.

As I leave the house to go to work:

1) I listen to music on my iPhone as I walk to bus stop.

2) While waiting for the bus I check my personal and work e-mail.

3) After checking e-mail, I play games and listen to music on my iPhone until I reach work.

It’s amazing how fast time seems to pass when you have so many productivity and entertainment options

available.

Depending on what I’m doing that day at work, I might listen to music, Pandora, or local sports talk from

Dallas (the ESPN Radio iPhone app is great) as I work.

At work I’m always connected to the Internet and most of my collegues are located remotely or at another

office. Work is done primarily via e-mail and chat. I’m on the phone no more than once or twice a day.

Prior to heading home from the office, I start the downloads for a few ESPN podcasts which keep me company

until I get home and walk the dog.

Once, I walk my dog and feed the two of us. Then I catch up on TV shows waiting for me on my DVR. I’ll

typically surf the web and read the days news and tech blogs on my laptop as I watch TV.

When I crawl into bed at night I set my alarm, plug in the charger, and turn on some relaxing tunes on my

iPhone 3GS.

As you can see, the iPhone has been deeply integrated into my daily activities. I have a hard time seeing

how I’d get by without it.

A typical day for me begins with the following before getting out of bed:

1) Turning off my alarm (iPhone 3GS).

2) Starting the download for the WSJ This Morning podcast (iPhone 3GS).

3) Checking the temperature (iPhone 3GS).

Once I get out of bed:

1) I get dressed to take my dog for a walk while listening to the WSJ podcast on my iPhone that has finished downloading.

2) I feed myself and my dog while continuing to listen to the WSJ podcast.

3) I connect my iPhone to some powered speakers and finish the WSJ podcast as I shower and get dressed for work.

As I leave the house to go to work:

1) I listen to music on my iPhone as I walk to bus stop.

2) While waiting for the bus I check my personal and work e-mail.

3) After checking e-mail, I play games and listen to music on my iPhone until I reach work.

It’s amazing how fast time seems to pass when you have so many productivity and entertainment options available.

Depending on what I’m doing that day at work, I might listen to music, Pandora, or local sports talk from Dallas (the ESPN Radio iPhone app is great) as I work.

At work I’m always connected to the Internet. Most of my collegues are located remotely or at another office. Work is done primarily via e-mail and chat. I’m on the phone no more than once or twice a day. I used the phone far more when I was doing Business Development.

My primary applications include Outlook, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Excel on a 10″ Dell laptop running Windows XP docked with dual 20 inch LCD monitors. I use Word and PowerPoint far less in product management than I did in Business Development.

I also keep Meebo’s web-based chat application open all day on a small USB monitor to access AIM, Live Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger. I keep up with industry news using Google Reader and Techmeme.

Prior to heading home from the office, I start the downloads for a few ESPN podcasts which keep me company until I get home and walk the dog.

After I walk my dog and feed the two of us, I catch up on TV shows waiting for me on my DirecTV DVR or stream some music using my Apple TV.

I’ll typically surf the web and read the days news and tech blogs on my laptop as I watch TV or listen to music. I have a 17″ Dell laptop running Windows 7. I primarily use Google Chrome to browse the web at home.

I actually have print subscription to Business Week (it was free).

When I crawl into bed at night I set my alarm, plug in the charger, and turn on some relaxing tunes on my iPhone 3GS.

As you can see, the iPhone has been deeply integrated into my daily activities. I have a hard time seeing how I’d get by without it.

Simple, but Effective

Randy Weber — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 04:04:28 +0000

I’m a big fan of simplicity. While checking out the On Simplicity blog for the first time, I came across The One Pencil Philosophy. A very simple, but powerful idea:

Imagine a pencil cup (or tray, or what have you) that always has your favorite pen in it. You know–the one that feels wonderful in your hand, lets you write smoothly, and is the most stylish. No more crappy pens with embarrasing pharmeceutical ads on them…

The first benefit is that you surround yourself with best and get rid of the junk [bold by the author]…

The second benefit is that this system can train you to value things of quality.

The third major benefit of the one pencil philosophy is that you’ll spend less time searching and more time doing.

This is a great way to get started simplifying your life. It’s contagious. How many shoes do you really need? How many pairs of jeans? Do you really need every freebie t-shirt that you’ve ever picked up at a trade show or conference? You get the idea. Give it a try.

Randy Weber » lifehacks

Post-Its and Productivity

Technology and Me – A Day in the Life of

Simple, but Effective