GTMD (Getting Too Much Done)

[MilWill]

Hello all,

First post to the forums, and rather new to GTD. I have been working my way through the book for sometime now, and have already reaped some of the benefits. I have to admit I am not full into the into the process as of yet, however I have noticed a disturbing trend...

The more I get done, the more I have to do.

I work in an environment in which there is never enough time, or resources, and we are driven by deadlines. This results in a priorty system in which only the most critical of projects receive attention, and the rest are put in the organizations "Someday/Maybe" file.

Since I am already getting more done, I find myself having more free time, which I immediately fill with these other projects (which are important, despite the reduced priority). As far as I can tell, there is no light at the end of this tunnel.

Does anyone have any words of wisdom, or similar experiences?

Thanks,
~M

 

[kewms]

By "free time" do you mean uncommitted time at work, or personal time?

If you are getting more done during time that you would be spending at work anyway, that's a good thing. If your company has a brain, it should shower you with praise, cash, and promotions. If your company is successful, there will always be more work to do, but presumably your amazing productivity will allow you to partake of the company's success, leading to more responsibility (and more money).

If you find that this "extra" stuff is eating into your personal time, then it's up to you to draw the line. Maybe you want to split the difference, giving half of your newly free time to the company and half to yourself. Maybe there are personal projects that you've been ignoring, and you want to use your newly free time to tackle them. That's a discussion to have with your boss, not us. Although it will probably be a more productive discussion if you're able to point out (tactfully, of course) how you are getting so much more done than anyone else, and how you think you should be rewarded with more free time and/or more cash.

Generally speaking, though, you've discovered the great pitfall of productivity. If you handle responsibilities well, people give you more of them. The old saying about how if you want a job to get done, give it to a busy person most definitely applies. Again, greater responsibility should be accompanied by greater rewards. If it isn't, then you may want to use your newly free time to explore other options.

Katherine

 

[jkgrossi]

Generally speaking, though, you've discovered the great pitfall of productivity. If you handle responsibilities well, people give you more of them. The old saying about how if you want a job to get done, give it to a busy person most definitely applies.

Or as David puts it, "The better you get, the better you better get."

 

[flexiblefine]

Don't let yourself burn out

Since I am already getting more done, I find myself having more free time, which I immediately fill with these other projects (which are important, despite the reduced priority). As far as I can tell, there is no light at the end of this tunnel.

If there is no light at the end of that tunnel, don't go racing down there too quickly.

It's great that you've improved your productivity, and that you are able to get more done than you used to. You should be rewarded for this improvement, either by your company or by yourself. Don't forget to take the opportunity to give yourself some sort of rewards when you get things finished, even if you just take a break to walk down the hall.

Knowing that there is always more to do and feeling like you're the only one who has to do it is a nasty trap that can leave you feeling overwhelmed. Do the work that's yours, but make sure you allow time to recharge and renew yourself, too.

 

[sonia_simone]

Maybe try and use some of that freed-up time to take more breaks--go have a walk around the block or something.

And if your job isn't showering you with love for being so brilliant and productive, you could use the time to work on your resume!

 

[treelike]

If increased productivity is creating more work for you then, if you enjoy the work, then that's good.

If you don't enjoy the work, assuming you have set hours, then I would say that it's still good. (I have found that keeping busy makes the time go faster so it doesn't seem so long until time to go home!)

If it's causing you to lose time from your personal life, and you're unhappy about that, then that's bad. Create a project which deal with this issue (maybe by speaking to boss, looking for other work, even ways to appear less productive to colleagues?! or whatever)

As far as "no light at the end of the tunnel", well I guess that's life. Last time I went through a tunnel it was exciting and great fun (an actual tunnel underground). Maybe you should see it as lots of tunnels rather than one big one.

Everyone has too much to do and that's the whole point. When you're in control of what you're doing and what you're not doing- that's as good as it gets.

