Being the head of a productivity center, I am on a lifelong quest to increase my own productivity and happiness. I never seem to get enough done: my “to do” list is always bigger than my “TA DA – it’s done!” list.
Imagine my delight when Charles Duhigg, Pulitzer Prize winning author of the new book Smarter, Faster, Better: the Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business gave me the best productivity tip of the month…so far.
Here it is: At the top of your daily to do list or calendar, write down the ONE goal you really want to get accomplished today. Not three things, not something that sounds good…the ONE (usually hard) thing you want to get done. Refer to it all day as the litmus test: “Is what I am doing now moving me toward my goal?”
For example, today my goal was to write this blog post. It is now 5:00pm but I am not leaving my desk until I am done with draft one. Sure, I should have done it first, but an alligator bit me instead (you know what I mean). I completed a dozen other great things today (and have another dozen things still to do), but this was at the top of my list. So I am going to accomplish it and feel great and free for the evening.
This isn’t the first time Charles has been helpful to me. He is the best-selling author of The Power of Habit which seems to NEVER leave the New York Times bestseller list. Our KM Advanced Working Group loved it as our book club selection in 2013. He kindly agreed to keynote at our KM Conference that year.
More recently I caught up with him as part of APQC’s Big Thinkers, Big Ideas interview series. He gave me a terrific interview (you can listen below). I began by asking him how he came to write his new book. Here’s the origin story.
Charles Duhigg: The idea for this book started right after my book “The Power of Habit” had come out. That book started doing well and I felt fortunate for that. At the same time, I was working on a series for the New York Times using Apple as a lens for looking at the global economy. That series was also successful, going on to win the Pulitzer Prize. Professionally, it was truly a great year for me.
My routine during this time was to come home each day at 6:30 p.m. All I had energy for was to have dinner with my wife and two kids, put the kids to bed, and then watch some bad TV with my wife. I would confide to her that if this is what success feels like, sign me up for failure because this lifestyle is impossibly hard…
I felt like the harder and faster I was running, the further I was falling behind. I wanted to understand why some people seem to get so much more done. Why do some people seem more productive without encountering huge amounts of stress and strife, and having to make enormous sacrifices?
Each of the eight chapters of the book provides a story illustrating research findings and personal experience to back up the title of the book. From the likes of Google and Saturday Night Live to the Cincinnati public schools, Charles finds techniques to become more productive and happier. I found many insightful, actionable tips and research on what makes productive teams and lives. Ultimately, what separates productive people from everyone else is the question, “How wisely am I choosing how to spend my time?”
Today I put one tip to work—accomplish the most important thing at the top of my list: write this post.
Done!
For more on my interview with Charles, view the full transcript.
Check out the rest of my Big Thinkers, Big Ideas interviews on APQC’s Knowledge Base.
Subscribe to the Big Thinkers, Big Ideas podcast on itunes or on APQCPodcasts on Podbean.
You can connect with me on Twitter @odell_carla