Ready for Anything 52 Productivity Principles for Getting Things Done

by Allen, David

• ISBN13: 9780143034544
• ISBN10: 0143034545
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-12-28
• Publisher: Penguin Books

Summary

In his bestselling first book, Getting Things Done, veteran coach and management consultant David Allen presented his breakthrough methods to increase efficiency. Now the personal productivity guru” (Fast Company) shows readers how to increase their ability to work better, not harder—every day. Based on Allen’s highly popular e-newsletter, Ready for Anythingoffers readers 52 ways to immediately clear your head for creativity, focus your attention, create structures that work, and take action to get things moving.With wit, inspiration, and know-how, Allen shows readers how to make things happen—with less effort and stress, and lots more energy, creativity, and effectiveness. Ready for Anythingis the perfect book for anyone wanting to work and live at his or her very best.

Author Biography

David Allen is president of The David Allen Company and has more than twenty years experience as a consultant and executive coach for such organizations as Microsoft, the Ford Foundation, L.L.Bean, and the World Bank. His work has been featured in Fast Company, Fortune, Atlantic Monthly, The Oprah Magazine, and many other publications.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction: Making It Easy to Take It Easy	xix
PART I: CLEAR YOUR HEAD FOR CREATIVITY
Getting the Loose Ends to Leave You Alone	1	(2)
Cleaning up creates new directions	3	(3)
Prepared for the Unknown?
You can only feel good about what you're not doing when you know what you're not doing	6	(3)
Why ``Getting Organized'' Usually Hasn't Worked
Knowing your commitments creates better choices of new ones	9	(3)
When the Center Is the Edge
Getting to where you're going requires knowing where you are	12	(3)
Forget the Future---Just Get a Grip
Infinite opportunity is utilized by finite possibility	15	(3)
The One-Minute Workflow Manager
Two commitments in your head create stress and failure	18	(3)
Getting Things Done: Reactive or Responsive?
Priorities function only at the conscious level	21	(3)
The Danger of ``Not as Important'' Projects
Closing open loops releases energy	24	(2)
The Magical Mundane
If it's on your mind, it's probably not getting done	26	(3)
The ABCs of Psychic RAM
Creativity shows up when there's space	29	(3)
Is This All There Is?
The deeper the channel, the greater the flow	32	(3)
Are You Really Ready for More?
Worry is a waste	35	(3)
Getting Thinking off Your Mind
You are not your work	38	(5)
The Big Secret About My Lists
PART II: FOCUS PRODUCTIVELY
What's the Point of a Point of View?	41	(2)
For more clarity, look from a higher place	43	(3)
The Play of the Day
You won't see how to do it until you see yourself doing it	46	(3)
Waking Up Again to Making It Up Again
Working hard enough is impossible	49	(2)
Is It Overtime All the Time?
Energy follows thought	51	(3)
What Are You Putting in Front of Your Door?
The clearer your purpose, the more ways to fulfill it	54	(3)
Are You Living in Your Living Room?
Best is much better than good	57	(3)
How to Be Invincible
A change in focus equals a change in result	60	(3)
Are You Ready for ``Ready''?
Perspective is the most valuable commodity on the planet	63	(3)
Bootstrapping Yourself into Better
You have to think about your stuff more than you think	66	(3)
Productivity Doesn't Happen by Itself
You don't have to think about your stuff as much as you're afraid you might	69	(3)
Being Complete with Your Incompletions
If you know what you're doing, efficiency is the only improvement opportunity	72	(3)
Stress Transcendence
Only one thing on your mind is ``in the zone.''	75	(3)
How Important Is Anything but the Most Important Thing?
The value of a future goal is the present change it fosters	78	(5)
To Do or to Be? Or Is That the Question?
PART III: CREATE STRUCTURES THAT WORK
It's Hard to Stay on Track Without Rails	81	(2)
Stability on one level opens creativity on another	83	(2)
Organization and Creativity: Friends or Foes?
Form and function must match for maximum productivity	85	(2)
The Visionary and the Doer---a Personal Division of Labor
Your system has to be better than your mind for your mind to let go	87	(3)
Can Your Mind Keep Its New Job?
Response ability improves viability	90	(2)
The Disorder Drug
Your system is only as good as its weakest link	92	(3)
How Is Your Wiring Firing?
The effectiveness of your system is inversely proportional to your awareness of it	95	(3)
System Success: Silent Running
Function follows form	98	(2)
Which Parts of Your Pot Need Stirring?
You can't win a game you haven't defined	100	(3)
The Scary Swampland Between Thinking and Doing
Whenever two or more are responsible for something, usually nobody is	103	(3)
The Inner Committee
Prime your principles instead of policing your policies	106	(3)
You Are at Your Best When. .
Use your mind to think about your work, instead of thinking of it	109	(2)
Is Form Formless?
You are thinking more valuably than you may think	111	(3)
Freedom and Form Fun
The necessity to plan and organize is inversely proportional to your perceived resources	114	(5)
Why the Human Race Is Taking So Long to Evolve
PART IV: RELAX AND GET IN MOTION
How to Be Where the Action Is	117	(2)
You're the only one playing your game	119	(3)
The New Fundamentals
Too controlled is out of control	122	(3)
Are You an ``Organizing Groupie''?
The better you get, the better you'd better get	125	(2)
Jump!
Trusting your action choice requires multilevel self-management	127	(3)
It's 9:45 in the Morning. What Should I Do?
Your power is proportional to your ability to relax	130	(3)
The Freedom/Productivity Equation
Surprises, expected, are no surprise	133	(3)
Productively Peering into the Pit
The longer your horizon, the smoother your moves	136	(3)
The Rhythm of Things
You speed up by slowing down	139	(2)
Should the Pot Simmer?
You don't have time to do any project	141	(3)
The Subtle Sirens of the ``Long Term''
Small things, done consistently, create major impact	144	(2)
The Critical 20 Percent
You have to do something to know something	146	(3)
Who's Really Interested in Productivity? (I Mean, Really?)
It's easier to move when you're in motion	149	(2)
Overwhelmed? Take the Helm
The biggest successes come from the most failures	151	(6)
The Year of Better Choices
PART V: REMIND YOURSELF OF THE FUNDAMENTALS
Common Sense Isn't That Common	155	(2)
The Five Phases of Workflow Mastery	157	(3)
Processing and Organizing Workflow	160	(1)
The Natural Planning Model	161	(2)
The Weekly Review	163	(2)
Afterword	165