Makes sense to me. I’ve been checking my email twice a day for the past couple of weeks and it makes a huge difference in my workflow. I get quite a bit more done. Let me know how it works for you.

I really like the idea of checking email only 2x’s a day…I’d add checking stats to that list, too!

Thanks for the info on Tim’s video, also. I just read Darren’s most recent interview with Tim, and I want to read the book as well.

That’s what I figured. When you go on in the interview, I think more of Tim’s depth comes forward. And you just can’t knock someone with a great point…there is too much information coming at us to manage so we need to know when and how to unplug.

Updates? You got it.

Well said, my friend.

It is unfortunate that in that the Scoble interview begins with that example of a friend of his outsourcing everything – including mediation with his wife and story time with his kids – just to see how far he could take it. I figured it would be something people would focus on without considering that he’s really talking about:

Pushing the limits of our beliefs around what is possible.

Make sure you give us an update on your blog as you read it.

Disengaging from a lifestyle that doesn’t serve you to live your best life, and setting in motion the one that does — that’s his message, as I see it.

(and by the way, he said he’d have titled the book, “The Two-Hour Workweek”, because that’s what he works… but he figured fewer people would take it seriously.)

I will definitely keep you informed.

And thanks for trusting me enough to follow through a bit more. I think Tim Ferriss has some interesting and useful ideas to increasing the quality of life. The key is to do it.

I’ve loved Covey’s work. Used it in many ways. Thanks for adding that in. How have you seen the Covery work make the biggest impact in your life?

Karen,

That’s what it’s all about – learning to control our impulses to waste time. How have you managed this?

John,

Thanks John. It’s on the way from Amazon. Can’t wait. I’m definitely ready for a shift like this.

What’s been the biggest shift you’ve made since finding Ferriss?

Thanks for the shout out. I would HIGHLY recommend picking up this book and start living it! Check your email twice a day and plan 1 big thing to accomplish each day and work on it like your life depends on it!

Keep in mind the 80/20 rule as well as think big and pickup that BMW, Porsche, etc car of your dreams!

So tonight, continuing to trust your judgment, I spent a lot more time reading the interviews and reviews you linked to. They got to the “how-to’s” a lot faster. I can see how some of the ideas might be useful to you. Please let us know what else you try and how it works for you. I realize you do have to be very careful with your time, and I don’t want you to start feeling so burdened that you stop replying to comments!

I certainly agree with Ferriss that the opposite of happiness isn’t sadness, it’s boredom. I figured that out when I was a kid and resolved to never be stuck in a job that I didn’t like. I was more than willing to live simply if I could spend my time doing things that excited me and fed my soul. It turned out fine financially, which was frosting on the cake.

One of my favorite time-management strategies is to ask myself Alan Lakein’s famous question, “Is this the best use of my time right now?” His suggestion was if you don’t know the answer to that question you need to take time out and figure out what your values are. That’s very similar to Stephen Covey’s (The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People) approach: figure out what’s really important to you and make a four-element grid. The rows are labeled Important and Not Important, the columns, Urgent and Not Urgent. Write down your activities on the grid. Obviously we have to pay attention to the activities in Quadrant I—Urgent and Important, but we’re frittering our lives away if we don’t make sure we spend a lot of our time and energy in Quadrant II—Important but not Urgent. As he points out, “If you neglect Quadrant II prevention and opportunities, Quadrant I crises will disrupt your life. And if you plan daily instead of weekly, you will live in Quadrant I, and your ‘planning’ will only prioritize your problems.” It’s an easy and effective way of seeing what you’re doing with your life.

Great topic! Thanks.

Thanks for joining the conversation.

Really, I just have to be careful with my time. From what I had read, it seems Ferriss was just capitalizing on a provocative title. However, when I saw him in the Scoble interview, I really understood more of who he is and the message he’s bringing forth. And while I can’t agree with everything he says/does, I do think there are bits to his ideas that can benefit my life – personally and professionally.

You thoughts?

In my own life, I’ve begun to recognize a tendency toward a “jerky knee” defensive response mode when folks ask if I’ve seen/read the latest blockbuster (especially if I have a pre-set opinion or judgment about the topic of the book/movie. After a similar conversation yesterday with a neighbor(about a recently-released movie), I suddenly became aware of how I want to learn to change my typical knee-jerk reaction to more of an attitude of: “You know–this is certainly a “hot topic” that I’m glad folks are beginning to recognize and talk more about. What are YOUR thoughts now that make you recommend it and what changes would you see bringing into your own life?”

Who knows, I might even realize like you that there’s something more for me to learn .
me

I hear you. I’ve done this for a couple of days and I still feel the pull. Especially when it comes to responding to comments. Hard to turn email off.

I think Ferriss is on to something AND I feel that he’s definitely riding a wave of sensationalism a bit. I mean the title of the book…he admits to Scoble that he chose it not because he necessarily works a 4-hour week himself, but because it tested best with Google Adwords. So a combination of a solid message, the right timing and some marketing prowess is what I think has made this so popular.

Randa, do you use any of his other suggestions?

Great point. I have a feeling this is only a beginning. I ordered the book, so we’ll see.

What other productivity tips can you offer?