Life Hacks

From Eugene Eric Kim
Revision as of 01:05, 4 March 2013 by Eekim (talk | contribs) (Moving task management to Project Management page)

Goal Tracking

Inspired by Gretchen Rubin, who was inspired by Benjamin Franklin, I've been using a Google Spreadsheet as a dashboard for tracking personal goals and resolutions. It's similar to stuff I've used for work projects, only applied to my life.

The most success I've had was with a personal goal tracking dashboard for Groupaya. Each week, I give myself a point for:

  • Playing basketball (or simply shooting around)
  • Taking a long walk (1+ hours), going for a run, or generally working out
  • Taking a play day. I include holidays here.
  • Turning off my work email before dinner on weeknights
  • Not checking my work email on Saturday or Sunday during the day

I track weekly points, yearly averages, and a rolling four-week average.

Work Big

I have a dual monitor setup: Samsung SyncMaster 204BW (20" widescreen) and a Dell 24" monitor. In 2011, I converted my desk into a standing desk using a couple of IKEA platforms. When I get tired, I switch to my laptop and sit down somewhere comfortable.

Whiteboards are expensive. I ended up buying a barely used, magnetic whiteboard, which I love.

Time Management

Spend the first hour of your workday email-free. Finish a high-priority task first thing in the morning, then check your email.

Schedule a post-work appointment to prevent post-work lingering.

I have rudimentary calendaring software -- no meeting maker or anything of the like. When I propose a meeting (both business and personal), I'll enter it in my calendar delimited by parentheses so I don't accidentally overbook.

See also Project Management.

Time Tracking

Using Hamster on Linux. Experimenting with Lumina on the Mac; would need to write some scripts to merge the information. Or, I could use SlimTimer.

RescueTime for Mac/Windows is intriguing. May be worth it, even though there's no Linux support. Should also