Productivity Ninjas at work – Think Productive Ninja, Sharon Dale


We’re big fans of Lifehacker here at Think Productive, especially their “How I Work” series

So, we thought we’d do our own version – and introduce you to Ninja, Sharon Dale.

 

Sharon will be be running our How to Get Things Done workshop in Halifax at the end of this month – details here.

Follow Sharon on Twitter

What would your answers be to these questions? No idea? Need some help?

 

WHAT HARDWARE DO YOU USE?

A 13″ MacBookPro which will need to be replaced this year after four years of good service. I use this at home with two Samsung screens with a Goldtouch keyboard and a Magic Trackpad.

I have an iPad (3rd generation) which is my constant companion for email, tasks and notes plus entertainment. I use an Apple Bluetooth keyboard with this.

My phone is an iPhone 5 which I also use for ubiquitous capture (see below).

 

WHAT SOFTWARE DO YOU USE?

I use Evernote to keep electronic reference information in a searchable format which is also accessible from iPad, iPhone, and the web.

I use Parallels in order to run a a couple of PC based software products but much prefer the Mac operating system. I have used and supported PCs since the mid 1990s and so I am very familiar with PC software.

As a team we use Sugar Sync for file sharing

 

WHAT MOBILE APPS AND TO-DO APPS DO YOU LOVE?

I mentioned ubiquitous capture using my iPhone 5 above.

I use a great little app called Captio which is a very quick way to capture thoughts which then are very quickly transmitted to the email account set up in the options. I also use the camera to remind me of things. It makes my photo stream a bit strange from time to time.

I use Omnifocus for task management, mainly using the iPad version. I also like Readability which I use to save items for later reading.

Away from work I love Spotify so that I can listen to a range of music and Soundhound to identify music that I hear out and about.

 

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PRODUCTIVITY BOOK?

“Making it all Work“ by David Allen which I find a more complete read than “Getting Things Done“, and of course “How to be a Productivity Ninja“.

 

HOW DO YOU ARRANGE YOUR DESK?

I have a home office which is a narrow room with a great IKEA desk and freedom chair which is really comfortable. I use two screens which make it very easy to work using multiple windows for research.

I have three lovely wooden in-trays, one for home, one for work and one for study.

I use a tickler file which I find invaluable for keeping paperwork safe until I need it.

 

DO YOU USE ANY PRODUCTIVITY OR TIME-SAVING TRICKS IN YOUR HOME LIFE?

All of our towels and bedding items are the same colour which means that it is much easier when washing them.

I always have an ongoing shopping list on the fridge door which I grab when I leave the house.

All of my socks are the same which means I do not have to pair them.

 

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PRODUCTIVITY TRICK OR TECHNIQUE?

Pomodoros really help focus the mind on whatever you need to get done and get started on those big rocks.

 

WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST PRODUCTIVITY STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS?

Strength? I am open to new ideas and incorporate anything useful that I learn into my systems but I don’t change things for the sake of it, only when it is useful; Continual improvement is the key.

Weakness? I am easily distracted but I have learned and developed methods to help me to focus. I think focus is the most important productivity skill.

 

AWAY FROM WORK, WHAT DO YOU LOVE THE MOST?

I am pretty much a home bird but I do love getting out and seeing places and also taking photos. I don’t do either enough though so one of the changes I am making this year is taking the time when I travel for work to get out there.

 

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PRODUCTIVITY QUOTE?

I like lots of quotes, one of my favourites is:

“We are what we repeatedly do; excellence, then, is not an act but a habit” Aristotle

And less seriously:

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by” Douglas Adams

 

Sharon will be leading our How to Get Things Done public workshop in Halifax on Jan 31st – details/book here

 Lifehacker – How I Work Series

 

 

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Definition: The Pomodoro Technique

graham alcott - think productive

 

 

 

 

 

HOW IT WORKS – by Graham Allcott

Pomodoro Kitchen Timer for Action Logging

By AndyRobertsPhotos

Invented by university student Francesco Cirillo in the late eighties, the Pomodoro Technique is named after those stylish kitchen timers you can buy in the shape of a tomato.

Essentially a tool for managing attention and focus, Pomodoro has at its heart two extremely simple but powerful observations.

That short bursts of attention (25 minutes) followed by short breaks (five minutes) are the best way to preserve your proactive attention throughout the day.

by splitting the day into lots of 25-minute chunks and using a timer, you spend the whole day with the constant buzz of being up against a clock. Time is counted backwards, counting down from 25 to zero, rather than forwards indefinitely until you take a break.

It is a great tool for splitting much larger tasks down into more bite-sized chunks, it can help provide an important sense of focus and can help you resist the temptation to give into distractions.

You can download Pomodoro timer apps for your phone, or download a desktop timer for your computer: they are quieter than using a real kitchen timer. I’ve used both over the years, but I’d advise against using a real one if there are other people in the office!

Pomodoro is also an interesting technique to ensure you don’t focus too much attention on any single area of your work. Used over a day or a week, you can start to view your schedule in terms of Pomodoros spent – and see exactly how little of your time is spent on the stuff you like the least.

 

grace marshall

HOW TO DO IT – (taken from “21 Ways to Manage the Stuff That Sucks Up Your Time“ by Grace Marshall)

1. Define your task(s) for each 25 minute slot

2. Set the timer for 25 minutes

3 Work solely on that task until the timer rings

4. Take a 5 minute break

5. Move onto the net 25 minute Pomodoro (named after the tomato shaped timer)

6. Take a longer break every 4 Pomodoros

 

Like this? Try these

Grace runs our Midlands workshops – check out upcoming time management workshops here

More about Graham Allcott here

More about Grace Marshall here

 

 

 

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The Pomodoro technique

In our How to Get Things Done public workshop we go over the idea of the Pomodoro technique and find a lot of people are not familiar with this idea.

Francesco Cirillo created the Pomodoro Technique in 1980s after a long search to improve his own study habits. Starting in the late ’90s the technique was embraced by professional teams. It can help us accomplish what we want to do and chart continuous improvement in the way we do it.

Materials you need?
1 kitchen timer/egg timer
1 sheet of paper
1 pen/pencil

How it works?
A pomodoro is a measurement of time. 1 pomodoro = 25 minutes

First make a list of all the tasks you want to do that day and allocate how many pomodoros you will spend on each task.

take the kitchen timer and set it to 25 minutes and start on the task. Once the timer has hit 0 take a small break (5 minutes should do the trick) and repeat the process.

After completing 4 Pomodoros take a longer break.

This technique really helps to build attention span and focus. For more information download the free PDF Ebook here

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