Be Bold, the wallpaper
I wonder if Nicholas Bate know's about this? It would tie in nicely with his Be Bold 101 book.
Seperating creative and critical thinking with an incubation period
Productive Brainstorming Requires that you Separate Creative Thinking from Critical Thinking
I had first hand experience of this productive brainstorming at the weekend when I was collecting some ideas for a journalling application. The problem was that each idea I had was quickly followed through by my more critical side asking "How would that work?". As soon as I had an idea I would quickly invalidate it by thinking that it would be too difficult to implement. You're not going to get any ideas by doing this.
Looking back I should have simply put my ideas down first without giving them a second thought about how they would be implemented and then let them incubate.I do this quite a lot with a blog on mind mapping, but it's something that I had forgotten about at the weekend when I was trying to be creative and generate some ideas.Let your ideas grow in your mind for a while before applying the critical thinking to them.
I would recommend at least a few hours or even a couple of days between creative thinking and critical thinking.The time when your ideas are in an incubation period can give you a chance to reflect on your ideas. This isn't time when you should be thinking about the critical aspect of your ideas, instead it's just a time for the ideas you have, to sit and do nothing.While they're doing nothing you might trigger a thought to a more refined idea. Then again you might not.
You don't lose anything here but it does mean that when it comes to the critical evaluation of your ideas, you'll be familiar with each of the ideas you originally had and you'll be ready to apply some critical thinking to them.
Stay consistent
My favourites of 2011
Last year I did a favourite four of 2010. I listed my favourite blog, book, tweeter and podcast. This year I am trimming it down to just my favourite blog and book.
The reason I am skipping the favourite tweeter is that I am no longer gaining much value from Twitter like I did the last year. I'm starting to see that some people are posting stuff more to do with their personal life than what they're up to with work and projects. Yeah it's nice to hear that someone has just met the love of their life, or seen their kid take their first steps, or something else along those lines, but in 2010, I was spoiled with people who were tweeting some really good stuff. In 2011 this didn't happen so much. I'm as just as guilty as the next person of this.
The flip side of this is that I have started to see more of a benefit in reading blogs again. There was a lot of talk of social networks becoming the blogs of this decade but I don't see it happening. While I'm still subscribed to just over 200 blogs and feeds, I'm managing it easily on a day to day basis.
I used to listen to podcasts alot. However since moving to a new job, I haven't much time to tune into the podcasts that I used to listen to. Maybe this year I'll get back into catching my favourite podcasts again.
Favourite blog
Nicholas Bate has done it again. Last year his blog was my daily recommended reading. This year, I stand by his blog again as being recommended daily reading. His
Instant MBA book and series was a great read and his current series on strategies for success is brilliant.
I'm looking forward to seeing what Nicholas will produce this year. His blog just keeps getting better and better.
Favourite book
Patrick Rhone's book, "Keeping It Straight" was my favourite book of the year. It might not be everyone's cup of tea, but the different sections of the book and the way in which it was written was brilliant. I found it to be quite similar to Stephen King's book "On Writing".
You can find a more detailed review of it here.
There we go, my favourite blog and book from 2011. What's yours?
Declare war on passivity
Declare war on passivity. Hush the inner voice that insists you’re over the hill, past your prime, unworthy of attaining those dreams. Disbelief is now the enemy, as is the notion of settling. Get hungry — hyena hungry. Get fired up. Find your backbone, and your wings.
Flap ‘em. It’s the only way you’ll be able to fly.— Declare War on Passivity by David Kanigan
I believe there is a place for this is the world of technology. I think there is a need for a Software Tailor. For instance, you have a text editor that works well but could use just a few changes to make it work perfectly for you. You take it to the Software Tailor and they do that for you. Or perhaps you go to one to build the perfect task management app to fit your specific working style. In my mind, many who program are crafts people and I think there is a growing opportunity and need for such a service by people with these skills.
— Bespoke by Patrick Rhone
Patrick Rhone's latest post on software tailoring got me thinking. Software is used by millions across the world, yet I wonder how many people are aware that some of the software they use can be tailored to their specific needs?Yes there are freelance developers out there who specialise in building plugins, extensions or custom versions of software applications, but that's the problem. These developers specialise in one application or product. They won't even think about touching anything else.Sounds to me there might be room for a number of developers who are jack of all trade developers who are prepared to dig into just about any code that is given to them and make the necessary changes.
Just a thought, that's all.
Those things we build for ourselves are guided by our own philosophy. Those things built by others are guided by theirs and through our use we accept and adopt these.
— Buying Philosophy by Patrick Rhone
Fifty Easy Ways To Make Life Easier
At the end of the day, plan tomorrow.
Travel light. Regularly empty out the bags and wallet of the accumulated debris.
Write down their names. Nobody minds at all.
Look for the best.
Plan 'down' time as specifically as 'work'
There are hundreds of books on self-help, productivity and organisation. You could spend a fortune on these or just use this list. Click through for the rest of Nicholas Bate's fantastic list for an easier life.
No biggie
It's no biggie for Buster, and it shouldn't be for anyone else.
The multiverse, the universe, the world, history, everyone alive, your friends and family, you, your behavior, what you are doing right now. You can only change one of these things, and it’s not easy, and you’ll probably fail the first 38,000 times, but by eventually changing it you indirectly change all of the others. After figuring that out, the only remaining problem is figuring out what you want to change and why.
— No Biggie by Buster Benson
The Dark Side Of IF
Don't do it. Don't dabble with If only. Ban it from your vocabulary for 2012.
Play with if.
You know it makes sense.
— The Dark Side of If by Nicholas Bate
Nicholas Bate's post pretty much narrows down my review of 2011. I had a couple of ideas for products but didn't act on them. I spent way too much time dabbling, trying to learn and really didn't get anywhere. With some positive news at home, I can now focus on getting these ideas off the ground.