You might suspect, as I would have, that someone like super-author J.K. Rowling uses pretty sophisticated planning software, maybe even a product that is specially designed for authors, and maybe even a product designed especially for her. But we would be wrong: she uses notebook paper, and lays everything out in a spreadsheet-like format.

If we stop and think about it, though, this is not terribly surprising. For example, a recent Wall Street Journal article discusses how handwriting boosts the brain. The article notes that

… researchers are finding that writing by hand is more than just a way to communicate. The practice helps with learning letters and shapes, can improve idea composition and expression, and may aid fine motor-skill development

And, in my article on would you know if you have ADD, I note that using a paper planner helped reduce my ADHD-like symptoms. (Similarly, in my recent article on the Kindle, I noted that I was much less ADD-like in using it than in using my iPad or computer for reading, because it is designed for reading and doesn’t have a lot of other distracting features. Paper doesn’t have bells and whistles, either, and that helps you focus on the task at hand.)

Whenever I need to plan something really complex, out comes the paper. That’s despite the fact that I have about every planning tool one could have on my computer. Paper helps me think in ways that software doesn’t.

But, that’s me. It may describe lots of people, but I would not try to sell you on doing things my way. Do what works for you: just remember that paper could be one thing that does work for you, and don’t be held back from using it because you’re afraid someone will see you and think you are not tech-savvy. What do you care what other people think?

(Of course, there are projects for which software is the best way to go, no matter how much you like paper: if your project is one that takes a lot of collaborative effort, for example, you need a planning medium that works in that environment.)

But there are some projects that seem to cry out for different tools. If you have such a project, you might want to try using an expanding folder and a set of numbered tabs. An example of such a folder is shown in the picture. As for the tabs, I prefer a set of tabs labeled “1″ through “25″.

To use it, just plop the tabs into the folder and place project information between the tabs. To keep track of what’s in the folder, just use one or more sheets of paper as an index at the front of the folder (before the first tab).

For example, when I would go on consulting gigs, I would put one of these in my go bag, and throughout the week I would stuff the folder with appropriate information: interviews of senior management in tab 1, interviews of middle management in tab 2, observations of training in tab 3, reviews of root causes in tab 4, interviews with workers in tab 5, etc.

Several of my associates and I have found this to be a very valuable tool over the years.

https://mail.google.com/mail/#inbox/...unique_id...

and you obtain it just by opening up the email you want, in your browser, and copying the address from the browser’s address bar. Once you have copied it, you can easily paste it into your project material.

Let’s consider an example. A publisher recently sent me an email asking if I would review a book for them. Because the book sounds interesting, I agreed to do it and sent a reply email. Now, if I wanted to track this within the web-based task application Remember the Milk, I could do so directly from the RTM gadget panel within Gmail on my browser. Just refer to the picture to the right, and imagine me filling in the task (“Review the book Hold Fast”) and copying the Gmail URL into the URL tab. Once I click “Add Task,” I can then visit RTM and see the task, and just click on the URL to visit the email.

Now, while RTM can be used for this, as we’ve shown, my own preference is to use Basecamp. Below is a picture of how doing this looks with Basecamp:

I use the WriteBoard feature within Basecamp for this because it can serve as a ToDo and I can also use it to storyboard the article once I read the book.

You can use this trick within a lot of project management platforms. For example, some people use Word and/or Excel documents for project management, and all they have to do is paste the Gmail URL into the spot they want, and they can click on the link to go to the email.

Well, that’s all there is to it. I hope you find this tip to be useful.

The Example

For the past few weeks, I have had a few projects that I have made zero progress on. None. Zada. Zip.

Of course you can guess the reason for this: the projects had no next action.

You say, “How can this be, Keener? How did those projects ever make it past your Weekly Review?” Good questions. I put the projects onto my Projects List during a weekly review about 3 or 4 weeks ago, when I was reviewing my Someday List. I saw these items on my Someday List and said to myself “I really should do these … they’ve been Someday Items for a long while.” So, I put them on my Project List and then told myself I would assign Next Actions for them “when my head was more clear.”

Well, my head has been clear plenty of times since then, and I still have not come up with the next actions for the projects. The reason is that my head is not really committed to getting those projects done, even if “my heart” thinks they should be done.

So, these items either need to go back on my Someday list, or I need to come up with next actions. I am thinking right now that I need to answer “what aspect of Project X am I willing to commit to?” Then, that aspect can become the project. In other words, for each of these items, I need to break what was a sort of “meta item” into smaller pieces that I am willing to commit to as projects. By doing that, then I can think of a successful outcome for the project and a next action, and then I will move on it.

