Get things done on the Mac and/or without Outlook

The dark side of the Mac:  personal productivity systems

As some of you may know from following my escapades on this blog, I have been a big proponent of the Getting Things Done (GTD) and Mastering Your Now (MYN) as personal productivity systems. At one point, I was pretty good - and very productive - using these systems.  A couple of years ago, however, I switched to the Mac and I lost a lot of momentum.

You see, I used to use Outlook as my "home base" for processing my inbox and managing tasks, and I relied heavily on ClearContext for managing my mail volume.  On the Mac, Entourage, OS X Mail, and Outlook don't even come close to the power of Outlook on Windows.  To make matters worse, Outlook on the Mac is not extensible so there is no way to do anything like ClearContext on the Mac.

I tried OmniFocus and a number of other tools, but never could find one that became a habit, so they all fell by the wayside (usually after a couple of days).

I found a personal productivity system I like on the Mac!

I have good news - I've found a personal productivity approach that is a) familiar, b) works well on the Mac, c) has a mobile approach that works.  This one comes from my old friend Michael Linenberger (creator of the Mastering Your Now (MYN) system - that's him in the video freeze frame).  A few weeks ago, I found out Michael had created an online offering for Master Your Now ToodleDo Video Training.  He has done a lot of work to apply his MYN system to a pretty powerful cloud-based task management service called "ToodleDo."

I bought Michael's video course (as I write this, the price is discounted - not sure how long that will last), and I have been using ToodleDo and MYN as my new home base for tasks.  I really like the system.  Not only does it work extremely well on the Mac and my iPhone, I find that I actually check in on my tasks regularly

It fits well with inbox processing, as I can send emails to ToodleDo to automatically add them as tasks on my list.  There are also some intuitive "commands" you can add to your subject line to adjust the priority, start date, and more on the task right from your email (I'm using OS X Mail).

This MYN/ToodleDo system will work with pretty much any mail system on pretty much any OS - a big plus in my book

ToodleDo customized for MYN

I'd used ToodleDo in the past, but it didn't flow well for me. Now, Michael Linenberger has collaborated with ToodleDo and has implemented a quick setup method that optimized the settings to support MYN.  That made a huge difference by reducing clutter in the UI and making it simple for me to understand and use.  There are also instructions in the course on how to configure your mobile client to work in this new way with ToodleDo (the mobile instructions are manual, but short and easy to follow).

With this setup in place, all your sorting, columns, default values, and so forth are set up as they need to be to make MYN easy with ToodleDo.

Why do I like MYN?

MYN is very similar to GTD, but I find it to be a bit more prescriptive - just enough to make it work better for me.  The philosophy with GTD is "Do what you need to do for the system to work for you" which doesn't alway work as well for a distraction-prone guy like me.  GTD also relies heavily on "Contexts" to drive what you do - do the thing that matches the place you are.  I had a tough time with contexts, and never felt effective in that aspect of GTD.

In contrast, MYN is more of a "Do it this way" kind of system, which is what I need when it comes to time management.

For example, MYN cares a lot about when you want to do things, and less about where you want to do them.  The diagram on the right illustrates what I think of as the "MYN Zones" for when you want to get things done.  The Critical Now tasks are ones that must be done today (they are the "If I don't' get these done I've gotta stay late" tasks).  The Opportunity Now tasks are ones you'd like to get done within the next 10 days.  The Over the Horizon tasks are analogous to the "Someday Maybe" list in GTD - you want to get them done someday, but if they don't get done it's not the end of the world.

Limits are good

Within these "MYN Zones" it gets even more structured - you should have no more than 5 Critical Now tasks on any given day, and no more than 20 Opportunity Now tasks.  Everything else should be in the Over the Horizon bucket, which can be as big as you want it to be.

I find this budgeting method to be a great forcing function as a safety valve against over-committing (that's a big problem I tend to have).

Summary

I'm just scratching the surface here, but my summary is this:

• After years of frustration I've found a personal productivity scheme on the Mac that I can actually use and stick with.
• I am a big fan of Michael Linenberger's Master Your Now ToodleDo Video Training.
• Using ToodleDo with the Master Your Now ToodleDo Video Training is really powerful.
• This method will work very well for those of us not using Outlook, and/or not using Windows.
• The ability to use this consistently on my desktop, from a web browser, and on my iPhone is very powerful.

