Productivity
- Q&A: The Morality of Working Less: 12 Jan 2014, Question 2
-
Question: Is it moral to live on passive income or just work a "four hour work week"? Would that be compatible with the idea that a person's productive work should be his central purpose? If a person is so productive that he is able to enjoy a great life by only working a few hours per week, would it be wrong for that person to spend the rest of his time on travel, relationships, hobbies, self-improvement, education, and other non-productive interests?
Tags: Business, Capitalism, Career, Ethics, Productiveness, Productivity
- Q&A: Progress on Long-Term Goals: 29 Dec 2013, Question 1
-
Question: How can I make better progress on my long-term goals? I have the curious affliction of stagnating, often for very long periods of time, on long term goals. That happens even when those goals pertain to pursuits I enjoy. This pattern has me confused and somewhat alarmed, because I know that these long term goals I have set for myself will be the most meaningful for me to accomplish. Although I see the great value in skill-building for a new career, learning to play the piano, learning a new language, and so on, I cannot seem to get myself to take the daily, repeated action required for more than a week or two. That happens, despite my applying GTD and breaking down the larger task into manageable pieces. My neophile personality simply takes interest in something else, and I miss a day (then two, then three) of taking action, preventing me from ever establishing an activity as a habit. How can I break this cycle of mediocrity, so that I can really start making progress on long term goals?
Tags: Concentration, Goals, Life, Mental Inertia, Productivity, Purpose, Self-Improvement, Skills
- Interview: Jonathan Hoenig on The Workings of Financial Markets: 24 Jul 2013
-
Summary: Financial markets are often vilified – and misunderstood. How do financial markets work? What impact do they have on the economy? Are they dangerous – or beneficial? What is the government's current versus proper role in financial markets?
Tags: Economics, Economy, Finance, Law, Politics, Productivity, Rights, Trade
- Q&A: Declining to Socialize at Work: 10 Feb 2013, Question 3
-
Question: How can I politely tell my co-workers that I'm not interested in socializing? I have always struggled with the pressure to form friendships at work. Personally, I don't want to hang out with my coworkers after work. I don't want to chit chat during work. I won't want to celebrate birthdays or other personal events. This is always interpreted as me being snobbish, aloof, and worst of all "not a team player." It's so annoying. I just want to do a good job and then leave, not join a social club. How can I communicate that without being offensive?
Tags: Communication, Friendship, Personality, Productivity, Psychological Visibility, Psychology, Relationships, Work
- Q&A: Yelling at Employees: 3 Feb 2013, Question 3
-
Question: Is yelling at and shaming an employee ever justifiable? Imagine that a product at work must be shipped by a certain deadline – and if it's late, the company will suffer a major loss. All the workers involved know that, yet as the deadline approaches, one worker works slowly, seemingly without concern for the deadline. When reminded, he acknowledges the deadline, yet his work continues to be as slow as ever. In such cases, might yelling at that worker – even shaming him in front of co-workers – be just what he needs to motivate him to get the project done? If not, what else should be done?
Tags: Ethics, Personality, Productivity, Psychology, Work
- Q&A: Cleaning the House for Guests: 4 Nov 2012, Question 4
-
Question: Is is second-handed to work hard to clean and repair your house before company arrives? I'm constantly fighting a battle to get my house looking reasonable. Then, right before company arrives from out-of-town, I make an extra big push to get it as clean and tidy as possible. I'd like it to always be that way, but I'll work a lot harder when I know that someone else will be in the space. So is it second-handed to want to present a better home than I normally maintain? Or is putting in that effort that a matter of respecting and providing for people that I value?
Tags: Benevolence, Honesty, Independence, Introspection, Personal Values, Pride, Productivity, Relationships, Relationships
- Q&A: Productiveness Versus Recreation: 23 Sep 2012, Question 4
-
Question: Is time for recreation compatible with the virtue of productiveness? If productive work is the means by which I achieve my values, how can one justify spending even one minute doing something that doesn't propel me toward some value? I am specifically referring to leisure activities like going to the movies, playing video games, and following sports. I'm not referring to activities that have obvious benefits like sleep, exercise, or cooking healthy food. What about hobbies that are enriching, but ultimately have no productive purpose like dance or guitar lessons (assuming I don't want to perform in either context as a career)? Is pursuing such hobbies wrong?