The Lesson

Whenever you find yourself saying “I really should do this,” ask yourself if it is expressed at a level that you are ready to commit to. Your brain has to agree with your heart before you’re going to get it done. If you really feel like you should do it, but are not ready to commit to it, then create a project that says “what aspect of Someday Item X am I willing to commit to and do?”

Before you add a project to your list, you need to ensure you are committed to it, that you can define a successful outcome for it (and visualize it happening), and that it has at least one next action that you can really do and are willing to do.

This point was made clear to me recently in the following series of events, and I share it with you as motivation for you to examine where you can get into more details:

• While watching a recent CNBC interview with Warren Buffett, I noticed a segment that showed him getting deep into the details of the arrangements and stats for one of his annual meetings.
• This reminded me of a presentation made by the now-retired UPS executive Calvin Dardin, which he made at a conference of about 200 CEO’s and COO’s. Mr. Dardin talked about measuring everything, and went through a list of what seemed like a few dozen things they track. They even track the average time it takes for a delivery person to reach your door from the truck: 14 seconds. It was one of the most fascinating presentations I’ve ever heard.
• In turn, this reminded me of something I had observed in my 32+ years of professional life: the most insightful CEO’s and executives I have known were the ones who got into the details. Yes, they were also visionary and kept the big picture in mind, but they loved getting into the details.

This motivated me to really dig into the details of my blog. I went into the Google Webmaster console and dug down deep into my data, instead of just looking at the broad stats as I had done before. I found problems that I should have known about months ago. I used the Google URL removal tool to correct the problems, and can already tell that it has helped traffic.

Based on this, I recommend that you add a project to your list that says “Figure out what I can look into in more detail,” so you can find and address hidden problems and opportunities.

• Deciding whether to go to college
• To change jobs
• To get married
• To get a divorce
• To retire
• and so on …

Sometimes we don’t even know what we want to do, but we know we don’t want to keep doing what we are doing.

While I can’t provide advice that covers every situation, I can at least give you a case study that you may be able to learn from. The case study involves my retirement, which is very timely: my official retirement date was exactly one year ago today. I’ll discuss my situation, my thought process, and my actions. Hopefully this can benefit you in some of your decision-making activities.

Background

A former associate used to say that he could not retire until reached 82: although a couple of years older than me, he has young children, and was only half-joking.

I would quip back that I would die before I retired. About 10 years ago, Vickie and I had spent over $100,000 gaining custody of our oldest granddaughter. And, we got stuck for a long while with a couple of properties that were losing money.

So, when I started thinking seriously about retirement about 3 years ago, I really did not think it was an option. I certainly wasn’t proud of my 401k, and I knew there would be huge actuarial penalties associated with retiring at anything less than 62, and I was only a little over 55.

But, I felt like I had to change something … ever since Vickie passed away, work just didn’t seem the same to me. I did love the people I worked with, and still do, dearly. And, at times I really, really enjoyed the work. But, I still knew “down deep inside” that it was time for a change.

Use Project Management Every Step of the Way

So, I knew that rolling options around inside of my head was not going to get me anywhere: I knew that actions were required. So, applying good Getting Things Done techniques, I set up a project entitled “Examine Retirement Potential.” Then, I began developing and implementing Next Actions for it and for every related project that followed it. (From the time of this project to my retirement, I probably had a dozen related projects.)

When I say “use project management,” I do not mean that you have to go out and buy a copy of Microsoft Project. I used nothing more than the simple GTD techniques that David Allen describes in his book, and which I describe in some detail in this discussion on managing tasks and in this discussion on managing projects.

My first “Next Action” was to gather appropriate financial data. Among other things, this entailed using my company’s pension calculator to see what monthly pension I would receive if I retired at 56.

Then, after gathering data, the next step was to make sense of it and to try answer the question: “Is this enough for me?” Frankly, I was disappointed that it looked like I needed to wait a while. But, at least it looked like something I could do if I could reduce debt (for example).

So, I began paying about $1,000 extra per month on my mortgage, thinking I would just go ahead and pay it off. I kept at this for about 6 months or so, maybe a little longer, and then all of a sudden I realized that I really should get a consultant to look at my situation and advise me on what to do. In hindsight, I should have done this right at the start, but foresight is more difficult than hindsight.

Get Some INDEPENDENT Advice

I think that for any major change, one should try to benefit from the thought process of people who can give you an unbiased opinion. When someone is giving you advice, it pays to ask yourself “what’s their motivation … what’s in this for them?”

The consultant I hired gave me some interesting advice: (1) stop paying extra on the mortgage, (2) put the extra money into the 401k and into savings, and (3) get an interest-only loan. Going this route, he showed me that I could retire at 57 or possibly 57 and a half.

