Black Belt Productivity

Today it seems to be all the rage to be connected.

For some, it almost seems to be a key to one's self worth. Do you ever feel that any time you are unplugged from Twitter, Facebook, instant messaging and the like...that some small part of you has died inside?

Now I have no problem with any of these communication tools. I use them myself. There are times when being connected is priceless. Ever really needed some piece of info and been able to find someone in the Twitterverse that has just the answer you need?

But then there are those times when we really need to get something done...we really need to be productive. At times like these, I would say it is difficult to truly focus, unless we simplify. Now simplification, from my paradigm, is less about changing who we are...and more about cutting out some of the noise in our lives. Let's face it, when we really need to get something done, social networking is...noise.

That is why I am working these days to start to treat it like I do my email and phone.

For example, this past week, I had a day when I really needed to focus and get something done. It had a deadline, and was large enough of a project that I needed to really focus some uninterrupted time on the effort. So I did several things that I do not normally do, but I do plan to do more often, now that I have actually tried it.

Twitter and Facebook did not even get opened that day, I did have Google Wave open, but of late, I have only been talking to two guys there, and they both knew I was working with focus that day, and were relatively quiet. I also made sure that my email was not visible, and only checked it occasionally when I needed a break.

I also did something I have never done at the office. I cannot turn off the ringer on my phone, and we do not have caller ID. The technology is there, but there are those who are afraid with that technology we will screen our calls, as if that were an aggregious sin. Truth is...sometimes you need to (and don't feel bad if you do).  In any event, I unplugged the phone.

I also had my IM on...but in “Do Not Disturb” mode. This allows people to send messages to you, but it will not interrupt you with a notification. So I can check it when I am ready to. So the only real interruption that was open that day was a walk up (I work in an 8 X 8 cell...otherwise known as a cubicle).

I got what I needed to do done quicker than I anticipated.

Sometimes you need to take measures to make yourself unreachable to get things done. Do not be afraid or anxious about cutting off lines of communication. Anyone who wants your attenion will be there when you finish. If they are not...they most likely didn't really need you to begin with.

- Jason

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Welcome to the November 2009 edition of the Carnival of Pen, Pencil and Paper. Many thanks to Nifty at Notebook Stories for creating this Carnival as well as allowing us to host this month. Black Belt Productivity is a productivity blog, but both Michael and Jason are avid fountain pen users as well as paper fanatics! We are the first non-pen/paper blog to host the Carnival, and we are very honored to do so. Please enjoy the November edition of the Carnival of Pen, Pencil and Paper.

Editor's Choice

Our first Editor's Choice is for a brand new forum for pen, paper, ink and pencil fanatics. It is called StyloForum and is the brainchild of Bradley Haase at Miscellany and Cacophony. The site went live at the beginning of October and has grown to 48 members very quickly. There is a lot of great discussion there, so come by, sign up and join in the fun.

Stephanie at Rhodia Drive interviews the JetPens crew in a great behind the scenes look at the company that gets most of our money. They talk about how and why they started JetPens and why they chose to carry Rhodia Pads. It is a fascinating read for anyone who has purchased from them in the past.

Our next Editor Choice is for the twitter enabled among you. If you are using a client that can track searches (TweetDeck, Tweetie, Brizzly are the three twitter clients that Michael uses) then you really should follow the searches for #dailyarsenal. DIYSara is the first person that I saw use it regularly. It is the pens, paper, etc that you are carrying with you or plan on using that day. It is a great way to find new products that you might be interested in getting for yourself. To participate, just tweet what you are carrying/using and add the #dailyarsenal hashtag at the end of it.

New Product News 

Cynthia unveils the first look at the Leuchtturms Master Book 18-Month Weekly Planner at Journaling Arts. A new player to the US market in Leuchtturms, and could definitely give Moleskine, Rhodia and Quo Vadis a run for their money.

Notebook Reviews

Michael presents Clairefontaine Notebook posted at Take Notes On This. A good comprehensive review of one of the stalwarts of the Clairefontaine line. "I love its simplicity and elegance, while still maintaining a sense of austerity. The colors are very soothing, and the wonderful covers and smooth paper make writing in this journal a pleasing experience."

Brad presents Quo Vadis Equology Textagenda Planner posted at Miscellany and Cacophony. Brad puts the new recycled Equology planner through its paces and comes out loving it. "All in all, I find the Textagenda to be a very well executed daily planner and it does a great job bridging the gap between a serious planner and a notebook for your daily tasks."

DianeB presents RevolveR Little Blue Journal posted at Pocket Blonde. Diane provides an amazing profile of the husband and wife team that created, manufacture, and market the unique Revolver line. "But now it's in among the journals in my bag, and I get a lot of questions and compliments every time I take it out. An extraordinary idea for a great journal!"

Nifty presents PSN & Flash Notebooks posted at Notebook Stories. Nifty looks at a new Dutch notebook and compares it to a the venerable Moleskines and Rhodia's new Webnotebooks. "One of the notebooks has a contrasting color elastic cord rather than the usual flat ribbon– I quite liked this little detail, though the flat elastic might be more practical."

DJ presents the Clairfontaine vs. Doane Paper RUMBLE at Inkthusiasm. In a match that Vince McMahon would approve of (if he were a paper geek, like most of us are), the standard is challenged by the upstart! True paper geeks know which is which, but if you don't, go read what DJ has to say. "I do a lot of my writing with gel pens and rollerballs. This may eventually change with the pens and inks I choose to use but as it stands, The REDACTED is my paper of choice." [I cannot give it all away!]

Pen Reviews

Julie (Okami) presents her Featured Pen - 1945 Parker Duofold posted at Whatever. Julie shows off a beautiful addition to her collection. "When I purchased this pen it was unrestored and after the restoration it was clear that this pen was a beauty."

Brad presents Nomadic Upright Pencil Case posted at The Pen Addict. I bought this case from a recommendation from Brad, and I absolutely love it! "I only have two of them so far, but Nomadic has quickly become my favorite pencil case maker."

Bruce guest posts about Why Your First Vintage Pen Oughtta Be an Esterbrook at Brassing Adds Character. What is there to be said about this article. My first vintage was an Estie J with double jewels that Ryan found for me. Ryan is hooking me up with my second one as well. "Though the name Esterbrook may not come to mind as quickly as the more recognizable names such as Parker, Sheaffer’s or Waterman’s, I feel there are numerous reasons why and areas where Esterbrook excels above all the others."

Mabeloos recommended Bleubug's Soggy Pasta Primevera that is posted at Bleubug. This is an excellent post for new FP folks (like me) who are not familiar with flex nibs and how they work. "If you’re active in using or col­lect­ing foun­tain pens even­tu­ally you will hear the term “flex­i­ble”. It’s often used with rev­er­ence as when some­one gushes “the pen has a nib that is flex­i­ble!!"

Tom reviews the Online Vision Blue Fountain Pen at GoldSpot Pens. This is a newly released (Summer 2009) German pen that is a solid pen with a very nice price. "Released in Summer of 2009, the ONLINE Vision series is a sturdy, aluminum-based writing instrument that strikes a harmony between ergonomic utility and modern, elegant style."

Heather presents a very detailed review of the Uni-Ball Fusion at A Penchant for Paper. I have never seen the Uni-Ball Fusion here in Alabama, but Heather provides some great info that will make me pick some up when I come across them. "The Uni-ball Fusion has an eye-catching appearance, with its white colour and floral design on the barrel."

Margana presents Waterman Carene Stub Gets a Forever Home posted at An Inkophile's Blog. Margana talks about the new love of her life) in fountain pen form). "Anyway, I wanted to share my excitement over a terrific pen and nib. It isn’t right for everyone but it sure is right for me."

Pencil Reviews

Dave reviews the Rotring Tikky Mechanical Pencils at Dave's Mechanical Pencils. Rotring was the first name that I heard of as I entered the fountain pen world. I was unaware that they are a mech pencil player as well. "The Tikky is a class act and I’m tempted to think this latest incarnation is an actual improvement on it predecessors."

User Collections

Melinda presents DIY Organizer/Planner posted at School Supply Dance. Sometimes the best organizers are the one that you make yourself so that you can customize it to the way you want to be organized.

DIYSara makes her own Moleskine Cahier clone at Miscellaneous Ramblings of a Thirty Something DIYer. This highly talented artist is also a confirmed DIYer. This is her latest project that is near and dear to all of our hearts!

Clement wishes everyone a Happy Halloween at Rants of the Archer. This is a great combo (pen/ink/paper) review. Rhodias, J. Herbin and Esties, oh my!