Would love your feedback and war stories regarding productivity on the Mac - particularly if you're a distractible type like I am.

Run your own private cloud at home

I've been looking for an easy way to access some of my home files (music, pictures, some of my software, etc.) remotely, as well as share large files with other people.  I recently found a great, cost-effective way to do this:  The "Tonido Plug 2" personal cloud device.

The Tonido Plug 2 is a small device that you can plug into your broadband router to share data.  The data is shared from a local hard drive, which you can either attach via a USB on the Tonido Plug; or from an internal 2.5" hard drive which you can insert into the Tonido Plug 2's built-in hard drive bay.  I opted for the internal drive, as I had an extra 500Gb drive that I could use. I've been using this device for about a month, and really like it.

The device includes a straight-forward set of configuration instructions, in which you create a "Tonido ID" and establish an account which creates a front-end that enables you to access your files and configure sharing permissions & access controls.  The configuration process also handles making your device accessible outside your firewall so you can get to your data from any internet connection.

It's hard to tell how big this is from the picture in this post, but it is pretty small.  It comes with two power options: one is a cord, so you can lay it on a table or on the floor and plug it into your outlet; the second is a power plug that attaches directly to the Tonido Plug 2, so you can just plug it directly into the outlet and the device just hangs there.

Easy access to my stuff

To get to my files, I have quite a few options:

• Access my personal cloud "portal" from any web browser
• Access my files from my iPhone with a Tonido App (there are native apps for iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry or Windows 7 mobile)
• Mount my cloud drive as a folder on my computer (I use a Mac so I open it via WebDAV, on Windows there is an app to mount it as a folder)
• Stream data to DLNA devices (I don't have one yet, but it supports XBox360, Sony PS3, etc.)

There are also a number of built-in "apps" that run on the Tonido Plug 2 itself (it has its own embedded OS).  For example, there is a file sync app you can use to keep files in sync between your personal cloud and one or more computers.  To find out more about the device or the apps, check out the Tonido site.

Share stuff

I can now use my personal cloud drive to share files with other computers in my house, access files from other computers, and to share files with other people without worrying about file size limitations of email.  For example, I just shared a PDF of one of my previous blog posts and you can download it by clicking on this link.

You can set security controls around your files or folders, which will enable you to restrict who can access specific items, as well as set up passwords for greater control.  It took less than an hour of experimentation to get the hang of the interface, and I really like this piece of gear.

Oh - and I got this for $119, not including the internal hard drive.  Not bad.  If you want your own cloud service, within your own control, I think you'll love the Tonido Plug 2.

[Updated] Beeminder - put your money where your mouth is

How many times have you said you were going to do something, then seen your commitment evaporate?  I know it's happened to me.  In the past, I've written about how to overcome procrastination, how to turn to coaches and other 3rd parties to help keep you on task, etc. But what about online tools to help keep you on track?

Recently, I was contacted by the creators of an interesting productivity service called Beeminder and I was intrigued enough to give it a try. Beeminder is an innovative approach to help you commit to specific goals, and stay focused on them. What’s the secret sauce? If you don’t do what you said you’d do, it will cost you money. In other words, it creates accountability by getting you to put your money where your mouth is.

The premise is pretty simple:

• You decide on a goal and commit to it.
• You decide on a dollar amount as a "penalty" you'll pay if you don't meet your commitments.
• You agree to Beeminder's "contract" (including an "I promise not to weasel" clause) and commit to your penalty amount. Right now, looks like $5 is your only choice - I suspect that will change at some point.
• You use Beeminder to track your progress.

Beeminder tracks daily progress against your goals to help you monitor whether you are on track or not.  You can report progress via email, text message, or directly on the site.  You also receive daily email updates from Beeminder to let you know whether you're on track or not.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

In tracking progress against your goal, Beeminder has a very good visual helper that I like a lot.  They call it the "Yellow Brick Road" and it is the sweet spot of progress against your goal - here is a sample of my graph (at right).  If you want a better illustration, check out the example from the Beeminder site.

