Far Wise in Knowledge Management

Going offline

Is it me or is there a trend of people who (temporarily) get rid of their smartphone or social media, for real or as experiment? Maybe it's because I just read two books about this topic and I suddenly see many news items about the same topic. Within a few days after reading these books, I read in EllE Magazine that author Zadie Smith has no smartphone and the Dutch newspaper NRC has started an experiment in which 8 people change their smartphone for 6 months for a simple Nokia mobile phone.  I'm sure there is a name for this phenomenon, just like when you buy a red car, suddenly there are red cars everywhere.

One book I read (in Dutch) tells the experiences of a guy (Johan van Houten) who went offline completely for a year. (Sidenote: another trend, I think, is doing something weird for a whole year and write/blog/insta about it). His experiences are sometimes funny, sometimes ironic (when a company refers him to the website for more information). Is it doable, a year without internet and mobile phone? According to this book it is, although it's not easy. Is it the solution to stress, distraction and so on? I don't think so. There is value to having internet and mobile access. It's just our behavior that's off. The author agrees and suggests a balanced online and offline life.

That's where the other book I read becomes useful. Catherine Price suggests in her book "How to break up with your phone" a 30-day plan to get into a better relationship with your phone. Both books are aimed at making us aware of our mobile phone behavior and changing it so it becomes more healthy and less stressful.

Personally, I think I'm less attached to my phone than both authors describe. Maybe it's because I have many offline distractions (running, reading, knitting) and didn't have TV for many years (we have Netflix now). On the other hand, I use my smartphone a lot for e-mail, searching for information (for example, train departure times), social media and online banking. I wouldn't want to do without it, but i don't feel addicted. Still, it's good to become aware of one's behavior and I'm probably more hours online than I think now. Of the two books, the second book is most practical with a plan instead of a range of tips.

Too much focus

Focus is a good thing, I learned through many articles. We need focus, in order not to be distracted, make better choices and for being successful. When I read about focus, I get the impression that one can't have enough of it and I certainly don't master the skill. Clearly one of the most valued skills nowadays, trying to be more focused, is high on my list.

A few days ago however, I read that one can have too much focus. Did you fail to see the gorilla? The first time I saw this video, at a conference, I was one of few people in the room who saw it. (Maybe because I get distracted easily) In a Dutch article, I read that we overvalue concentration and research shows that it drains energy. Energy we would use for thinking. It explains why it's so hard to continu working on the same task. Plus, focus makes us too selective which inhibits creativity. Our view becomes narrow, like a laser beam, which is why we fail to see the gorilla.

The article refers to a book by Srini Pillay, which I haven't read. I was able to find an article by the same author "Your brain can only take so much focus".

The secret, as always, is in finding the balance between focus and unfocus. Switch between focusing for a while and unfocusing. The latter can be done by performing low-key activities like knitting, gardening, casual reading. Let your mind wander and it will boost creativity and re-energize your brain. And some advice: build those "unfocus" moments into your daily (busy, focused) schedule.

 

 

Tomatoes and time management

What have time management and tomatoes to do with each other? Not much, unless you talk about the pomodoro. This type of tomato is the name of a time management method, the "Pomodoro technique". It's a very simple method and I've applied it many times, based on what I read on the website and the app I installed on my smartphone. Simple, but very helpful!

Principle

The Pomodoro Technique is developed by Francesco Cirillo. A timer, a cooking timer shaped as a pomodoro, is used for timing a 25 minute working period (a 'pomodoro') followed by a 5 minute break. Then the next pomodoro starts. After 4 pomodori, a longer break can be taken. So, select a task you want to work on, set your timer and work on the task for 25 minutes. Then take a break of 5 minutes before continuing you next pomodoro.

I found that 25 minutes is a good stretch of time to work concentrated. However, I took my breaks a bit longer, especially later in the day. Five minutes to make coffee, go to the washroom, read email (of whatever I wanted to do), appeared too short for me.

I think this method can be used in addition to organizing methods like GTD (Getting Things Done). GTD helps to structure and prioritize tasks, Pomodoro techniques helps in performing tasks, to focus and avoid distraction. 

