Monday 12 December 2016

Mapping your workflow for improved productivity

When I saw this advertised, I'm pretty sure I signed up on the spot. I'm always looking for ways to be more efficient - I've got way too much to do and never enough time to do it, so if there are tools out there to help me stop procrastinating and just get on with it, I'm all ears. I mentioned Evernote in a blogpost previously - I stuck with it faithfully for several months, but I've let it fall by the wayside for a number of reasons, the main one being that it had added to my workload instead of taking away.

Kirsten took us through a number of systems, all designed to be 'tool-agnostic', that is, not requiring specific apps or software or specialist equipment. Also, they could be used on or offline - for example using tailored apps, apps you've already got, or just pen and paper. She had two important caveats:
  1. Whatever system you use, you need to trust it, otherwise you're creating more work for yourself (like me and Evernote).
  2. Be aware of the weaknesses of the system/s in place (particularly one area where things can fall down is when shifting from personal to collaborative, or online to offline, and vice versa).
Since Evernote collapsed on me (or I on it), I've taken to using a lot of Post-Its. Like, between me and Futurelib, we've probably kept a few extra staff on this year in the Post-Its company. I've also begun putting more into my work diary, and on reflection, I can see that I am a pen-and-paper-person at heart. It took this course to really beat it into me though! So I'm going to find an offline system and see how it goes. Kirsten is a devotee of Bullet Journalism, which a colleague of mine has recently been raving about. I can see its merits, but the fanaticism of its fans has always put me off a bit. Still, I'll have a go in the new year and see how I get on. Already bought my shiny new Leuchtturm journal!

A number of different methods of improving productivity were introduced and described - some fairly obvious and some a bit of wishful thinking, but Kirsten extracted the most important take-home message from each to sum them up for us, which I found very efficient!

Personal Kanban - 3 columns: To-Do | WIP | Done
Why this works - limit your WIPs - no moving To-Dos before you've moved a WIP. I also like the fact that at the end you have a whole bunch of Dones as a record of your achievement.

Essentialism - Do less, do it better
Why this works - you delegate the stuff you won't be amazing at, thereby only producing amazing work. Of course, this relies on the fact that you can delegate, which often we can't. Kirsten's take-home message was "be careful what you say yes to".

Focus Funnel - Filter tasks: eliminate, automate, delegate, procrastinate or concentrate
Why this works - this and the Eisenhower Decision Matrix (urgent/not urgent, important/not important) encourage a triage approach to prioritisation. Does this task really need doing? Do you really need to be the one to do it?

Action Method - Break projects into 3 categories: Action steps, references and backburners
Why this works - Kirsten's take-home from this was "work with a bias towards action". Everything is manageable if you can break it down into its component steps. I'm not sure everything fits so neatly into these three categories, but if my next bout of productivity fails, I might refer back to this.

Kaizen - Iterative approach which reviews and experiments to constantly improve
Why this works - it encourages you to be reflective and innovative, finding out what works best for you, and ensuring that you don't tie yourself to a system that no longer suits you.

And finally
Getting Things Done - Capture, Clarify, Organise, Reflect, Engage
Why this works - it encourages you never just to think about something, but to add value to something each time you think about it. The idea is you should never waste your brainpower on simply remembering things, which allows for a more creative space. It sounds like a good system, though 5 steps for every task that takes longer than 5 minutes feels like it might take up more time initially.

We got onto the task of mapping our workflows, from inbox to completion, and we had to identify our inboxes. This was a freakin' revelation for me. Your email inbox is your inbox. So is your in-tray. And so is your pigeonhole. But so is every idea you have. Every phone query you take. Meetings, assignments, colleagues popping by for a quick chat....these and more are all inboxes which set tasks for you to complete. How does a task move from one of these to your done pile?

I have to confess, we were a bit lazy on our table. I took the handouts, and I intend to set aside some time to do one for each inbox. I think if I can adapt them a bit, they'll be really useful for work for when I'm not there and a task needs doing. Then we spent the rest of the time chatting between ourselves and discussing the experiences we've had and the tools we've used. Other things which were teased out during this time which I noted were:
  1. Digital tools are often more successful if they're collaborative because of the accountability and the impetus to share with colleagues (which is definitely true in the case of my Google calendar, which I use with work, my partner, and even my wind band!)
  2. Planning a project and breaking it down into steps - it sounds very meta, but one of the steps is making the plan and breaking the project down into steps. Allow time to plan.
  3. Getting things done is easier when you've shared your aims with someone (either digitally or telling them face to face works!) because you make yourself accountable.
Kirsten then pulled us back to finish with her final take-home advice:
  1. Small changes one at a time is the best way to start new habits (or if you're going to make a massive change, make the time to devote to doing it properly).
  2. Be strategic - what is the smallest change you can make that will have the biggest effect?
  3. Sustainability - can you keep this up? (A resounding no from me for Evernote there). Along with this, I think - is your system robust enough to cope when things go wrong? I went away for two weeks and when I came back I couldn't even bear to load up Evernote because of all the things waiting to be done.
So there was a lot there to take in, and a lot of systems to try. As I mentioned up-post, I'm going to try a sort of bullet journal. I liked the standard symbols and the way it records everything accomplished (which my to-do list on a Post-It doesn't). I also liked the simple visualisation of Kanban, and I can see it being a great way to store my library project wishlists as well as the projects I'll have completed.

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