As I begin my career in photography (I get to be my own boss? um, yes, I think I'll have that), I'm realizing very very quickly that productivity is no longer prompted by the expectations of a manager or team, but instead, by me. I dictate my schedule and my pace. My goals dictate my potential for revenue and success. My ambition accelerates all of these. I earn what I work for. And it is all 'homegrown'.
So I'm huge on anything that helps improve, fortify, and most of all, simplify productivity.
In other words: the goal is to work smarter, not necessarily harder.
Grazing in cyberspace one day, I came across lifehacker.com: "Tech Tricks, Tips, and Downloads For Getting Things Done". Sweet! One of the articles tells how Jerry Seinfeld himself goes about being productive. And his secret is so painfully simple. I love simplicity in such a pure, low-tech form. What's his secret? To quote the article:
[Jerry] revealed a unique calendar system he uses to pressure himself to write [jokes and new material]. Here's how it works.
He told me to get a big wall calendar that has a whole year on one page and hang it on a prominent wall. The next step was to get a big red magic marker.
He said for each day that I do my task of writing, I get to put a big red X over that day. "After a few days you'll have a chain. Just keep at it and the chain will grow longer every day. You'll like seeing that chain, especially when you get a few weeks under your belt. Your only job next is to not break the chain."
Brilliant. In such a complex age and in an industry where it's so easy to get caught up in the numbers and software and color profiles and folders and inboxes run amok, I'm always amazed how simple methods remain so trustworthy and reliable. Calendars don't run on electricity! And you don't need to upgrade a big red marker for $299. I love it.
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