This has already been a godsend for me. It is cross platform, and just so damed easy to use. Try it.

I have been finding that the first one listed here, has been working well for me. Every creative no matter what skill level, comes upon the dreaded “not an inkling, not a speck of an idea” span. For some it comes seldom, for others, it is a constant battle. Having plans, tactics, processes to go thru when this happens is essential for your survival as a creative business. Trying tips like these can break you out of the “fog”. Bookmark for reference.

Ahhh yes, a very good list of posts. read in small doses though.

Thanks Google!

Wow, could this have come at the right time for YOU? We have talked alot recently about productivity, to-do lists, goals, getting things done. Now for some concrete words on the actual “how”. Good timing for me in particular. I have a project that if I finish it, I can get paid, and I desparately need the money. But for the past week, it has moved from each day’s to-do list to the next. So… tonight a chunk of it, a small chunk, but still a bite.

How about you?

1. Have sets of goals. The biggies, the middles, and the day to day goals.
2. WRITE THEM DOWN! Even the day to day ones. It makes them more “real” and gives you a quick review internally of them. It also commits you to achieving them, a bit more. But not really.
3. Share them with others. Yeah, that is commitment. If you share the goal with someone else, you are more likely to work harder to get to the goal. To save face, to prove to them you can do it, to show them up, to share the attainment with them for a greater good. Whatever the reason, do it. Especially the importnat ones.
4. Take a bit of time to look at the goal, and come up with mini-goals to get you on the way. Take a weekend retreat to be with yourself. Or an evening where you do nothing but look at the goal.
5. Come up with practical, do-able steps to attain each mini-goal. Time limit? yeah you can, but that sometimes leads to stress and stress in a bad way. Unless achieving the goal needs to be done within a time limit. Then press on! As you go along the path of getting to the big goal, you can check off each step, each mini-goal. Do it on paper too! You’ll get a sense of accomplishment that while others may not understand, you will, and it will help you get to the next step. Often we humans need these little “tricks” to keep going.
6. When you get to the goal, celebrate. Do something for yourself, but do it in a way that it does not degrade the accomplishment. No going out and getting shit-faced. Nah… I will often take a day off to go somewhere special, a movie, a store that is a drive away (these days it has to be a BIG goal to drive more than 20 miles for me), but I also share the benefits of my goal-attainment by dropping another $25 into Kiva. Or Heifer International.

There. So, what goal are you writing down today? Post it here. Then post it on your blog. Make a little sign and stick it to your computer monitor.

Do.It.

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I was installing MAMP on my old eMac, and in the sidebar of the “stat” page was this little gem.

We’ve been having a long discussion on how we track our time, and subsequent diversions. I think it actually started as a “how do i estimate this project when I usually do flat rate, but do not know the technology behind what needs to be done, thus need to estimate hours” question to the list. It’s been a very interesting discussion into how we work. One list member has had a brain injury, and has very bad short term memory, thus she really needs help in remembering to time herself on things. Others have kids running all over the house (ahhhh the life of a mom after the kids have left!) and they have trouble timing and keeping up with things. Many solutions have been posted, and I’ll get a post together with a bunch of them. But, this little timer should be of help.

So, if you try one of these, and have a review or comments, they are welcome here. Go ahead, use a stack layout today!

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Most of our readers are one person shops, so if you can imagine yourself being all parts in this, it can be a good way to keep in your back pocket, for staying creative and when you need that extra bump to get an idea, pull it out. Try some of the ideas scaled back to one person in all roles. see if you get that needed “idea”. I’ve got no new projects to work on right now, other than my own site design, so I don’t need any ideas, just a bunch of time and a bigger brain to learn PHP.

You have a goals list, don’t you? Maybe you have 12 of them scattered throughout your office and/or your house. I’m not talking about your to do list - they’re more for one-off tasks like “get a widget to fix the shelf in the bedroom” or “tell Joe about the conference next month”.

A goals list transcends the clutter (sorry, Joe) of the day to day and speaks to where you want to be. Big stuff. Life-shaping stuff. Habit-changing stuff.

And there’s the crux of it. Say that one of my goals is to be healthier. (For those of you who like affirmations, you may say it aloud: I want to be healthier. Okay, enough of that.) And I know that one thing that would make me healthier is drinking more water. Hydration, flushing toxins, 78% of your body, all that jazz. So, I have a goal: drink more water.

Well, let me tell you how far I’ve gotten with that goal. Yeah, about that far. Comes to mind now and again. I need to, I should, etc. What’s an overtaxed, overbooked, overwhelmed person to do?

My Small Proposal: No less an authority than SIRS (something I read somewhere) tells us that it takes three weeks to change a behaviour, to start a new habit. I am going to write down four things (four == stability, structure; hey, maybe metaphysics can give me a psychic nudge) from my floating, unfulfilled, nagging goals list. I am going to make them measurable. Anyone knows that it don’t mean nothin’ if it ain’t measurable. So no usage of words like “more”, “less”, “some”. Slap a number on it. Makes it clear cut. If you’re going to go to the trouble, might as well know whether you’re in the circle or out.

So my goal is now: Drink two quarts of water a day. (Wow. Sounds intimidating. But that’s just 8 cups. I think I’ll put it that way instead: Drink 8 cups of water a day.)

You’re going to write those four things down. Don’t care if it’s on a 3 by 5 card that you tape above your computer or if you type it into your APED (annoying portable electrical device) or make it your desktop or slap it under the magnets on your refrigerator. Do something to remind yourself.

Your contract with that list is only for three weeks. It’s not for the rest of your life. Hey, maybe it’ll click or maybe it won’t work out but you can remain friends. But you’ve linked pinky fingers and sworn a good effort for three weeks. That’s all.

Are you game for this experiment? I’ve got my list. What’s on yours?