Work less, get more done

You know, since I only bill clients for the time I spend productively working on their stuff (as opposed to the corporate kids who get paid for sitting at a desk from 9-5, no matter if they're working the entire time or not) I decided that it would be a valuable investment in my business to learn how to maximize the efficiency of my time.

I aim for an 80% efficiency ratio, which factors out to mean that for every hour I spend in my office, my goal is to productively work for at least 48 minutes.

This is a lot harder than it sounds. Just for a frame of reference, I've heard that the average office worker only produces 1.5 hours of productive work for an 8 hour work day. That's an 18.75% efficiency ratio.(This is an corporate office employee, mind you, not a home biz owner.)

I have been doing much, much better at this since I started implementing David Allen's Getting Things Done time management system back in November of last year.

I still have a ways to go, but let me tell you, for the past 3 months or so, I have cleared out my inbox every single work day, and I can't even remember how overwhelming it used to feel before I got my email under control. Leaving the inbox crowded with emails at the end of the day would be like going to bed without taking off your makeup. It just feels icky.

If you are at all curious about what all the "GTD" hubbub is about and why David Allen has a cult-like following of geeks all over the internet, please check out this post over at 43 Folders. Merlin has very kindly corralled all the info a newbie needs to start implementing Getting Things Done.

Comments

[Erin Blaskie]

Hi Sharon!

I love David Allen's book. I read it quite some time ago and the one thing that stuck with me most is the "if you can do it in less than 2 minutes, do it right away" rule... I think he's got great time saving and management ideas and it's a great system to follow.

I look forward to hearing more about how you improve your efficiency!

*****
Hi Erin,

Yes, his book is absolutely life changing. That sounds a bit dramatic to say about a productivity book, but when you're in the business of keeping others and youself on task, it's a HUGE deal when you actually get things running smoothly. Have you been listening to Merlin Mann's podcast for 43 Folders? If not, you should check it out. He's got some great interviews with David Allen.

Cheers,

Sharon

[Jesse Boland]

Hey Sharon,
I've run across your stuff all over the web and I've posted one of your articles on my shiny new blog, thanks and keep up the great work.
Jesse

*****
Thanks so much, Jesse! It looks like my secret plan for world domination is starting to work ;-). Or else I just spend *way* too much time online. I'm glad you found the article useful. Good luck with your blog!

Sharon