The journey to create a productivity system that worked for me has been long. I remember trying to set up multiple different systems on various platforms and most of them would not work at all.
There was a time when I would try to create a new project and fail terribly just because I couldn’t define the next task or even a way to measure success.
After a long journey of more failures than wins, I stuck with a system called PARA, created by Thiago Forte.
The main idea about the PARA system is to separate whatever you do into 4 main categories. 1. Projects, 2. Areas of interest, 3. Resources, and 4. Archive. And the main area that helps with my productivity is into the first 2 categories.
Let me explain a bit as there are certain differences when it comes to defining the concepts. In this system, an area of interest is something that has no ending date and we want to maintain over time. For example, if you have your own startup, that would be considered an area of interest.
Then a project is more about something that has an ending date and is tied to an area of interest. If your startup, for example, wants to release a new version of their software, then the next release should be the project. Which will consist of tasks that are small steps that will help you to finish that project.
So now, whenever I identify something that I want to achieve in the short term, I usually create a project where I will add my tasks to achieve the main goal of the project.
And this has been such a life-changer, that even reading a book would become a project and I will have a reminder every day on my cellphone to take the next step to finish it.
So if you are trying to improve your productivity and other methods didn’t work. I would recommend trying out this one and see if you are achieving more things than before.
In the end, the best productivity system is the one that works for you.
Have a wonderful week,
John
Weekly realizations
It’s OK to fail while learning - For some time I was too afraid of trying. I keep reminding myself of this every day so I can get out of my comfort zone. Because getting good at something takes time.
Don’t be afraid to promote your work - This is another one that helps me a lot when I don’t feel like my work means something. I am pretty sure that there are a lot of people out there that have the skills to do something great but are too afraid of showing themselves to the world. No one knows what is gonna be the post that will make an impact in your life.
Highlight of the week
Some time ago I was invite to a podcast called “Sin Direccion” by my friend Mike. We had a cool talk about many different topics and I believe it is one of the most personal podcast I’ve done to the date. You can listen to it here: