Automate. Automate. Automate. I keep coming across this theme more and more frequently, and I have been working to embrace it wherever I can.

I have mentioned this in a few posts, but resting and pacing myself are both things I struggle with. So, reading McKeown’s suggestions in Effortless about establishing lower and upper bounds really spoke to me, “Never less than X, never more than Y.”

Fail Faster. I first encountered this line of thinking when I was working for a non-profit association. Our CEO introduced it to the staff and wanted us to approach all our projects with this concept in mind. At the time, my perfectionist self balked at the idea. Now,...

Have you ever found a different way to approach a problem? Damien and I are always on the lookout for new ways to find solutions. One of the methods we implemented a year or so ago was the use of lateral thinking which looks to solve problems through an indirect and...

If you have known me for a while, you probably know I am a no-nonsense, no-fluff kind of person. So, reading in Effortless about how McKeown talks about simplifying processes through the use of identifying the minimum steps required to completion, sang to my soul. No fluff...

At the end of the chapter “Start” in Effortless, McKeown says, “In recent years neuroscientists and psychologists have found that the ‘now’ we experience only lasts 2.5 seconds. This is our psychological present.” While I had some understanding of our present moment only...

I think the general thread I will follow until I’m done reading Effortless is going to be centered around time management and procrastination. One of the main takeaways I had from the reading today is about the concept McKeown introduces around microbursts. He describes it...

As I’m sure I have mentioned already, I am always on the lookout for new time management techniques to try out. A few of the ideas I have tried over the past few months have centered around lists. If you know me, then you know I like my lists—especially ones that I can...

I learned something new today, and for me, that is a win! McKeown introduces the concept of the Swedish Death Cleaning. This is a process by which you get “rid of clutter you have accumulated through your life while you are still alive. It’s an alternative to the more...

Yesterday, I wrote about some steps to combat the siren song of procrastination. Today, I’ll discuss one of those tactics in more detail—just take the first step.