Planning, to-do lists and time management have always been things that have fascinated me. I’m a major seeker of all things time management related and have tried many different methods, to manage my time and my life, like the Franklin Planner (remember those big honking books), the Personal Efficiency Program (which I used with the Franklin) and finally I kicked and screamed into the 21^st Century and bought a Palm (the cheapest one of course). I’ve read the Seven Habits of Highly Effective people and several books by Julie Morgenstern on how to get it right, get organized, get my time managed and my task list done. Yet after 20 years of all this foolishness, there’s still absolute mountains of paper, the dishes and laundry continue to pile up, I still forget stuff (because it hasn’t been entered into the Blackberry), and I still don’t get everything done that is on the list.  I’ve been through all these systems and used all these tools and have found them all useful, but I’ve never been able to stick to any one system.

I think all of these systems are fine systems that work for some individuals, had they not worked, I doubt they would have been so wildly popular. The thing about any system is that in order for it to work, the person using it has to be committed to it and remain committed to it. That is something I have been unable to do.  They’ve been either too complex, too fluffy or to be frank, I just got lazy and resorted back to my old ways of doing things, which in the case of the paper piles, meant doing nothing until it was absolutely out of control and a fire hazard.

I’d like to do something new. For the past two years or so, I have worked diligently on simplification and dropping things from my radar that just weren’t important. Some of this work was done out of necessity, some was done out of the desire to really be more focused.  I believe I’m on the right track in the sense that I’ve taken the focus away from the task lists (though I still use them) and management of time, to the management of my life and how it ought to be lived. It’s not about living the best way that I know how, but really living a life that is full. Not of stuff and things to do but of joy and peace and productivity and purpose. That’s the direction I’m moving in and I’m definitely taking some lumps along the way but I’m believing that I will end up in a place that will be beneficial not only to me, but to everyone and everything that I touch along the way. What I learn of course will be shared.

What makes you productive?  Has your methodology allowed you to live in a way that’s more fulfilling to you and those around you? If so, please share your thoughts.