In my case, my commitment is to blog 4 times per month (I know some of you have noticed how occasional my blogging has become, and I want to change that).  I also have my own internal guidelines about what it means to "blog" 4 times a month - for example, I'm talking about original content (not reposts), and the posts need to be long enough (I don't have a hard guideline on post length - but I know it when I see it).

I've established daily milestones toward a weekly blog post, and my goal is to stay within the bounds of the yellow line (my Yellow Brick Road) or above it, which means I'm ahead of my goal.  If it falls below the yellow line, I have a short amount of time to correct it, or I pay my penalty (in this case $5) to reset my goal.

The effect is cumulative, too - the first time you miss your goal, it costs what you committed originally, but each time you fall off the path, the price goes up - very motivating. Here is the formula for increases, per the Beeminder site:

What exactly is the exponential fee schedule for subsequent derailments?

Going off your yellow brick road the first time costs nothing, the second time (if you chose to unfreeze after the first attempt) it costs $5, the third time it costs $10, then $30, $90, $270, $810, etc. In general, the cost of going off the road the ith time is:

You can chicken out at any time, of course.  Which leads me to the next point...

It's free if you stay awesome

One cool thing about Beeminder is that it will cost you nothing if you meet your commitments - you only pay when you fail to do what you said you'd do, at which point you have to pay to reset/restart your goal.  I think this approach is pretty cool - they provide a great tool to help you track your progress, and it stays free if you adhere to your plan.  Mess up, and you pay the site's owners - yep, they reap the rewards if I don't do what I committed to, which is a fascinating business model.

A lot of thought has gone into this approach, from what I can tell - there is a good overview about Beeminder on the site that goes into a lot more detail, and I suggest you read it if you're considering using Beeminder.

On Goals and tracking

You can pick just about any general goal, but I encourage you to think about what daily progress looks like, as Beeminder expects you to check in daily.  They provide a bit of guidance on this on the site, as well as some specific guidance if you want to use Beeminder to track weight loss.  More on that, plus general information about the approach and "akrasia" are detailed on the Beeminder blog, in the post "The Magical Widening Yellow Brick Road."

Update: I was having trouble figuring out how to effectively track my goal, which has a weekly "deliverable" rather than a daily cadence. I just spoke with one of the Beeminder founders and he pointed me at a great blog post on that very topic: Chunky Time! - it's a must-read if you have a "chunky" kind of goal.

Give it a try

If you need a little help overcoming procrastination, or some extra motivation to keep you focused on your goals, I recommend taking a look at Beeminder.  I think it provides an interesting, innovative, and motivating method to help you get more done.  You'll know whether I succeed or not - it will be measured in blog posts per month.

If you try Beeminder, let me know how you fare!

I have a new favorite laptop bag

My old laptop bag was beginning to fall apart, so I got The North Face Off-Site Laptop Bag the other day.  I absolutely love it.  You see, I have this "thing" about laptop bags - I'm very picky and usually dissatisfied.  I get a lot of flak from my wife for the number of bags I discard (give away, sell, etc.) because they frustrate me.

But this bag?  Awesome.  The North Face ranks as my #1 favorite bag (I'll share my #2, etc. at the end of this post, along with my favorite laptop backpacks).

Here is why I love this bag:

• This bag is extremely light, but has a ton of space (over 1800 cubic inches)
• There are "cinch straps" on the sides so you can compress it to a smaller size when it is fairly empty, or expand it when you are carrying a bunch of stuff
• Waterproof zippers keep your stuff dry in the rain
• The North Face makes extremely durable products, so this should last a long time (and it has a lifetime warranty against defects)
• There are a lot of pockets with a good range of sizes, which makes it easy to tuck away cables, power supplies, etc. for easy organization and access
• The laptop compartment is roomy for up to 17" laptops (my MacBook Pro 15" fits beautifully) - and the padding along the bottom of the bag is excellent
• There is an expandable front pocket that can expand enough to hold a bike helmet if you are into that sort of thing
• It comes in brown or black (I chose the brown) and looks casual, yet business-like
• The strap and carry handle are very comfortable

So, if you tend to carry a lot of stuff with you when you travel, I think you'll love The North Face Off-Site Laptop Bag.

