In addition to my previous post, here come a few more tips, taken from my back-to-basics experience using (suffering?) a vintage Compaq Presario 1200. I hope all your Xmas arrangements are going ahead at a nice pace. Enjoy!
Stylize
There is a lot of talk about clutter in the real world, but what about your icons? Is your computer desktop as clean as your table? (Er… I’ll take for granted here that your table is clean…). Both in the material and the virtual world, everything in front of you that has not a daily use, must be considered ‘visual noise’, and be removed; it is not a help but an interference.
When it comes to computer decoration, I am a defender of the skinniest position. Everything that’s a distraction must be eliminated. Plain color background, very few icons. If you want to see beautiful images, open a family album or go to an art museum. You’re not going to spend that much time in front of your desktop, anyway, or something is going really wrong. In addition, as I already mentioned, I recommend the GTD setup for desktops as proposed here (it is said to reduce stress to 20%… and maybe that’s not an exaggeration). I am a screensaver Spartan, too: blank screen, let my eyes and my screen have a rest, for God’s sake. Don’t let the machine deceive you. It is a tool. Keep it that way. Would you decorate a hammer with blue ribbons or a picture of your cousin? I guess not.
The power of key shortcuts
Maybe one of the best timesavers, but, the same as goes with business, if you want to save time, you have to invest time first. Learning keyboard shortcuts is a fuzz because you have to exert your memory (but in fact that’s a good thing), and your willpower, too; most of us are perverted by the continuous point-and-click habit. The continuous switching from keys to mouse will not let you automate tasks. Keyboard is always faster and more efficient. Try to fix training periods when you are working in projects you are not very pressed with. When a program allows it, try to hide upper menus, in order to force yourself to use shortcuts.
Of course this is not a good idea when you are on the verge of a deadline, but remember Stephen R. Covey’s third postulate: the place to be is the second quadrant, important and non-urgent things. It is worth a look.
The power of full focus
Full screen is another option that should be more accessible in all applications, something like pressing space bar or the like. Let’s go to the physical analogy again: can you imagine having your table cluttered with tools that “you might need” (visual noise)? It is better to have at sight only the element that you are working on, and the most immediate instruments. Full screen is not usually as difficult to find as other important features, but it is usually a very poor and buggy option. It is no wonder that very simple applications like writeroom or darkroom have become so successful. They give you control back so you don’t have to share your attention with minutiae.
I am also a big fan of Typewriter, a Java text editor that (you guess) mimics the behavior of a traditional typewriter. The important thing about this program is what it cannot do: you cannot go backwards, you cannot delete, you cannot paste©. You are obliged to write then, there is nowhere else to go. In fact, if you have a little programming knowledge, and you don’t want to use Java because it is too heavy, it is quite a simple thing to program: just disable left arrow and delete keys from your keyboard map, call your text editor of choice and there you go.
The regular using of a program like that has quite an effect on how you relate to your own writing. You cannot stop every two lines asking yourself “how was I?”. It’s like having someone telling you all the time “you’re in writer mode now!”. Every writing authority will tell you that it is better to isolate first draft from the other stages during the writing process. Of course you can do all the editing you want later. After some time writing with this tool, you’ll naturally reduce your delete and cut & paste compulsions, even after “doubt keys” are back.
And last but not least: mix “What” and “How” wisely
A) How: tech stuff, ways to configure your equipment, installing things, learning shortcuts. The objective is to make the system as transparent as possible to improve you performance in…
B) What: the job to be done itself, your area of expertise. Here you walk alone.
Mixing up both areas can be the death of productivity. If you are participating in the Paris-Dakar, you do not take a break to modify your seat’s bouncer. You finish the race first. The elusive nature of computers makes very easy to get distracted with this kind of things along the way…
That said, a wise combination of both aspects can also help your productivity. After a boring task, you can reward yourself with some tinkering or playing with a new application, but always: 1) fully realize that what you are entering the A arena. 2) Set a precise limit (period of time, task completed) for that “playground period”. Otherwise a break can become indefinitely longer… It is funny how even leisure requires a certain discipline.
I hope you found these tips useful. Any experience with minimalistic word processors? What’s your best recipe to stay focused?
Related posts:
Keep your brain at hand (part 1)
Productivity the Spartan way
GTD for writers
Use verbal icons for your projects
How to become optimistic with very little effort