There is art in doing as much as possible, as easily as possible and that’s what I call being productive lazy. It’s a balance between maximising productivity with as little effort as possible and applies particularly to repetitive tasks where I want them done quickly and without having to think too much. There is too much going on in my world to allow thinking where I don’t need to.
To understand what this means look at Some examples of productive laziness to begin. Whilst they are practical, it’s the mindset they embody that is most important. Productive Laziness shows up in how I manage my mood, time, systems and working with others.
Mindset and mood
- My Mood predisposes action and thinking.
- My Thought horizon is how far and wide I see.
- Expanding my comfort zone lets me do more.
Time and attention
- The 2-Minute Rule creates thinking space.
- Time Management is an important consideration of Productive Laziness, but it is not everything.
- It’s OK to slow down to be more productive.
- Be careful of The optimisation-procrastination trap.
- Interrupting the flow of work has a tax
Systems and practice
- Debugging is a life skill.
- Personal knowledge management is key to information velocity.
Working with others
- Never stop Listening.
- Treat people as a Legitimate other; they have their own life pressures.
- Use The Promise Cycle for effectively Making and managing commitments.