Explore / Exploit

Quick question: when it is time to select a spot for a special dinner would you rather return to an old favorite restaurant or take a chance on a new place that no one has been to before?  This choice is an example of a classic decision making challenge known as the Explore / Exploit trade off.

algorithmsIn order to discover new and exciting things in life, we have to be willing to explore options.  This will naturally result in some failures, but the treasures out there waiting to be discovered can be worth the effort.  However, once we have found a great resource it is tempting to keeping going back to the well to get as much of it as possible.  In the book, Algorithms to Live By, the authors sum up the trade off in this way: “Exploration is gathering information, and exploitation is using the information you have to get a known good result.”

In general, the research shows that at the beginning of a given time frame it is much better to focus energy on exploring.  After the halfway point it makes more sense to exploit the good stuff you have found.  I recently used this logic with my daughter on a trip to the Legoland theme park.  I encouraged her to try out as many new rides as possible on the first day of our visit, and then use the second day to go back to the rides she enjoyed the most and do them as often as she could.  It made for a very enjoyable experience as she braved new exciting roller coaster experiences, but still had time for her old calmer favorites.

So don’t be shy, go out and explore!  However, plan to enjoy the fruits of that exploration by saving time to exploit your favorites.

What Does It Mean To Be Organized

Many people gravitate to a system like Getting Things Done to help develop basic organizational skills.  This is true for me.  Years ago I recognized that my messy desk and inbox was a detriment to my productivity.  I badly needed a system to get myself organized so I could handle more workflow and meet my deadlines.

In a recent blog post on GTD Times, Marian Bateman, Certified GTD Coach, explores what it really means to be organized:

cleandesk“What does it mean to be organized? It used to be the definition was clean and neat. You know the offices–you walk in the door and it looks likes no one works there. The desk has nothing on it, except for a cool object and a photo. Is this what being organized really means?

My answer is we need to update our definition of what the term organized means.”

Read the rest of the blog entry at: http://gettingthingsdone.com/2017/02/what-does-it-mean-to-be-organized/

Everyone is Above Average

Quick question: on a scale of one (low) to five (high) how would you rank your own driving ability relative to the other drivers in your area?  If you are like most people, you probably rank yourself as a very good driver, definitely better than most people on the road.  When scientists researched this question, one study found that 74% of all drivers thought they were above average.  One possible reason for this statistically impossible result is the Illusory Superiority fallacy, also known as the Lake Wobegon Effect.

lakewobegondaysIllusory Superiority is a cognitive bias whereby individuals overestimate their own qualities and abilities relative to others.  It is sometimes called the Lake Wobegon Effect after Garrison Keller’s fictional home town in Minnesota where “all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average.”  The trap with this fallacy is that it prevents people from seriously examining their own skills and thus overlooking opportunities for growth. From a personal development standpoint, the Illusory Superiority fallacy can be a barrier to self-improvement on many fronts.

Avoiding this fallacy is tricky, but not impossible.  One path forward is to find measurable benchmarks that personal performance can be judged against, such as national or local averages.  Another approach is to seek non-bias feedback from peers, for example in the form of a 360 review.  Either way, developing a critical eye regarding your own performance opens up avenues for personal improvement that may not have been recognized before.

Now excuse me while I listen to old episodes of A Prairie Home Companion

Think like a Computer Scientist

Have you ever experienced a time when you had trouble making a choice and found yourself continually looking at alternatives?  How easy is it for you to decide when to try a new restaurant or return to an old favorite?  What is the best way to make good choices when anticipating for an uncertain future?

These are all types of challenges that computer scientists face when designing computer memory, systems, and networks.  In their new book, Algorithms to Live By: the Computer Science of Human Decisions,  authors Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths explore fascinating ways that discoveries in computer science can help improve our own decision making on a wide range of problems.  Some of the topics they explore include:

  • algorithmsOptimal stopping : when to stop looking
  • Explore/exploit : the latest vs. the greatest
  • Sorting : making order
  • Bayes’s Rule : predicting the future
  • Overfitting : when to think less
  • Randomness : when to leave it to chance
  • Networking : how we connect

Algorithms to Live By is “A fascinating exploration of how insights from computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday lives, helping to solve common decision making problems and illuminate the workings of the human mind.” (from the dust jacket)

Why Things Don’t Get Done

Have you ever noticed that somethings things don’t get done?  I know, this is a “Duh” insight.  The amount of things that don’t get done can seem larger than what actually gets done.  When you look closely, there is often a simple reason why some things that should get done don’t get done.  David Allen addresses this topic in a recent blog entry:

davidallen“I have noticed a tendency for people to spend a lot of time in high-energy meetings and discussions, and a high resistance at the end of those meetings and discussions to clarify—“Do I have the next action on this, or do you?” or “Whose is this now, to make happen?”