 

[MilWill]

Thanks everyone for your insightful responses, they have been helpful and given me some things to think about. I have actually been rewarded very well over the course of the year, a total of over 20% in three different raises, two of them, "out of cycle". To give you a frame of reference, many good employees have received a single raise of 2-5% in the past year.

The recognition and financial rewards are very nice, and I reflect on this when I am feeling overwhelmed or stressed out.

My question came more from a place of... does it ever end? ...the work waiting to be done. Maybe it doesn't, I especially appreciated this response.

Everyone has too much to do and that's the whole point. When you're in control of what you're doing and what you're not doing- that's as good as it gets.

Maybe this is an attitude I need to try in work in there... ;-)

 

[kewms]

Most companies are more than willing to keep loading work on you indefinitely. If that isn't what you want, then you have to be the one to draw the line.

Are the rewards worth it? What, if anything, are you leaving undone in your personal life? If you would like some amount of personal time back, what's the next action to achieve that goal?

For a lot of people, it's learning how to say no.

Katherine

 

[MilWill]

They are not loading the work onto me as much as I am finding more time to take on more...

However there is always that expectation that once I start to take on more, I will continue with increasing levels of productivity, at work we love to call it "raising the bar", the problem is some also believe that; no matter how high you set it, that you can always move it up a little higher, even if others are struggling at the lower levels.

This is something I need keep a close eye on, and better manage in the future.

You mentioned a phrase that I heard once before "a personal life" ;-)
I exaggerate a bit, but yes, there is room for improvement there as well.

I have no problem with saying "No" even though this was not always the case, in fact I enjoy my work, but a balancing act is definitely in order, as it is not unusual for me to work until 12:00AM (at home) or on the weekends (also at home). Not because I have to, but because I have an overactive brain, have trouble sleeping, and like to keep myself mentally stimulated.

 

[MilWill]

On another note

The feeling that keeps me up until 12:00 a night doing "work", or for that matter, thinking about how to better manage it on a Friday night, is one compliments GTD very well.

It is best described in a book called "Flow:The Psychology of Optimal Experience"

From the description on Amazon

"You have heard about how a musician loses herself in her music, how a painter becomes one with the process of painting. In work, sport, conversation or hobby, you have experienced, yourself, the suspension of time, the freedom of complete absorption in activity. This is "flow," an experience that is at once demanding and rewarding--an experience that Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi demonstrates is one of the most enjoyable and valuable experiences a person can have.

I just need to manage a bit more flow in the personal life, as I mentioned earlier.

 

[TesTeq]

What do you want?

They are not loading the work onto me as much as I am finding more time to take on more...

However there is always that expectation that once I start to take on more, I will continue with increasing levels of productivity, at work we love to call it "raising the bar", the problem is some also believe that; no matter how high you set it, that you can always move it up a little higher, even if others are struggling at the lower levels.

Decide what you want to do. Do you want to "raise the bar" or just to sit quietly and safely as an average employee? Are you really interested in your work? Do you like your company or is it just a safe cave where you want to hide?

 

[CosmoGTD]

Sometimes when we begin to step outside our own self-imposed limits, it can seem a bit disturbing.
But there is nothing wrong with "working" until midnight, or until 5am, as long as you enjoy what you are doing.
In music, and fields like that, most everyone basically "works" all the time.
You are in the shower, and you are "working". Your mind is always working.

For extreme examples, you can look at someone like Picasso, who created more than 20,000 works, and I think the number is far higher than that. Talk about Getting Art Done, GAD.

Its not about being a workaholic, as that would be a negative compulsion.
But when you start moving into Work you find important, then that is something else. Of course from the outside, a workaholic and someone who loves their work can look similar.
But I think the difference is in the EXPERIENCE of working, and also doing it consciously, and having some balance in your life, if you want balance.

But look at Olympic Athletes. When does their work end? Do they do what their "boss" tells them to do?

There is no "boss" in life, you are your own boss, and you decide to do what you want to do.

So once you cross over to the Dark Side and step out of 9-5 land, you are in a new country.
Does the "work" ever end?
Nope.
Does the creativity ever stop?
Hopefully not.