The rest of the story - other strong choices:

I mentioned I had a few other favorites - here are my top choices:

Shoulder-carry laptop bags:

1. The North Face Off-Site Laptop Bag - see above.
2. Timbuk2 Commute 2.0 - This one isn't quite large enough for me, but it's a terrific bag. If you like messenger-style bags, check this one out.  Good use of space, very tough, very water-resistant, and checkpoint friendly.
3. Briggs & Riley @Work Computer Case - Spacious, versatile with lots of pockets.  A bit on the heavy side, and pricey though.
4. Tumi Alpha Large Expandable Organizer Computer Briefcase - big, lots of pockets and tough. Very expensive and the computer compartment has a very rigid reinforcement panel that can make it tough to get under some airline seats.

Laptop backpacks - note, I don't use backpacks much in business, since they look too casual for some of the meetings I attend. On vacation, backpacks are my favorite.

1. Brenthaven Trek Expandable Backpack - This is a very durable, fantastic laptop bag with great use of space. Comfortable, with nice straps.
2. Briggs & Riley @Work Computer Backpack - Great bag, lots of padding, but a bit short on pockets for me and it's pretty tight (not expandable) so it doesn't always cooperate when I overstuff it. Comfortable and durable.
3. SwissGear Carbon Backpack - Spacious, lots of pockets.  Shoulder straps are too short for someone tall like me, and it doesn't have compression straps so it feel big even when it's empty.

I've used more than my fair share of laptop bags in the last 20 years - I feel like you can't go wrong with any of the bags on this list.  Let me know what you think, if you get one of them.

One thing missing from the Mac: ClearContext

In the past, I've written a lot about Getting Things Done (GTD) and my journey with it.  One of the shining points along the way was finding ClearContext, which is an Outlook add-in for WIndows that transforms how you can use GTD with Outlook. I've written a lot about ClearContext, as well.

As you may also know, I switched to the Mac about a year ago and one of the hardest things to do without has been ClearContext.  I'm now using Outlook 2011 for Mac, but it apparently isn't quite as extensible as the Windows version of Outlook (I'm hoping Microsoft addresses this crippling limitation in future release of Outlook for the Mac).

Anyway, if you are looking for an awesome product to help you up your game with GTD, I encourage you to check out ClearContext.  Their latest release (which a few of my colleagues are using) has a lot of new functions to help automate a lot of the categorization, filing, and other kinds of mundane tasks so you can better focus on getting your work done efficiently.

If you've never looked at ClearContext, start with the intro video before, then head over to the ClearContext site for a free trial.  If you've looked at ClearContext before but not acted, give it a second look.

And Microsoft:  If you're listening, please open up Outlook on the Mac to enable fantastic products like ClearContext.

Longer battery life for your iPhone

Even though my iPhone 4's battery life is much better than my old iPhone 3Gs's battery life, I still need extra juice.  I notice it most when I'm traveling, such as when I attend a trade show or similar event.

In these situations, I am often on-the-go from early in the morning until well past midnight and tend to use my phone a lot more for social media, map searches, email, etc.  That means I often run my phone down by early evening.  Not good.

The solution? For the past couple of months, I've been using a Mophie Juice Pack Air battery pack / sleeve for my iPhone 4 and I love it (I have the black version - the red ones weren't available when I bought mine - bummer).

The Mophie Juice Pack air is a thin, light sleeve for the iPhone 4 that not only protects the phone, it has a built-in battery you can use to fully recharge your phone.

The Mophie has a switch on it that lets you decide when you want to tap into the reserve battery. I tend to wait until I'm at about 15-20% remaining battery, then flip the Mophie's switch and let it recharge my phone.  It has saved me on a number of occasions, I assure you.

The Mophie Juice Pack air includes the battery pack / sleeve itself, along with a cable you can use to charge and sync your phone to your computer (the only thing I don't like:  the Mophie uses a Micro-USB port instead of a larger, more robust port (I think all Micro-USB's are a bit too flimsy for my taste).

So, if you use your phone a lot and find yourself running out of juice during the day, you'll love the Mophie JuicePack Air (yes, it's still small enough to fit in your pocket with the Mophie on the phone).

By the way - if you have an iPhone 3Gs, you can still get a Mophie Juice Pack Air for the iPhone 3Gs - my son is using my old phone and old Mophie, and it would be very difficult to get him to part with the JuicePack Air.