“This lack of declaring an owner for the action, outcome, or area of focus is why at home many couples and families have huge stacks of papers and “stuff” on the counter between the kitchen and the dining room, by the phone, and in the front hall, and why a lot of personal projects are “stuck.” No in-trays. No immediate physical, visible distinction as to who actually has the next action or decision about this bill, this brochure, this note from the teacher. Everybody sort of feels responsible for it, but no one really owns it. So it doesn’t happen.”

Read the rest of this blog entry at the Getting Things Done web site.

11% of Email

Email has an excitement around it because of its immediacy.  It comes in fast and can be responded to quickly.  Pop-up notifications, bells, and vibrating cell phones beckon one to view their incoming messages like a Pavlovian Dog, making it feel like every email must be answered as soon as it arrives.  But if you stop to think about it, how much of your email do you really need to see as soon as it shows up?

danarielyDan Ariely, a researcher in behavioral economics and author of books including The Upside of Irrationality and The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, wanted to find out how much email is really so important that it needs immediate attention.  The findings reported on his blog came to a strong conclusion.  Participants in his study indicated that out of all the email that arrived in their inbox, only 11% of it warranted immediate attention.  Basically, just 1 in 10 messages that arrived in participant’s inboxes were worthy of quick action.  The rest could wait for hours or days and 24% could be trashed immediately.

Take this finding as an excuse to relax around email.  If you haven’t done so already, turn off all notifications of new messages that only serve to break your concentration.  The takeaway here is not to worry if you haven’t checked email in a while.  The truth is most email can wait.

Inbox Zero

inbox-zeroEmail provides for many people their most difficult productivity challenge.  The sheer volume of messages can overwhelm an inefficient processing system very quickly.  While some people may be tempted to declare email bankruptcy and delete all their messages, there are better ways to process all that incoming electronic data.  One approach that is based in part on GTD methodology is Inbox Zero, developed by Michael Mann and found on his web site 43 Folders.  The site hasn’t been updated in a while, but the information is still useful.  From the web site:

“43 Folders is focused on an arc about how to improve the quality of your career and life by managing your attention in a way that allows you to work your ass off on the creative projects that matter most to you.”

His web site is most famous for the Inbox Zero posts.  The component of Inbox Zero that is most powerful for me is the idea to reduce the number of email reference folders down to one or a very few and then relying on your email app’s power searching tools to search for archived material.  This saves time on the front end while sorting email and on the back end when retrieving it. Take up the 43 Folders Inbox Zero challenge by reading all the posts on this topic, compiled on one page.  See if it makes a difference to your electronic world.

The Undoing Project

undoing-projectHave you ever wondered how you make a decision?  Most people believe that in any given situation they make rational, common sense choices that will maximize their success and happiness.  In truth, our minds work in mysterious ways that often lead people to make decisions that run counter to their best interests.  The major work on this subject was done in the 70’s and 80’s by a pair of Israeli researchers who revolutionized the field.  Their names were Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky.

In his latest book, Micheal Lewis, author of The Blind Side and The Big Short, looks at the fascinating life and work of these two researchers in his new book, The Undoing Project.  It provides a fun introduction to some of Kahneman and Tversky’s greatest discoveries, including anchoring, base rate fallacy, framing, and prospect theory.  The book is an enjoyable character study of the unique partnership between these two researchers whose work has impacted fields far from academia, including medicine and sports.

After reading the book, you may become skeptical about the quality of your decisions, but at the same time you will learn ways to double check your thought process so that you can make a better decisions.

The Best Time for a Weekly Review

Moving into a 2017 is a good time to tidy up the old and prepare for the new.  One way to do this is through a commitment to the weekly review.  David Allen shares in a recent blog post the best time to do a weekly review:

davidallenThe strength of GTD awareness and ability is knowing that the best time to do a GTD Weekly Review is when you least feel like doing it. The strange force that seems to make these simple but powerful habits so challenging is that we think we need to have the result of the behavior, before we can engage in the behavior.

We feel we need to be in control before we can plan, we need to be organized before we can get organized, and we need to know what’s going on before we can sit down to figure out what’s going on. Strange, aren’t we?

So make one of your new year’s resolutions a commitment to the weekly review.  You will soon wonder how you ever lived without it.  Experience a guided weekly review from a GTD Coach at: http://gettingthingsdone.com/2015/07/podcast-07-guided-gtd-weekly-review/

Read more of David Allen’s GTD Times blog at: http://gettingthingsdone.com/gtd-times/