Just Seven Things

Exploring why and how we do what we do, and how we can do it better

Archive for the tag “Happiness”

07 Jun 2008

Happiness System III

Building on one of the exercises in Mark Forster’s Do It Tomorrow and borrowing from my last Madgex hack day project, My3Things (an anonymous 360 degree feedback tool which automates the aggregation of individual feedback into a report the line manager can take the individual through) I introduced item 5. of the Happiness System this morning:

5. My3Things: a closed list of only 3 things that I will achieve today. Set according to priorities the night before/ early morning

6. Ruthless 1 topic focus: a Do It Tomorrow ‘capture’ list for any distractions/ thoughts arising during that 1 topic focus (typically a note pad or Outlook task with a due date of tomorrow)

7. ‘Unassailable’ Time slots allocated for the daily review of priorities and projects against Vision and Goals

8. Every task accepted into task management system has Very Next Action decided and noted (Very David Allen)

Next four tomorrow….

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06 Jun 2008
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Happiness System II

So, is it possible?

Having a conversation with one of our most senior managers today who has more end to end responsibility in the company than anyone else. We were discussing their feelings of control or otherwise, and the speed that it can feel that balance and control is lost.

It got me talking about my thoughts around a Happiness System. The idea that there are certain key activities or tasks peculiar to an individual that when done, or kept on top of a daily, weekly or other period basis allow that person to maintain a level of balance and control. A system for achieving Happiness of Self-Management.

The next steps are to start defining them. I’ve started for myself:

  1. One list and one set of numbered priorities
  2. A ‘frog’ (see Brian Tracy) ranked view of projects at my fingertips
  3. Always having a ranked and sorted system of tasks to my time/ priorities and energies to (the Do it Tomorrow view) – I’m debating the differentiating characteristics to 1. and 2. above
  4. An 80:20 approach to any free time. 80% will always be on the important, 20% on the urgent (the Covey approach)….

To be continued

Posted in Happiness, Time Management and tagged ,
05 Jun 2008
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A System for Happiness?

Another day of pure reactiveness and stress-fuelled response to about three separate client negotiations and 84 other pressing matters (surely 84 is the magic number……?)

So no ‘pockets of action-focus’ as promised, but an observation. It’s during days like today that a number of things seems to happen:

  1. The ‘crap’/ distractions that often suck-up focus time are correctly relegated in terms of their priority and ‘noise’
  2. Contrasting 2., after periods of ‘peak’ stress/ brain-stretch, a bit of ‘crap’/ distraction is a light relief and quite cathartic
  3. After a prolonged period of back-to-back pressure, I find that I then need to work and clear actions to feel ‘happy’ again

This striving for a feeling is fascinating because it’s not based on ‘to-do’ lists or any of the things I (think) I know I should mark my day with. It’s based on a kind of kinaesthetic ‘tipping point’

I’ve just sat for 3 hrs working continuously (and productively I should add) to reach a point where I feel happy to stop.

Now I know this is a common feeling in terms of the ways in which people work in a relatively unstructured way. I’m interested in whether it’s possible to create a working system to achieve ‘happiness’ – so less rules based, and more gut-based.

Watch this space (I need to relax now ;-)

Posted in Happiness, Stress and tagged ,

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