The Amazing Comeback of Paper Notebooks

Why should you have to choose between digital and paper tools for getting things done?  

David Allen, founder of GTD, has long praised the value of a portable paper notebook that he uses to capture random thoughts during the day.

Still, I see lots of people struggling to find the right balance between paper and digital. They feel pressure to use their iPhone for everything.  Or, they've never really thought about how they like to work and just default to what they see other people doing.  They typically fall into one of three categories:

• Random paper on the desk (i.e. post-it notes)
• Multiple notebooks with lists and thoughts inside
• Everything on their phones

Here's the good news- there's a better way!  Even better, there's a better way that can be custom-tailored to your particular style of working.

In the next episode of the Emergent Leader Podcast, I'll be talking about a simple formula that I use for combining paper and digital productivity tools.  

In the meantime, here's what I use every single day:

• Smartphone (for calendar, email, social media, todo app)
• MacBook Air (for blitz emailling, calendar, writing, creative work)
• Pocket capture notebook (with notecards for small thoughts and reminders in the day)
• Black notebook (what I take to all meetings, where I form my daily plan)

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See the last item?  Yup- a single notebook with old-fashioned paper in it.  Turns out, paper is making a big comeback, especially for people who appreciate aesthetics and for those that see the value of writing things down.

Just check out these recent articles about notebooks and their raging popularity:

• In A Digital Chapter, Paper Notebooks Are As Relevant As Ever

• Mike Vardy: How I Use Notebooks

• How to GTD a Moleskine Notebook

You don't have to go solely digital or solely analog.  The most productive people I know actually use both.

Why Playfulness is Important for Your Career

If you walk through the Google Headquarters, you’ll find brightly colored bikes to help employees get around campus faster. Keep walking and each of the Android statues greets you, from the huge Donut to the enormous Ice Cream Sandwich.  It's weird...and cool.

Not that all tech offices are like this but a thread of playfulness runs through Google’s top spots and at those of...

Lego (you know...)

Zynga (video games)

Moo (business cards)

Dropbox (online storage)

Skype (online phone calls)

LivePerson (marketing)

How about your current workplace?  Is it playful?  Is every wall off white?  Does everyone dress like they are the most boring people on Planet Earth?  You can check out some of the most fun workplaces here.

I’m feeling very guilty about this because my work is pretty vanilla.  In a traditional field like education, bold colors and indoor slides are well, unheard of.  If I’m honest, I need to do a better job of promoting “play” and being a more playful person.  Still, it's not exactly clear how I should do this.

The quality of "play" is important for a number of reasons:

1. People tend to be drawn to organizations that are fun and playful.
2. Play makes you less boring as you get older.
3. Play gives you a wonderful set of interests that will come in handy for your next interview.

Let’s take these apart, one by one:

• Job seekers want to get paid for doing meaningful work.  But, and this is at least true for younger workers, they also want to be a part of something cool, something fun.  Companies like Google know this.
• Most of us wear khakis and drive Camrys and Accords as we get older (at least speaking for the guys reading this).  Playfulness says “hold up” to this trend.  When I see an old guy driving a Harley, I smile and realize that he’s on to something (and I need to save more cash for that bike!)
• Playful hobbies are really important for your next interview.  At some point, they will either ask you or you’ll bring it up.  The bottom line inquiry is this, “What’s the rest of your life like outside of work?”  As a hirer, I always ask this and find the responses typically dull.  

Take inventory this week- how playful are you?  What can you do that’s fun and makes you smile?

Why I Built a Standing Desk

Seems like everywhere you look, someone’s talking about why jobs that require sitting are dangerous to your health:

• "Sitting is the New Smoking"
• "'Get Up!' or Lose Hours of Your Life Every Day, Scientist Says"
• "Here's Just How Bad Sitting Around Is For You"

or my favorite of the bunch,

“Sitting is Killing You"

Now that’s blunt!  A couple of things if you take the time to read even one of the above articles:

1. Sitting for most of your day is bad for you.
2. There might be other ways to work besides sitting at a desk.

Ok, so sitting is bad.  I began to inventory my average workday and it looked like this:

Am commute = sitting

During the day = sitting except when I’m walking the building

Driving to appointments = sitting

Pm commute = sitting

Ok so things were not looking so good.  Did I mention that I’m a doctoral candidate working feverishly to finish his dissertation?  This, naturally, requires a lot of keyboard work (read: sitting). 

At about this same time, I realized that I was feeling tired, really tired, a lot of the time.  I wondered if all of the sitting I was doing was part of the problem.

I figured I would bypass this life-threatening situation once and for all.  

Enter the standing desk.

Sure, famous people use them.  Even this guy who built a darn ugly standing desk for himself.

Plan A included some research.  My reading online led me to realize one thing: standing desks are expensive! 

Plan B had to be conceived so I found two bookshelves in my garage.  I cleaned them of their spider webs (and eggs) and swore the kids to keep that between me and them.  Mom did not need to know how bad the shelves were.

Some primer and paint and the shelves were ready to go.  The shelves would serve as the “legs” of the desk.

I then removed an old desktop from my home office and attached it to the shelves.  Looking good.

