What gets in the way of productivity?

[Anonymous]

Dave, thank you for your time and your tips. Yes, Chekov certainly drives the point home, and I will certainly try your reverse suggestion of all the things that won't get it done - great creative option!!

[pshammer]

I concur with Dave/Bunabayashi.

The biggest thing that gets in the way of productivity is me. My own fears, my own procrastination, my own rationalizations and my own behavior. The list that Jason posted above is, for me, merely a list of excuses for not sitting my butt down to the desk and getting to work.

Dave's list of fears also contributes. This has to be just so. That has to go through more revision. No...It just has to get done. In reality, no one is going to critique it more than me, so I may as well get it done.

One thing that I have found that has worked in overcoming this is to not shoot for A+ work. That is a recipe for procrastination. Instead, I shoot for a B and I can get it done. When I worry too much about how good it is, it never gets done.

For me the mantra "A thing worth doing is worth doing poorly" works to get things done. I also keep in mind that "the enemy of the good is the perfect."

Paul

[pshammer]

I guess I should clarify my previous post regarding doing things "poorly."

I am a perfectionist and one of the things that gets in the way of my productivity is the need to do things, well, perfectly. I recognize that I use this as a tool to procrastinate. I will put off getting something done because I cannot get it done just right. The vast majority of things don't need to be done just right, they just need to be done.

I don't really do things "poorly." I use the saying as a way to get my head out of perfectionist mode and to re-focus on the fact that how well the task is done is less important that the fact that it gets done.

Example: My garage is a mess right now because I have half constructed storage shelf units strewn about. I am stalled because I need to do a minor modification of the shelf units to attach them to the wall so they won't fall over in an earthquake. I am not particularly skilled at carpentry or cabinetmaking, but it really doesn't matter, because all I need to do is cut a board, attach it to the back of the cabinet and screw it into the wall. If I don't cut it right or it isn't quite square or I cut it too wide....I can always correct these mistakes, but not cutting the pieces at all means the project is stalled and I can't get it done.

Hope this clarifies. Sorry for the long winded response.