When do you stop?
When you dead!!

So I don't think there is such a thing as GTMD, unless you are being a workaholic and harming your health and your life.
At least for me, I can say that as far as I can see, I have never in my life gotten too much done, or been too productive or effective.

To get philosophical, you can think of the Self as always in a state of Becoming, evolution, growth and expansion.

Then one day you wake up and you're dead. Rats!

PS: don't worry, once the intital "buzz" of GTD wears off, its pretty easy to become a lazy, procrastinating slug again. It can be done.

 

[flexiblefine]

Losing the buzz

PS: don't worry, once the intital "buzz" of GTD wears off, its pretty easy to become a lazy, procrastinating slug again. It can be done.

Actually, that's exactly what led me to concentrate on trying to get over my procrastination. When knocking things off lists was new and exciting, I was truly Getting Things Done. When it became just the way I do things, some things started to stay on my lists, and far too many things were not getting done.

Now if only "overcome procrastination" were well-defined enough to be a project that could be broken down into next actions...

 

[Brenda]

Overcome Procrastination

Why not set up a project "overcome procrastination"?

Just decide:
What's the successful outcome?
What's the next action?

 

[TesTeq]

Procrastinating when overcoming procrastination.

Why not set up a project "overcome procrastination"?

Just decide:
What's the successful outcome?
What's the next action?

It's classic catch-22 situation because you can procrastinate even when "overcome procrastination" project is defined.

As many other problems - procrastination can be overcome only from the outside of the problem area - you must find the real cause of the procrastination (in most cases some kind of fear).

 

[yurfi]

Stop getting so much done -- WLH

I think the problem that you have (as do I ) is that you've combined the GTD methodology with the old task methodology known as WLH "Work like hell"

I suggest using the time to do stuff for yourself. I know i should do the same

Combining WLH to any methodology is dangerous because it will alway leave you very stressed. Go to the gym, or out with your wife or your friend's wife whatever floats your boat.

It may seem counterintuitive but resting will make you more productive.

 

[flexiblefine]

TesTeq's right

It's classic catch-22 situation because you can procrastinate even when "overcome procrastination" project is defined.

I wish overcoming procrastination were as easy as setting up a project and just doing the steps needed to mark it as complete... but procrastination is keeping me from doing those steps, as well as a lot of other next actions.

Procrastination has a lot of different symptoms, and I'm doing a better job of recognizing those symptoms and doing something to kick me out of my old thought patterns.

I know there are people who don't have this problem, and I'm glad for them. Beating procrastination breaks down into psychological actions, not physical actions, and psychological actions don't always have permanent effects.

 

[sonia_simone]

I am in love with the concept "WLH methodology." I hope you don't mind if I steal it for my team!

Procrastination is definitely a distinct animal with distinct issues--I believe there is a whole topic about that around here somewhere, a very useful discussion.

 

[treelike]

Even before I discovered GTD, I found that one way to beat (or at least help to beat) procastination is to just do ANYTHING. Even if it was just doing some housework, going for a walk or do something for someone that I had been putting off. After doing something I had a bit more energy to try other things. Action breeds action. Curiously, doing something totally different frequently led to acheiving things to with the thing I wasn't making any progress with.

One of the beauties of GTD is that you have always got a big list of ANYTHINGs to do- and you can be reasonably sure that there is an ultimate purpose to all of them. You've just got to give that little push to do one of them.

 

[flexiblefine]

Getting started helps!

One of the beauties of GTD is that you have always got a big list of ANYTHINGs to do- and you can be reasonably sure that there is an ultimate purpose to all of them. You've just got to give that little push to do one of them.

I agree -- one of my successful tactics for procrastinating less at work is to start the day with work instead of a bunch of mindless web surfing. Check my e-mail, process my inbox, and start doing things off my lists -- it sets a more productive mindset that lasts even after I take a web-surfing break later in the day.

Get started, and the momentum can carry you far.