Finally, I had to figure out how to raise the contraption so that I was not looking down at my work.  Just because your desk is tall doesn’t mean that it will help your health.  

A coworker suggested casters and another (like my 4th or something) trip to the Orange Holy Land known as Home Depot produced four locking wheels.  These casters raised the desk and also made it mobile.

Here’s the finished product:

What It's Been Like to use it

What I’ve found in the past month of using the desk is really surprising: I love it!  It’s great being able to move, stretch and fidget while I work.  It does take some getting used to but overall I’m really pleased.  

My next project will be to install one in my office at work.

Have you tried a standing desk?  How much of your day is spent sitting down?

The Moment My Leadership Changed for the Better

I have a confession to make.

It’s based on a test I took four years ago called the DISC profile.  DISC is a measurement of behavior and is incredibly accurate except that mine had to be wrong.

The DISC analysis came back, telling me that I was a different kind of leader than I wanted to be.  

It had to be wrong, or so I thought...

DISC said that I was categorized as a “High C”, meaning that I was task-oriented, loved data and was highly analytical.  The only problem was that most leaders that I knew were “High D” or “High I”.  D’s typically are strong, loud and bold. I’s are BS’ers, play golf all day and schmooze.  

Some famous High C's are: Albert Einstein, Mr. Spock and Al Gore.  I'm not sure I'd sign up for a long road trip with that group.  

Our culture, if we’re honest, often promotes the loud, highly extroverted and “visionary” leaders.  

That’s ok… if you’re one of them.  But what if you’re not?  What if, like me, your leadership style is more subtle, more architect than Donald Trump? 

Remember Good to Great by Jim Collins?  The directive was clear: the best leaders, according to research, are often consistent, meat and potatoes influencers.  

• They love people and data. (You can love both!)
• They work long hours and still enjoy work-life balance.
• They have a life outside of work.
• They love what they do.

That’s me, I thought as I re-read Collins’ book years afterwards.  It then clicked: my own leadership had been sabotaged by a false (and narrow) image of what a leader is supposed to look like.  

It was time to define leadership for myself, and that’s partly what this blog is for.  When Cary and the kids see me today, they know me first as a Christian and second as husband and dad.  As for my colleagues, they hopefully see me as a servant leader and that’s the kind of leader that inspires me.

To the servant leaders who tried to point me towards humble stewardship, thanks.  Here’s to you Fr. Dennis Berry, Wally Crum and Jeanne Gradone- you are servant leaders who have polished the rough edges of my leadership vibe. Still a long way to go, of course, but on my way.

If you are a rising leader, here’s the invitation: be clear about who you are and what kind of a leader you want to be.  You do not need to be someone else, period. 

It’s simple.  Leadership doesn’t have to be complicated nor do you have to replicate someone else’s style.

11 Signs of Unproductivity

You work with them. You live with them. You’re related to them. They are your neighbors and best friends.

They’re awesome! And, they might not be as productive as they could be.

Here are some simple signs:

1. Clutter. Their homes and desks are filled with “stuff” (that’s a nice word for crap)
2. Disorganization. They lose things and always seem to be looking for something that they don’t remember where they left it.
3. Lack of margin. Running to the next meeting, event, etc. Not enough time or money to go around.
4. Missed deadlines. Another late birthday gift. Another meeting missed.
5. Lateness. Late to church, late to doctor’s appointments, etc.
6. Excuses. There’s always a reason for any of the above and to an unproductive person, the reason makes perfect sense.
7. Lack of concern when things go wrong. If you make excuses for things, they aren’t really your fault. When things go foul, an unproductive person doesn’t really mind.
8. Lack of physical enthusiasm. Lethargy, overweight, slow moving… all of these are signs of a person who isn’t going 100%.
9. Lack of emotional enthusiasm. They aren’t peppy or energetic.
10. Overflowing email inbox. If your emails fill more than a screenful, you have too many.
11. Lack of time to invest in others. If you suffer from #3, you just don’t have much time to put into relationships and friendships.

If we are honest with ourselves, each one of us has dipped our toe into the pool of at least a few of these signs. Myself included.

The key is this: when you see a sign in yourself, make a commitment to get better, to be more present to those around you and to make the next hour better than the last.

The Things We Get To Do

I attended a Board meeting last night and the night before that a dinner dance for my daughter.  At some point during both days, I probably said something like, “I have to go to this event”.

Now that both evenings have passed and went extremely well, a shift is what I really need to make in my vocabulary.

I got to dance with my daughter and my wife.  I got to serve at the pleasure of a Board that supports me.  So much of my life is a privilege and blessing.

The list gets longer and today might be a day when you craft a similar inventory of “everyday blessings”:

-I get to wake up each morning and kiss my family goodbye as I head off to work

-I get to travel along nice country roads each morning

-I get to listen to podcasts each day and learn from experts 

-I get to work with amazing people who serve amazing kids

-I get to do work that matters and makes a difference

-I get to blog and podcast and connect with others around the world

-I get to worship each week in a Church full of relatively nice people

And the list goes on.  See what your list produces and if you’re like me, you’ll want to shift from “have to” to “get to”.

Instead of "have to", shift to "get to" in your vocabulary.