One Year Ago on The Daily Saint: Clean-Edge Productivity

Sarah wakes up 15 minutes later than she wanted to.  The baby is crying and Tim, her older child needs to get ready for school.  Bob, Sarah's husband has already left for work and leaves a note that says, "Hon, don't forget to get a birthday gift for Clark.  Tomorrow is his big day."  More stress.  30 minutes later, with baby in tow and Tim partially ready for school, Sarah heads out the door, only to realize that the bus has already come and she must drive Tim, yet again to school.

Does this sound like anyone you know?

Look at Sarah's demands: childcare, waking up late, a husband's requests, clothing, busing, parenting.  Not an easy plate to maintain and yet a reality for so many folks.  What could she have done differently to minimize her stress?

• Get more rest. By going to bed earlier the night before, Sarah would ensure that the following morning, at the very least, would leave her feeling rested.


• Practice a morning ritual as if it was religion. Getting up at the same time eases stress and provides what Stephen Covey calls the "private victory"


• Prepare clothing the night before. By taking 5 minutes to lay out clothing, iron wrinkled clothing and hanging things where you want them to be, the morning can run that much smoother.


• Use an on-line calendar to remind you of gifting ideas and deadlines. With such free and easy tools like Google Calendar, anyone can remember a holiday or deadline before it happens.

What Sarah is experiencing is the polar opposite of what GTD practitioners call "clean edges".  What is a clean edge?  An aspect of a system which keeps things in check and allows you to function at a more productive level.

Examples of clean edge productivity:

1. A voice mailbox that is checked regularly and doesn't leave 15 messages in "in".


2. An email in-box which gets to zero regularly and is a tool/resource rather than a constant annoyance.


3. Social commitments which work for you and are reasonable.  A clean edge is not rushing from one social event to the next, barely connecting with any one on a deep human level.


4. Physical space which is uncluttered and organized.  Excess 'junk' is tossed regularly or donated to charity.


5. List systems which capture "errands", "someday maybe" and whatever else comes into your mind.  I recently added an "items to buy" list which is handy because whenever I seem to be in a store and need something, I forget what I needed, etc.

Why not practice a clean-edge philosophy starting today? Better yet, why not put it into practice?  Like Sarah, I am confident that your mornings will be less stressful as well as the rest of the day.

Photo by KatyBeck

How to Create Your Own Home Library

I've been enrolled in a Master's program for the last year and a half.  As the end is in sight, I've had plenty of opportunity to read.  And read.  And read.

You'd think that my home library would be filled with all of the books that I've read right?  Not exactly.  I've decided instead to fill my library with the things that I'll use instead of the books that I've been forced to read.  What then fills my shelves?  I've compiled a binder for each class that I've taken, each filled with my class notes, key learnings and any handouts that I've gathered.  I'll be able to look back over my degree and find the particular content that I need at any given moment.

I'm also about finished with the Pat Lencioni library of books.  While I don't have notes for all of these, the author provides a learning guide for each book.  I simply print those out, three-hole punch them and then my binder is complete.

Whether it's a graduate program, filled with texts and class notes or an author that you really enjoy, building your personal library is not that difficult.  Start small and with something that you're really interested in.  Go for it!

Photo by Maunbrowncow

From Surviving to Thriving...at Home and at Work

I enjoy listening to podcasts as a break from sports talk radio.  One of my favorites is megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, whose podcasts are upbeat and fun.  One recent episode dealt with a topic that is close to my heart- overcoming an attitude of surviving and moving towards thriving.

When so many people are negative and depressed, it can be hard to stay positive.  Maybe the economy is bad.  Maybe your job is on the line but there is still hope- I suggest that we start with some of the smallest of things.

At Home

• Declutter: choose one space per day for a week to pair back and clean out.


• Simplify: identify one area of your home life which could be streamlined.


• Prevent: stop spam mail by arriving in your in-box and into your mail box.


• Take a sabbath: commit to a weekly break where you can pray, be with family and relax.


• Make it your own: add a decorating style or landscaping signature piece to really make home feel like your own.


• Plan for your next move: carry out a home improvement project which will ready your house for resale.

At Work

• Minimize your interruptions: find ways to let people know that you're working and need some space to focus on the task at hand.


• Control your meetings: keep them simple, focused and with an end in sight- it's the only way to keep sane in a knowledge-working world.


• Watch your calendar: look back, nail down and look forward to the week(s) ahead.


• Arrive early once a week: make it a point to be the first one at work at least once a week.


• Set up 6th gear: I'll talk about this later in the week but for now, 6th gear is that time of the day when you should be getting tired but somehow find a way to squeeze one final push of work before the day is out.

Photo by St0rmz