Twitter and Productivity – The seven deadly virtues

In case you don’t know what Twitter is, the basic premise of it is that you post short frequent updates about what you’re currently doing. You can also subscribe, or “follow”, other users. Not a lot of us are interested in that – you might think. That could be the case, or not, as there are a lot of people out there who have thousands of followers.

So what is the point of this?

The main thing regarding twitter is that it can be a productivity gain, or a dead loss, depending on how you intend to use. If you are just using it to “tweet” random things like “I’m walking home from work” then there is little gain from using it, other than as an ego gratification tool.

Ok, so now you have it in a nutshell what Twitter is.

One of the ways that Business is using this tool is to connect with customers on a more real-time level, providing a bit more personalised stream of information. This is a useful way of keeping up with what’s happening with products and services that you’re interested. The difference being with Twitter is that it’s permission based, rather than “We have your email and we’re holding it to ransom”. At least spam hasn’t quite reached this far yet, although I predict that within 6 months to a year there will be an awful lot more spam than there is now.

I’ve found that you need to focus on what you “Tweet” about in order to make twitter useful. There is really no need for us to know about your dog, or what you had for breakfast. There isn’t any need for us to know about any part of your life really.

Sharing a link that you found useful, or telling us how you manage to get so much done on the other hand, could be. The advantage to you of your productivity is that you get a record of what you found out, we get to share it, and you might just understand what you shared a little bit better.

Then there is the commitment aspect. If you say that you are going to do something, and put it down in writing, you are more likely to feel committed to it, and actually get round to doing it. Maybe.

Next there is the improvement you will see in your writing, as you struggle (at first) to get used to the limited number of characters you have to express yourself. You may get frustrated at first, but if you persevere, you will get better. Trust me on that one.

Below are some tips on how to make yourself productive (rather than a time waster) on Twitter.

  1. Tweet as many of the things you’re doing out to the world as you can.
  2. Be specific.
  3. Be honest.
  4. Ask questions.
  5. Answer questions when you have a good answer to give.
  6. Respond to other people when you have the time.
  7. Don’t be afraid to experiment, or ditch it if it isn’t working for you.

For other ideas on this see: http://lifedev.net/2007/01/how-to-use-twitter-as-a-productivity-tool/ or http://lifedev.net/2006/12/twitter-business-gain-or-productivity-drain/ from which this post took inspiration.

Feel free to add your own tips and ideas in the comments.

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Removing obstacles

One of the most important aspects of being able to do the things that you want is being able to remove obstacles from your path. If you are able to do this well, you will be able to get a lot more done.

There are three main ways of removing obstacles from your path.

Turn Back!

Turn Back!

1. Change the path you are walking.

In simple terms this means letting the fact there is an obstacle determine that you are no longer going to walk that route. The effort needed to overcome the obstacle is more than you are willing to expend in order to reach the final result.

Note that this is a perfectly legitimate response where the outcome is not that important to you, or the effort required is too great for you to be able to cope with at this point in your life.

2. Walk around the obstacle.

Walking Around

This is a technique that can be used where the end result is more important than the means of getting there. For instance, if there is a road accident up ahead, it would be most sensible to find a different route to get to your destination instead of turning back, or trying to drive straight through the accident point. You arrive at the same destination, but have taken a slightly different route to get there from the one you desired.

3. Move the obstacle.

Moving Rocks

This may be potentially the most effort, but also likely the most rewarding, simply because the outcome is worth the effort of moving the obstacle. If you imagine being in a car with a few friends driving down a country lane, when suddenly you encounter a tree that has fallen in the middle of the road. You pull to a stop, jump out of the car and go to work hauling the tree out of the way so you can continue your journey. That tree will (probably) not bother you the next time you drive down that road.

All of the above assumes that you are using the achievement-as-journey metaphor, which of course you may not be doing. I would be interested to see how other people frame problems, how they look at obstacles, and what metaphors they use.

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Letting Go

Letting Go

I recently have begun looking to see what I can let go of in my life. The reason for this is that I seem to be taking too much on, with not enough time to do it all.

The end result is that there are a number of things I have decided are not worth my time and energy, and therefore should be let go. These include various projects I have started but never got round to finishing, as well as activities that add no value or meaning for me.

What is it that you need to let go of in order to improve your experience of life, or make room for other activities?

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