Life Zero

John Foster calls it "In Burrito" and I am sure there are other words for it.

Revisiting Time

I just finished reading the Updated and Expanded, Kindle-version of The Four Hour Workweek.

It is no secret I enjoyed the original and I suggest anyone who values their time (and is trying to find a way to have more leisure time) read this book. The Kindle version has some pretty ugly formatting issues, but the content is very good and it's well worth a read.

The problem, however, is not the book or the content, but the way it makes you start thinking about your own time and how you spend your time online, in e-mail and in general.

Time is the one thing we have a finite amount of in life. You can't get more time, no matter how badly you want it. Money is a different story, it's a river and you can dip into it whenever you want or need it, but time is linear and constrained.

The 80/20 Rule

Popularized in several books, including FHWW, this is also called the Pareto Principle and is a very simple idea:

80% of your revenue comes from 20% of your clients.

This also -- almost always -- translates into some fundamental issues;

80% of your time is spent chasing 20% of the money you make.

80% of the things you do are not bettering your life/business/joy.

20% of your time should be spent doing meaningful work.

Most people miss these ideas, or think they do not relate. But, I can tell you from experience that working 8 hours a day on the same problem/thing/solution is a waste of your time. You cannot be productive for this long at once, regardless of how awesome you are or how focused.

People need breaks, they need challenges, they need distractions. Your mind is most active and able to solve problems if you find challenging problems in different disciplines, many of which are outside your comfort zone (but enjoyable).

For example;

I read about two hours a day, every day.

The Kindle facilitates this, as do RSS feeds (I'm using Reeder on the iPad. It is simple and beautiful. I've tried other readers and they just do not work for me (even River of News, which is beautiful, but wastes screen on full-text articles... and doesn't do offline caching very well).

I work for (a maximum) of two hours per day on any problem.

Meaning, I will work for two hours on kane-box in any given day. I can do this for several reasons, not least of which is forcing yourself into a constrained time-frame actually improves your productivity.

Think of that term-paper you waited until the last minute to write, then cranked it out in a short period. You probably got an A.

Too much time breeds laziness and creates sloppy technology. Focusing on a task deeply and intensely is better.

Or, as I am fond of saying, you "go into the mine shaft."

Writing software is like going into a mine shaft. You have to disrobe, put on the appropriate gear, get the helmet on properly, check the light, add a pick-axe, check the rest of your gear. Then, you step into the elevator, push the button, wait forever for the descent into the mine. You get to the bottom, make sure the door closes behind you, find the place where you left off, do some survey work, start using your equipment.

The second someone interrupts you, you are beamed instantly naked back to the surface, to start over again.

Make sure you are finding the appropriate time to go into the mine shaft do your work. Otherwise, you are wasting your time and mental energy.

Have fun.

Give yourself permission to have fun. Life is short and having some fun makes you a better person in the long run.

Go out with other people. Eliminate distractions (mobile phone, computer, whatever). Leave it at home, if you can. Spend the time talking with people, having a real conversation, getting to know others and their interests.

Do this at least once a week. You will literally shave away stress and aging... you will be a better person and you'll gain patience.

People are amazing. Give them a chance to outshine your constant need to be online or connected. You won't regret it, I promise.

Outsource!

Seriously. Do it. Go to Ask Sunday right now, sign up for the inexpensive plan ($40 for 10 tasks over 30 days) and have them do some research, buy a plane ticket (or tell you which one to purchase), organize a restaurant reservation for you, mail flowers to your significant other or do something silly on your behalf.

You'll wonder how you lived without having someone else do the stuff you find boring or uninteresting.

Part of finding joy is valuing your time and not doing things that are generating stress and devouring your income ability. Give yourself permission to have someone else research where to buy that coat you want and send you a nice spreadsheet with options.

You will thank me later...

That Netbook I mentioned

I am getting rid of my Netbook. It is a beautiful little beast, with an interesting history (and nice sticker across the back and the palm rest, which reads "Crime Scene: Do Not Cross").

It is an Asus Eee PC 1005HA, one of the early ones with only 9 hours battery life. Although, I have never gotten more than 7 hours and 6 seems to be average, running Ubuntu Linux Desktop (v 10.x).

It has 2 GB of RAM and a 160 GB hard drive. Google the model for more info, but it's a great little laptop.

Shoot me an e-mail if you are interested. I'll happily install Linux/Windows 7/OpenBSD/FreeBSD on it for you.

kane-box releases

Suppliers changed. Hardware changed. We finally pinned down the details of everything and have something we are testing in real places and getting feedback against.

Not to sound cliché, but kane-box will arrive at your location, if you've ordered it and are not part of the pre-launch Beta, on:

October 10, 2010 (or 10.10.10 or binary 101010 or 42).

If you have questions, direct them to the kane-box team.

Conferences

I am speaking at a ton of conferences this year. I'll post a list soon.

Posted from an iPad, Just so you know...