Stephen Kuenzli, (Kuenzli 2019)
Summary
I attribute much of my success in 2019 to the practices of:
- writing to develop my thoughts
- learning to focus
I wrote a lot in 2019 … This practice of writing resulted in a couple major changes:
- I now use writing as a primary mechanism to develop my thoughts on a subject
- Writing is now a healthy habit for my professional skills and business
Kuenzli mentions that they “really learned how to focus and extract much more value out of the time I have available”. They specifically call attention to four ways they pursued Deep Work:
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Removing social media from their daily routine
Two ‘surprising’ things happened when I reduced the Twitter app timer limit to 30 then 5 minutes:
- I didn’t miss it
- My stress level dropped and mood improved significantly
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Scheduling their work day using pen and paper
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Scheduling important work for the beginning of the day
It’s only possible to work at peak levels sustainably for 3-4 hours per day. So, I pack writing, product management, product development, and planning into the morning. The most creative and intense work of the day is usually done by the time I go to lunch.
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Wrapping up work in preparation for the next day
At 15 minutes to 5, I start getting my work to a good stopping point, check my email for urgent issues, then I say this mantra out loud to recognize myself for the day’s efforts and combat my perfectionist, always on tendencies:
“That’s good for today.”
Thoughts
I’ve added an “End the Day” event to my calendar for the last 15 minutes of the day.