Black Belt Productivity

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This week, we welcome in Matt Cornell, of Matt’s Idea Blog. Matt has taken the enviable task of turning his love of GTD into a possible second career as a Productivity Coach by earning a (self-defined) Master’s Degree in Personal Productivity.

We are excited that he agreed to write for us (as we are with all of our Black Belts).

- Michael

GTD: Space + awareness = *major* action

Introduction

OK, first off - Black Belt? Sorry, but I’m just a GTD practitioner like the rest of us (and a relatively new one at that!), and it will be a while before I get there. However, I am very glad to be writing here, and I will grudgingly admit that I’m maybe just a bit more over the top than others - what with the career change to personal productivity. And the GTD-inspired blog. And the quitting of the day job. And… (But I draw the line at quoting from the book verbatim. Really. Because on page 119 Allen says that we should… Argh!!!!)

Let’s start from the top. I wasn’t looking for a major life change when my boss suggested David Allen’s book. He didn’t say Read this book, it will turn you into a koolaid-drinking true believer (and I’m glad he didn’t! I might not have touched it.) Pre-GTD I was quite productive at work (I’m a research programmer in an AI lab at a large state university), and relatively happy at home, which made GTD’s ultimate impact even more surprising. However, I was apparently ready for a big change; after adopting Allen’s ideas wholesale [1], I noticed I had somehow (and relatively effortlessly) made the following changes:

• I cured my insomnia,
• I started a major career switch (after 20 years),
• I lost 15 pounds,
• I started a blog, and
• I’ve made huge strides in fixing a severe back problem

When I realized these things happened after taking on Allen’s discipline, I actually sat down and made a timeline to figure out what the hell had happened. I couldn’t believe how reading a time management book could expand like this. However, it seemed clear that the ideas were central. (I tell people it was either a mid-life crisis, or a damn good book.)

So what was it about GTD that led a former NASA engineer [2] and programmer to change to productivity coaching and leading time management seminars? I think the book enabled two things. First, by getting control of information overload and setting up a “total life” to-do list, my brain freed up [3] enough cycles to release the natural creativity and energy [4] that I think we all have. That’s the first ingredient - space. Once there was space, the second aspect kicked in: awareness. Some part of me realized that I was ready for big changes, and had the energy to let them happen, i.e., to take action. And I’ve seen this in others who adopt the system - there really is a big picture beyond the mundane. I’ve worked with people who have grown businesses, split companies into two, upgraded offices, implemented improved systems - and more - after a few months of getting control of their workflow. That’s huge, and what makes me excited to share this with others.

Tools

One aspect of GTD that I find tremendously liberating is its “tech-agnostic” nature - we are 100% free to use various forms of atoms and/or bits to manage our lives ala GTD [5] - a calendar and lists form the key action categories (calendar, projects, next actions, and waiting for). The actually tools can run the gamut on the complexity dimension from a piece of paper, through user-configurable index cards, all the way to tons of fascinating digital tools (with more coming daily). I tend to be low tech, having started with the hipster, then switching to a traditional paper planner with my own tabs for contexts [6]. So far it’s worked great! I like how Eric Mack puts it: Methodology + Technology = Productivity.

Future

As we continue practicing GTD and spreading the word (if it helps us), I suggest we consider an alternate definition of black belt status:

In many schools, the rank of black belt is the first rank at which a student also becomes an instructor.

I’ve definitely found it to be true [7] that if you really want to learn something, teach it to someone else. Luckily, in this community there are tons of excellent GTD resources, including the davidco forums, the Google tips and techniques group, and this one. I’ll leave you with this quote:

The black belt is thus seen not so much as an end, but rather as a beginning, a doorway to advanced learning: the individual now “knows how to walk” and may thus begin the “journey.”

Cheers!

References

• [1] Please see my article Actually getting things done with Getting Things Done! Surprises and learnings from my implementation on how to not implement GTD. I made the mistake of trying to bring my existing reference files up-to-date while also taking GTD on - big mistake! Took me two months, on top of the initial two days.
• [2] My first job was as a junior Electrical Engineer at the Kennedy Space Center.
• [3] It’s become so bad, and so pervasive, that there’s a name - Attention Deficit Trait (ADT). More in: Why can’t you pay attention anymore? and Q&A: Defining a New Deficit Disorder. (There seems to be a full version here.)
• [4] Believe me, I have qualms every time I use that word. In this case, I mean the physical desire combined with the wherewithal to make things happen. I got plenty of new age stuff when becoming a certified massage therapist way back when - trust me!
• [5] I think this is a significant divergence from other systems, which seem to require more than habit changes.
• [6] You can read more at Fare thee well Hipster PDA - I barely knew ye and Four Planner Hacks for Paper-Based Productivity.
• [7] From my post The crucible of teaching: Want to learn in a hurry? Teach!