People get so tied down in getting things done, that they often lose sight of what it the real outcome (or value) of all the things that they are doing. Being Busy is often a sign of a person who has not prioritized his/her activities and is working on low-value repetitive tasks, with little to show in terms of results. There is no virtue in being busy. What matters are your results.
Is it important?: 1. Doing something unimportant well does not make it important. 2. Requiring a lot of time does not make a task important.
Remind yourself: At least three times per day at scheduled times, he had to ask himself the following question: Am I being productive or just active?
Tim Ferris – Author – 4-hour workweek / Tools of Titans / Tribe of Mentors
You see people who do this—they’re extremely busy but don’t seem to be accomplishing anything. People fall into this trap for myriad reasons. Maybe they’re insecure and want to look important.
Whatever the case, I see people who insist they are “busy” but are merely spinning their wheels like a hamster—never going anywhere.
There is no virtue in being busy. What matters are your results.
Sunil Saxena – Author – Massive Action equals Massive Results
Top Books to help cure ‘busyness’
The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Achieving More with Less
Authors: Richard Koch,
Did you know that 80% of your best work is a result of only 20% of your efforts? Every aspect of your life operates in this way. Koch teaches you how to maximize on this 20% and make better use of your time, resources, and efforts. Richard Koch’s insights are guaranteed to change your life.
Crazy Busy: A (Mercifully) Short Book about a (Really) Big Problem
Authors: Kevin DeYoung,
The “I’m very busy” excuse is very common. According to pastor and writer David DeYoung, it is a really big problem as it’s effects go way beyond what you perceive, causing deep lasting impacts to your soul itself. He claims that the soul suffers the worst blow because of the busy-ness problem. In this book, he extracts some solutions from the Bible itself to provide a better time-management guide.
Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less
Authors: Alex Soojung-Kim Pang,
In today’s fast-changing world, people are expected to work, work and work. Rest is often looked at as a reward for the work done. Silicon Valley consultant, Alex Pang argues that this approach is wrong and proper, timely rest is essential for productivity and creativity. Discover what the likes of Darwin, Churchill, and Gates think of rest and how it contributed to their groundbreaking contributions.
Off the Clock: Feel Less Busy While Getting More Done
Authors: Laura Vanderkam,
The secret to time-management, according to Laura Vanderkam, is to think that you have all the time in the world. Unlike other rigorous time-management techniques, she gives you an easy and simple way of doing more in your life and still remaining calm and at ease. Her insights will make life more productive and also more fulfilling.
Other concepts on Productivity
Batching
Batching is where you gather all similar tasks and do them all at once. By completing them this way, you can maximize your focus on one type of task over a period of time, and therefore greatly increase your productivity on that particular job.
Eliminate > Automate > Delegate
We get so tied down in mundane day-to-day and other routine activities, that it becomes virtually impossible to find the time to work on our more important strategic and longer-term goals. There is a simple solution – ELIMINATE > AUTOMATE > DELEGATE.
Focus
A flow state (or being in the zone) is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. This leads to a tremendous boost in productivity and enjoyment, in anything that you do.
The Right Technique
We often do things the way we were taught, not because it’s the best way to do it. By keeping you mind open to new ideas and a little amount of research, you could be surprised by the vastly superior and more productive techniques that you can discover, that can boost your productivity and efficiency.