43 Folders is one of the best blogs out there for improving our personal productivity through "life hacks" and a system of "Getting Things Done" (aka GTD). The site is the effort of Merlin Mann, a personal productivity guru and maven, and his staff of researchers and web site builders. The site also also spawned a podcast and video podcast (both hosted by the quirky Mann), and users can stay abreast of new postings through RSS feeds (as with any blog). Personal productivity is a big issue for many of us in this digital age, when we are constantly being distracted by incoming e-mails, or the schizophrenia of constant web surfing, the lure of the computer screen, instant messaging and texting and chatting, telephones, cell phones, PDAs, iPods, our frequent tendency to procrastinate, and the more traditional distractions/interruptions created by other people. People who are serious afficianados of personal productivity and the constant giving and sharing of tips and strategies for dealing with life's distractions in a technological age refer to their discourse back and forth as "productivity porn" or "pr0n" because it can be as addictive as Internet porn for some people as we constantly strive to find ways to enjoy the technology, resist the technology, deal with the overwork that this so-called modern convenience frequently creates and maintain our sanity while being constantly bombarded by distractions. I changed my system for dealing with e-mail after reading one of Mann's postings (in which he referenced another blog and credited the blog for the system--i.e., he didn't try to claim it as his own), and I do find much of this discourse fascinating. For instance, e-mail alone causes so much angst for some people that it has led to discussions of "declaring e-mail bankruptcy" (Lawrence Lessig) and trying to achieve "e-mail zero" (an empty inbox) on a daily basis. For those of you who have more than a hundred e-mails sitting in your inbox that you've read but haven't processed, you'll find much of this discussion to be worthwhile reading. Enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment