Thanks for the post,

Chris Dunn

After a confusing jump between criticism, first person-narrative, then “statistical examples” (no source was really cited, nor percentages given) I feel there was no real “flow” in the post, and that the beginning in and of itself (which when not very interesting occasionally manages to turn itself around later on in the article to the surprise of the reader) really took away the interest, as little of value was added to back up claims through-out.

The moral of the post is “knowledge is useless when it is not applied to real life/ applicable to you and can therefore be time consuming” but I feel it could have been summed up in a more personable fashion, perhaps mostly-based on personal experience?

There is a certain writing style perfected by J.D., April, Adam and Sierra that truly compliments this site, and provokes discussion amongst readers, and beyond my own opinion, citing the amount of reader comments alone, I myself can validate that this article could have certainly used some improvement…

In fact, though it may not have come across in the post, there was something encouraging about realizing that I could just take the box over to Goodwill: I hadn’t needed any of that stuff, and I just needed to finish it. Similarly, it was much easier to get back into using the ING accts they way I should after having them already set up. It was more like a light bulb going off in my head as I realized this mental trap I had fallen into, as opposed to being discouraged.

Also, thanks to Tony for pointing out that emergency funds can be used in emergencies. That’s definitely true and it was an emergency (our car was totaled by another driver, and we had to use to cash to purchase another while waiting for the insurance dispute to resolve). I guess my concern was more about the fact that I left things in disarray afterwards instead of focusing on keeping the system intact.

Really glad this resonated with a lot of people.

Looks like the URL is http://www.dissense.com for anyone who is interested.

Here’s a variation on the theme: as a person who knows I’m good at doing research and analysis, I set the objective of researching and determining the best option before proceeding on an important task. I can research and think about a decision forever. This tactic is EXCELLENT for helping me to NOT accomplish the task (still doing research!).

I think the solution is to accept small steps and limited action, be ready to fail or make mistakes – and to make quick course corrections. Just get started – and make sure you finish!

http://thisiswhyubroke.wordpress.com
“Because credit crack is wack”

OMG, I’d rather just read the post and move on.

Simplify–That’s my motto;-)

Hope that doesn’t sound picky, but if you are acting as you intended to then that is nothing to beat yourself up about.

Thank you! Great post today– so timely for me! And, I promise to do more than just read it.

Though I would encourage you to look at some of these partially completed projects in a different way. Definitely not as completed, but doing a little bit at a time is actually highly beneficial for productivity. Look at them as “started” and decide to work on projects that have been started before or in conjunction with new projects.

For example: Putting together the goodwill box was a great way to start. It meant the next step was taking things to goodwill. You don’t have to put together the goodwill box AND take it to goodwill at the same time. If you think of the task as one huge project, you might not even get the goodwill box together because by the time you get everything together goodwill might not be open anymore and what’s the point in starting?

Sure, one day set aside to “do things” can get a lot finished, but it can also exhaust you and finding that one day to set aside is difficult.

Instead, look through that 220 list… order it in importance or ease of doing or don’t order it at all. Start from the top. Work on #1 for an hour or two, or 15 min if that’s all you have time for. Then move to #2. Then go on with your life. Next day, work on #1 for a while, then move on to #2. Continue until #1 or #2 is done, then move to #3. And so on. Brief daily sessions. You don’t need a big block of time and you can get more done than just reading a blog post for the day.

(Robert Boice is a psychology professor and productivity expert– he writes books for writers and faculty members, but his advice really works for all aspects of life. Start before you’re ready. Finish before you’re ready. Work in brief daily sessions a little bit every day. Then you won’t burn out.)

It’s counter-intuitive to our American culture of doing big things all at once and then collapsing. But slow and steady really does win the race.

I realized a couple of months ago that I was spending more time reading about people doing things than actually doing them myself. About two months ago, I started a new thing I’ve been calling my “Weekend 3″. http://dawezl.livejournal.com/189278.html

Since the only serious blocks of time I have to get things done are on the weekends, I pick out three goals each weekend that are connected to the priorities I’ve decided to focus on. Currently, those goals are centered around (A) working on an animated film that I’ve been wanting to finish, (B) tackling larger fix-up chores around the house, and (C) taking care of things that have been sitting on my to-do list for far too long.

By focusing on 3 clear tasks, I find that I almost always complete all three of them. In addition, a lot of times I find that I even do more than what I set out to do, just bc it seems easy to tackle while I’m doing my primary tasks. Last Saturday evening, I wanted to just kick back and watch tv, but I realized that if I didn’t take care of my normal chores, I wouldn’t have enough time to take care of my Weekend 3. I ended up working hard until 10pm to make sure everything got done.

Wish I could say it was timely, too… but it’s really, really late! I could have used this when I was a teenager! And again in my 20′s! I’ve finally learned not to over-think all the time, but jump right in … “The Perfect is the Enemy of the Goood”. And I’m SO much further ahead with this approach!

I think I just felt some new synapses connecting in my brain.

I’m reminded of the Peter Drucker quote, “What gets measured gets done.” I think it’s also important to remember that it isn’t ONLY about the measurement. How you get there counts too. For example, it is possible for you to reach your savings goal by stealing (extreme example I know but I’m making a point). You want to have a measurement but you should also have a plan of action.

One of my goals this year is to have more fun with my son. I measure that as three father/son activities each week. I could easily hit that by watching TV with him or taking him out to dinner. However, that’s almost cheating on the real intent of this goal. Instead, I’ve developed a plan that’s as important as the goal itself.

I loved the post and I think you’re spot on. I just thought this was another dimension to consider.

Thanks again!

Adam (AKA “Dad”)

What makes this a bit embarrassing for me is that I knew better. I’ve had project management training and there the rule is “a goal (i.e. the result of a task) must be meaningful and measurable.” You can’t say “make widgets,” you have to say “make 100 widgets.” You’re not done until you’ve made 100, then you can cross that off your list and celebrate.

I think it’s okay to have a goal to read, for example, one book or 20 blog posts on personal finance in a month, but recognize that that’s all you did. It didn’t count toward your goal of opening an IRA or cleaning out your spare bedroom.

Good, good post.