You know you’ve achieved perfection in design, not when you have nothing more to add, but when you have nothing more to take away. – Antoine de Saint Exupery
Category Archives: Values
Rest, rejuvenate, recommit
The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time. – Bertrand Russell One of the most popular productivity books of the past two decades is David Allen’s book Getting Things Done. And while I appreciate his approach, and use many aspects of it myself, I’m afraid that his title may lead some people astray. Ultimately,…
Happy Memorial Day
A quote for the day: I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. -Abraham Lincoln (Hand-painted plate available through the museum store at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, in Springfield, IL)
Join the National Day of Unplugging March 19 & 20
One complaint that I hear popping up more and more frequently, a habit crying out for change, is the negative intrusion of technology into our lives. I’m not talking about the miracle of GPS, which guides me directly to my destination in a strange city after dark. Or online chats that allow me to hold…
Strengthen your success with a gratitude journal
Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but also the parent of all the others. — Cicero For years I had kept a gratitude journal — a notebook in which I recorded things large and small in my business for which I felt grateful. I knew that great thinkers from all ages and traditions…
Happy Thanksgiving: a quote
A quote for the day: Giving thanks for abundance is sweeter than the abundance itself. – Rumi I wish you all a Thanksgiving filled with abundant sweetness. I am grateful for your presence in my life. Thank you.
Recipe for productivity
Like a featured recipe in a cooking magazine, productivity has many ingredients. Some are obvious (oh, there’s beef in the beef stew!) while some are subtle (who knew that excellent doughnuts actually require a whisper of nutmeg??) We can leave something out, we can make substitutions, but the dish won’t achieve the same heights without…
Good economy, bad economy
Call me a spendthrift, but I’ve noticed a disturbing tendency in these uncertain economic times, as otherwise savvy business people focus on measly economizing steps of dubious value. See whether you recognize yourself in any of these scenarios: Do you live with chaos caused by bags of un-filed paper, because your rusted, second-hand filing…
Six things fathers have taught me about the good life
In recognition of Fathers Day, I would like to share a few of the lessons that fathers have taught me about the good life. Quality: Forget perfection, strive for excellence. Craftsmanship: Never blame your tools. Mastery: Begin with baby steps, but don’t stop there. Diplomacy: The first lesson in the art of war is to…
Memorial Day: a quote
A quote for the day: True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost. — Arthur Ashe (1943-1993), American tennis champion