Monthly Archives: July 2008

Jul 30

“Mr. Moleskine, please have a seat on the couch.”

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The Moleskine evangelist in me has given up protesting. I think I’ve finally made him understand that there’s no shame being absolutely outstanding at one thing – as opposed to being pretty good at everything. Making an evangelist understand anything is a challenge, but Mr. Moleskine (yes, he has a name) is especially contrary when it comes to change.

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Jul 29

Schizophrenia for a New GTD Approach

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My most-recent GTD refresher course with David Allen’s seminar stuff (Getting Things Done Fast) has proven to be just like every other one I’ve been through: It’s resulted in me learning/discovering something new.

This time around, I picked up on something subtle that David said somewhere in Disc One. He’s talking the tools (gear) that you need in order to effectively execute GTD, and from the outset, he notes that the shape, style and high-tech/low-tech nature of your equipment isn’t important. Rather, your ability to quickly and effectively use the equipment is paramount.

As David tends to do in this seminar, he jumps into a shallow rat hole here, and lectures the attendees on the importance of typing speed. Here’s where my revelation starts.

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Jul 19

Joomla! Wish of the Week

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For those of you who have spent any time tweaking, installing, massaging, and customizing a Joomla! installation – or better yet, doing so with components – you might share my frustration here.

It’s typical for larger PHP-based CMS suites to provide a massive collection of language-specific text strings for use throughout the program. These strings are almost always included in a series of files, based on the appropriate language, with names like “english.php.”

Since these files are always available for us to edit, why not include that activity as something in the administrator GUI?

In other words: please help reduce the volume of posts in popular support forums, by cutting out questions like:

How do I change the text that comes up in the content navigation buttons at the bottom of each post?

Nine times out of ten, that verbiage is stashed in english.php – somewhere in the hierarchy. Come on superstar PHP gurus…can’t we make a something in the back end that lets you easily change every string addressed in that file?

/rant.

Update: I’ve just learned that Joomla! DID offer manipulation of the language files through the Language Manager prior to 1.5.x. It’s a bit embarrassing that I probably worked through 30 Joomla 1.0.x installations without realizing that the Language Manager did exactly what I was looking for…only to learn about it after they discontinued it. *sigh*

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Jul 13

GTD Refresher Required

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One of the things that David Allen talks about is the amount of time required to truly become a GTD Ninja. That’s not his term, it’s mine (or maybe Merlin’s), but the premise is clear: how long does it typically take to make GTD an integrated, instinctive part of your tool kit?

Well, I take heart in DA’s proclamation that it takes years to make the GTD way your way. I take heart because I’ve come to find that I’m substantially more productive when I get a dose of David every three weeks (or so).

It helps me to try and identify the weaknesses and holes in my system, and you’ve indicated that it’s helpful for you to hear about them. So here goes:

  1. I’m still struggling to truly use my Inbox for what it’s intended. For email, this is no sweat. By definition, everything that comes in over email shows up in the right spot…ready for processing. But for that non-digital input, I have established a bad habit of skipping the inbox altogether, and processing contextual locations on the fly. This is bad, as it leads to shortcuts, and doesn’t give my brain enough time to truly digest what this new input is.
  2. I don’t build lists of things that can be done with minimal brain power. Friday afternoons, after my weekly review (see item 3), I find that my brain is lacking the engagement that it usually has. Accordingly, I’m not excited to bust out my @Office list…I’d rather do something low commitment, and typically end up surfing the net. I need to start building those “sort paperclip container” lists for times like Friday afternoon.
  3. I still really suck when it comes to weekly reviews. David says it’s one of the most important parts of the process, and this is clear to me. I’ve even taken to scheduling that weekly review in my calendar for Friday afternoons…but I still continue to skimp out on it from time to time. For what it’s worth, I tend to do a lot of this reviewing during meetings wherein my participation is in in presence only (ack)…but there needs to be something formal there, undoubtedly.
  4. There’s got be a good way for me integrate financial reminders and/or bills in my system, without bogging down my calendar. I don’t have 43 folders..and maybe that’s part of it. This is just another example of a massive hole in my system, attributable to my lack of commitment to the whole process, when it comes right down to it.

So what’s the message here? I’m going to keep plowing through it. The feeling that I get when things are firing on all cylinders is unbelievable. It’s just a matter of getting those cylinders to fire as a matter of course.

Onward.

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