Tags: Career, Ethics, Productiveness, Productivity, Values, Work
- Interview: Andrew Miner on Getting Things Done: 15 Aug 2012
-
Summary: Getting Things Done (or GTD) is an organizational system developed by David Allen during his 20-plus years of consulting with business professionals and executives. Its primary virtue is its sound epistemological approach and its concrete advice on how to apply that approach to daily activities. The end result of using it is that you are able to handle many more projects simultaneously with little or no stress.
Tags: GTD, Productivity, Purpose, Work
- Chat: Getting More Done: 25 Apr 2012
-
Summary: Do you want to accomplish more? Do you find yourself spinning your wheels or procrastinating on your projects?
Tags: Career, GTD, Motivation, Productiveness, Productivity, Purpose, Self-Control, Willpower, Work
- Q&A: The Problem of Too Many Commitments: 25 Mar 2012, Question 2
-
Question: How can I manage my projects better? Too often, I'm overwhelmed by the sheer volume of projects on my agenda. Because I'm overcommitted, I'll miss important deadlines or allow some projects to be delayed into oblivion. Other times, my work is rushed and sloppy. Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed that I become paralyzed, and then I don't get any work done. What can I do to manage my various work and home projects better, so that I keep making progress on what really matters to me?
Tags: Career, Ethics, Honesty, Integrity, Introspection, Productiveness, Productivity, Purpose, Work
- Q&A: Tenacity in Pursuit of Goals: 8 Jan 2012, Question 1
-
Question: How can I become more tenacious in pursuit of my goals? I find that I give up too easily on some of my goals, particularly when success is far away and much effort is required now. What can I do to make myself more tenacious?
Tags: Aristotle, Character, Ethics, Objectivism, Productivity, Psycho-Epistemology, Psychology, Tenacity, Virtue
- Q&A: Concentration: 13 Mar 2011, Question 1
-
Question: What's the best way to mentally focus on one activity when I can't stop thinking about another? Sometimes I get overly focused on or worried about a problem I'm having at work, and then I have difficulty focusing in class. Similarly, sometimes I'll think about an issue I'm having with a close friend, and I know I should focus my energy elsewhere, but it's difficult to do so. I know that I should give my full attention to class during the actual class period, but it's difficult to stop thinking about the other issue I have. What kind of method can I used to stop worrying about work, and focus on class instead? What's a good way to switch my focus from one thing to another over the course of a day?
Tags: Concentration, Epistemology, Habits, Introspection, Productivity
- Q&A: The Problem of Procrastination: 5 Dec 2010, Question 3
-
Question: How can I procrastinate less? Often, I avoid doing unpleasant tasks for days or weeks, and I feel terrible about those delays. How can I motivate myself to just get those dreaded chores out of the way?
Tags: Emotions, Procrastination, Productivity, Psycho-Epistemology, Psychology
- Q&A: Productivity Versus Productiveness: 28 Nov 2010, Question 1
-
Question: What is the difference (if any) between 'productiveness' and 'productivity'? People often seem to use the terms interchangeably, but are they the same?
Tags: Career, Ethics, Productiveness, Productivity
- Q&A: Completing Creative Work: 21 Nov 2010, Question 2
-
Question: A piece of creative work can be polished forever yet still be far from perfect. Besides, there comes a point where it needs to be brought to completion and made available to its recipients, if there are any, to use and enjoy. How does one make the judgment call as to when that point is reached? I hope to go beyond the ranking of values ("How important is this to me, and have I devoted enough time and effort to it already?") and discuss considerations such as: telling whether I'm still adding to the value of the piece, maintaining a clear view of which details are important, keeping the scope of the piece within reasonable bounds without oversimplifying it, and not letting my feelings about the piece interfere with my judgment of its quality.
Tags: Perfectionism, Productivity, Work