How to think about making big changes

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Hi, I’m Tim, and I’m a recovering perfectionist.

I’m on a journey towards taking more responsibility for the changes and improvements I can make and actually making them, and letting go of the things I can’t. Lately I’ve been learning to make small changes and celebrate the small improvements.

“How do you eat an elephant?,” my grandpa always asks; “one bite at a time.”

How to think about making big changes:

  • Break big challenges down into small, manageable actions.
  • Start implementing small changes.
  • Acknowledge and accept that improved habits are more important than wholesale change.
  • Once you’ve mastered the first step in a big change, move on to the next.

Personal Areas of Improvement

With that, here are a few simple areas I’m improving right now, step at a time:

  • Kicking the multi-tasking habit - Do one thing at a time, then go on to the next thing. About a week ago I started making a concerted effort to clear the inbox at my desk. Before it was filled with trade publications, article clippings, and various bits of inspiration waiting to be acted upon. Now, one or two mornings a week, I walk away from my email and browser, review each item, and either create a to-do, add it to my calendar, file it for later, or throw it away. The GTD workflow has been a big help to me in learning how to handle this.
  • Keeping up my filing system - I’m a neat person, and by that I mean neatly stacked piles of clutter, all arranged in straight rows. I tend to leave half-finished projects on my desk, cluttering my workspace as well as my mind. A couple weeks ago I had enough, commandeered one of the office label makers, set it on top of my filing cabinet, and put a bunch of spare manilla and hanging folders in my drawer. Now I have no excuse not to file, and I make new folders as necessary when clearing my inbox. My system isn’t perfect and my folders aren’t pretty, but that can come later. What matters is I’m getting in the filing habit.
  • Writing everything down - One way or another, when an idea gets in my head, I capture it somehow. It’s not a perfect system, but I have a foundation I can improve upon. If I’m at home and an idea pops up for work, I send myself an email at my work address (and vice-versa). I use post-it notes, but only if I can’t get to a computer or my phone to send the email. I keep a journal at work and log action items as they come, and I’m starting to experiment with GTD programs like GhostAction and iGTD. Now that I’m in the habit of capturing things, I can work on refining the workflow.

Posted on 20 February '08 by Tim Courtney, under GTD.

3 Comments to “How to think about making big changes”

#1 Posted by Mike Maddaloni - The Hot Iron (20.02.08 at 11:09 )

This is a great post Tim!

mp/m

#2 Posted by Dr. Pete (26.02.08 at 11:18 )

I know exactly what you mean about the multi-tasking. I find that, while doing one thing, I’m thinking about the 10 things I’m not doing, plus checking email and social networking sites every 5 minutes. It’s a recipe for a day of intense activity that accomplishes nothing.

#3 Posted by Tim Courtney (27.02.08 at 20:21 )

Pete — I’ve been using the MeeTimer plugin for firefox recently, it categorizes web sites (work, procrastination, communication) etc and keeps a timer in the status bar and a log of activity. This has been helpful in keeping me on track. And, you can also use it to pat yourself on the back (oh look, I only spent :10 on Facebook during the work day today!). Way cool.