Thanks for stopping by Black Belt Productivity for the 4th Carnival of Pen, Pencil and Paper. It was a BLAST reading all of the submissions and compiling them for you. I hope that you were able to find a new blog pen to buy, some new paper to play with or better yet, a new blog to follow. I have found at least two new blogs with each Carnival and this one did not disappoint either! Watch for the December Carnival at GoldSpot Pens Blog during the first week of the month.

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Project planning is not easy, especially if you do not follow the steps outlined in Getting Things Done. The five steps of project management as defined by David Allen:

1. Define Purpose and Principles
2. Visualize the Desired Outcome
3. Brainstorming
4. Organizing
5. Identify Next Actions

These steps are key to effectively managing any project.

Today I will share some "lessons learned" from my personal experience.

Bear in mind that all of these key points were learned using one of two methods.

• Observation (watching and learning from others)
• Tough courses in the University of Hard Knocks (a.k.a. "falling on my face")

That having been said...here we go.

1. "Plan your work, and work your plan". In our finance director's office, there is a small sign that hangs on his wall with this quote. You will also find a slightly less extravagant version of it in the office of most of his direct reports. The five steps that David outlines for project planning cover this area. If you do not plan properly, it makes it very difficult to measure your progress against a plan. In turn you will also find difficulty in reporting status to those up the ladder that must be kept in the know as to the progress of a project that is under their watch.
2. When you organize, create a tangible schedule. This is one of the most critical mistakes one makes in doing a project. This can be as simple as a set of tasks in Outlook..or an elaborate schedule laid out in Microsoft Project. Why lay out a firm schedule? First, if you keep it in front of you, you will force yourself to be accountable to it. Second, if there is a team involved where everyone involved has responsibilities, you need to keep it in front of them to hold them accountable.
3. Understand that leadership is more than management. There is a huge difference in being a manager and being a leader. When you are managing a project, you want to be perceived as a leader. Leaders set the example of what is expected by rolling up their sleeves and getting involved. Managers delegate and sometimes have to employ intimidation to motivate. Why is one more successful than the other? As Aretha Franklin used to sing, "R.E.S.P.E.C.T." You want a smoothly functioning motivated team? Lead, don't manage. I am fortunate enough to have several people that would go to the ends of the earth for me, not because of any special thing I did, but because they know I respect them, and will have their back in a tight situation. They know that I am not being motivated by what it can do for me professionally. That perception is vital to getting others to play well with you.

I am by no means an expert at managing projects. I am not even a manager. But these are some lessons I have learned from my experience being involved supporting and leading projects over the years.

Are there any lessons you have learned form the "University of Hard Knocks"? Feel free to share them with us.

-Jason

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Many of us have jobs where we serve various customers. I do this in a corporate environment. A cubicle is my home 40+ hours a week. Thus I am in a situation where it is very difficult to lock myself away from the outside world. Interruptions and perceived emergencies are not an occasional annoyance, they are a way of life.

So it is important for me to focus early on...so as to not let the storm of email and interruptions completely derail me when I have more important and less urgent things to accomplish. Sometimes, it is hard to remember that to everyone, their issue is an "emergency", and demands your attention...NOW!!!

Truth is that this demand for your immediate attention, in most cases, is a function of perspective.

Knowing this, how do we determine up front what is really important for us to accomplish in a day?

For me, it involves quality time with my Circa, and my favorite pen.

Before you turn on the storm (a.k.a. email, voicemail, etc.), clearly define what has to be done in order for your day to be a success.

I also recommend building in time to deal with interruptions. But it needs to be just that...blocked off.

(How to better manage our interruptions is a good topic for another day.)

Our day should focus on the important. And time building a gameplan to attack our day is our pregame pep talk.

Now there are times where our immediate attention is, in fact, needed. And we need to be flexible enough to make adjustments when we need to. That being said, the importance of remaining focused on our daily goals cannot be overstated.

So spend some time laying your daily goals out...before the storm begins.

What do you think? Any other ideas on setting up to stay focused?

- Jason

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Let me be the first to welcome everyone to the new home of Black Belt Productivity!

We are very excited about moving BBP to posterous. It is an up and coming blogging platform, and we hope that the ease of posting content will make BBP a little more active than it has been over the last year.

There are a number of factors that led to the move to posterous.

• The upkeep and maintenance was getting out of hand with the number of Wordpress hacks that were going around.
• The ability to email any and all media for post creation.
• The ease with which to add guest posters is as easy as adding their email address to our site.

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