Live data from Hacker News

Why time management is ruining our lives

theguardian.com

211–212 of 212 posts

Re: Why time management is ruining our lives

#211
Let's call it #productivityhoax! Great article. I always felt those productivity systems are missing the point.

The key thing to understand is that there's literally INFINITE number of things we could be doing. They all compete for our very limited time. There's only one way to stay sane and productive and it's having explicit PRIORITIES. That's your shield from the demands of the world. That's where you decide where you want to go. (I've written a post about it http://frustrat.com/on-priorities-and-focus/)

Second - no list is a time-management tool. They're just lists. If you want to get a hold of the time you need to use a CALENDAR. That's where you "budget" or allocate the time to do things. The beauty of this is that it shows you when you bankrupt on time. Ie. when there's too much on your todo list and you need to remove some of it. The list will not help you do that. Other benefits of this approach: low stress, low context-switching, feeling of control, effectiveness (as opposed to efficiency).

It's like DHH says in the tweet: "Secret to productivity is not finding more time to do more stuff, but finding the strength to do less of the stuff that doesn't need doing."

Also Rory Vaden is onto something in his "multiply your time" approach: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2X7c9TUQJ8

Another proof of the #productivityhoax is that we all have the same 24h, yet our outcomes are so different. Time is the biggest equaliser. Think about it :)

Re: Why time management is ruining our lives

#212
post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If your company pays you to give your attention when requested then it kind of does create such an obligation. I'll grant you that if they have to choose, they probably choose total productivity over all emails answered. However, clearly not every incoming email requires an answer from every recipient. You are not being asked to reply to 100% of incoming emails instantly. Ignoring direct requests for attention is bot…

It seems like you're imagining a different situation than I am. I'm talking about a large volume of outside email, the equivalent of fan mail, essentially. We have other methods of communication for internal stuff, like Slack. I stand by my original assertion that your request for attention doesn't create an obligation to give any to you, though. I think the cultural norms around it (ie, give attention when asked) ma…

Maybe, but the employment situation still changes the dynamics. You probably couldn't get away with this argument if you worked in customer support, for example.
Post reply on HN