 

Team productivity

I recently read "Getting Teams Done" for Managementboek.nl. A book with an English title, but the content and authors are Dutch. It's a great book about team productivity and I hope a translation into the English will come soon! The basis of this book is a method developed in the US, so all source material can be found in English. In this post, I want to give a short introduction to this method called "Holacracy", and what I've learned about it in the book and in a recent webinar.

People familiar with the Getting Things Done (GTD) method, have seen the link with this method in the title of the book. GTD is aimed at the individual worker, to get his or her work organized. Team productivity however is not the sum of individual's productivity. Holacracy...

"... is a comprehensive practice for structuring, governing, and running an organization. It replaces today’s top-down predict-and-control paradigm with a new way of achieving control by distributing power. It is a new “operating system” that instills rapid evolution in the core processes of an organization." (from the Holacracy website)

Holacracy gives people the authority and accountability for their work / tasks. It's not the boss who defines the work and keeps control, this is delegated to the team and people who carry out the work. Holacracy provides a set of rules that help set the boundaries.

Elements of Holacracy:

1. Organizational structure: the work is organized, not the people. Everyone's 'job' is to energize the roles they fill. A role describes what needs to be done. People can have several roles.

2. Governance process: In Governance Meetings, roles are defined by the group. It's the Lead Link who assigns the role to the person who can do this best. Role descriptions provide clarity of who is accountable for what activities, with what authority, in which domain(s). The meetings follow a fixed structure and give every member a voice.

3. Operations: authority is distributed. A team’s operational flow is synchronized by regular Tactical Meetings that facilitate rapid-fire triage of key issues. The focus is on next-action, not on endless analysis.

4. Tensions: tensions identify a gap. They drive work, change, opportunities - are not necessarily negative. Tensions are brought up in the Tactical or Government Meeting (depending if they relate to the work or a role) and assigned to someone to solve. Tensions are not solved in the meeting, to keep pace of the meeting high.

The result is an adaptable organization that is able to move quickly (like Agile) and gets the work done (like Getting Things Done).

The method is applied in several organizations, of which Zappos (watch the video) is probably best known. The Resources page of Holacracy provides more information, case studies, guides..

I think this method looks very promising. I was very enthusiastic after reading the book, since I recognize so many of the typical team and organizational issues that are being described. At the same time, I think it's not an easy method to implement. It not only requires another way of working, but managers need to let go of their authority and leave it to the people. The meetings will only work with an experienced Facilitator, who can keep the meeting on track. In the webinar, Brian Robertson (who is the founder of Holacracy) said that at the start he doesn't ask employees if they agree with the new method. He just gets started with permission /agreement of higher management, knowing that there will always be people who resist change. He is convinced that they need to experience Holacracy to see the benefits.

How productive did you feel today?

Yes, you had a busy day, I hear you. You did so many things and the day is just not long enough! All these meetings that you had and then email messages keep streaming in, it's hard to keep up.

But then why do you feel so unsatisfied? Busy is good, isn't it? That's what you keep telling yourself and what everybody around you does. "How are you?", "Busy!" Being busy means being important, needed. Everybody can see you running around, from meeting back to your desk to answer a few email messages, only to find out you haven't prepared your next meeting. Busy busy, that's what you are. How about your productivity? What did you finish or produce today? What did you contribute for the company that hired you?

Let's turn the question around. Remember that day that you did feel productive. Do you know where that feeling came from, what is it that you did that gave you that good feeling? I bet it's not the meetings, nor most of the emails that you sent. What was it then? A report you finished, a presentation you gave or phone call to a prospective client or maybe you tell me what made you feel productive. Why did it make you feel good and proud of yourself or the team? Because you knew someone needs that report to make an important decision or the company needs that big client that will bring in a lot of money. It was a lot of work, you have been moving it aside till the last moment, but once you got over the treshold and locked yourself from too many distractions, you got it done. Congratulations.

Why aren't all days like that, filled with accomplishments instead of the feeling of being busy but getting nothing done. Think about what kept you from working on the real important things. What is it that keeps you from being productive?

[to be continued]