He projected that there would still be plenty of money left when I die, and that I would not need to do a 72T option (which allows you to take money out of your 401k, penalty-free, before you turn 59 and a half). Of course, he wanted me to switch my 401k over to an IRA with his company. This was where I realized this guy doesn’t give a rat’s ass about me … just my money and how his company can keep as much of it as possible. Why would I want to have lots of money left when I die? Makes no sense … I’d like to use it while I am alive, thank you.

But, his calculations were useful nonetheless. And it did sensitize to me something about deciding on retirement: you really have to figure out when you are going to die. Of course, none of us know, do we? But, you don’t want to live longer than your money does, so it pays to look way into the future with the forecasting.

One final point on independent advice: I read several books about retirement. The VP of HR got three books for me to read, sort of as a test case for a library for our company, which has several people my age. One of those books had some really timeless advice:

If you retire too early, that is a mistake you can recover from. If you retire too late, there is no recovery.

That really hit home with me. Also, two of three books stressed that it is easier to live on a reduced income than most people think. Many people put off retirement because they want to have at least as much monthly income in retirement as when they were working. That sort of thinking can work out, but it can also lead to people working right up until they croak.

Test Everything You Can

One thing the consultant did say that was great advice was for me to test-run what it would be like to live on my projected retirement income/expense profile. This was great advice, and it gave me the confidence to make the final decision. Frankly, it was a bit of a scary thought to me. I would be living on a pension that was one-fourth my normal income (retiring early is expensive), supplemented by some income from savings as needed. I worried that I could not do it … I really liked buying toys and this would pretty much end that.

So, I tested it for about 6 months. I made it okay. That gave me the confidence that I could really do it. Hence, around the beginning of 2006, I told my boss I would retire in the June or September or December timeframe. He needed some time to replace me and there would have to be some overlap to ensure everything went smooth. And, I felt I needed time to save more money.

Would I Do Anything Different?

Yup. I would save more. Within six months of retiring I got hit with about $15,000 in unexpected expenses. I had planned for some “unexpected” expense, but not that much. So, saving more would have given me more of a cushion.

And, I would have gotten independent advice a lot sooner: it should have been done in parallel with the data-gathering activity.

Wrapping Up

There is probably a ton of useful information that I have forgotten to add. But, hopefully these broad strokes give you a sense of how you might go about deciding on whether to make a big change.

Almost all of us fear change, and we look for excuse after excuse to put it off. Very often this works against us. So, if you are thinking about making a big change, you owe it to yourself to go ahead and start turning your thoughts into projects. Evaluate the feasibility, get some independent advice, and test what you can.

• Netcentrics GTD Outlook Plugin
• FranklinCovey PlanPlus v.4 for Outlook

My personal favorite of these two is PlanPlus. Its downside is that it tends to slow Outlook down a little more than the GTD plugin does, but with the speed of today’s machines it is barely noticeable.

What I like most about PlanPlus is the way it helps you to focus on the Big Picture. For example, its Weekly Compass helps you think through your Roles and related actions:

Another really neat thing about PlanPlus is that it includes Pocket Informant 2007, which integrates well with PlanPlus, from its Master Task list through its integration with the Project Management Module of PlanPlus. The screenshot to the right indicates some of PI2007′s FranklinCovey-style support.

And, if you use Palm instead of a Pocket PC or Windows Mobile Smartphone, PlanPlus includes software that can be loaded on a Palm to keep all of the PlanPlus features at hand. This software even includes Mission and Daily Compass syncing support (Pocket Informant 2007 does not include support for these two items).

The software for both devices (and the plugin within Outlook) also support one of the most-loved features of the FranklinCovey system: the use of Daily Notes. And, any changes made on either device are synced back to the plugin with Outlook, and vice versa.

You can also implement GTD methodology using PlanPlus. That is another reason why I prefer it to the GTD plugin: you can implement GTD with it, but you can also implement FranklinCovey techniques with it. The GTD plugin is strictly for implementing GTD.

Speaking of the GTD Plugin, it really shines in the way it helps you manage your inbox. With a few clicks, you can turn an email into a Task, or you can defer reading of it until a different time, or you can set an appointment to implement it, and so on.

It also has a simple but useful project-management interface:

And, it offers a number of useful views for managing your Task lists and Appointments.

I discuss these two plugins in more depth at the following links: Using the PlanPlus Outlook Plugin and Getting in Control with the GTD Outlook Plugin.

What are your experiences with plugins in for Outlook? Do you prefer a different plugin to the two mentioned here, or do you prefer to not use plugins?

Who doesn’t, you say? You are right: we all hope for things. Having hope and optimism in a situation you cannot control makes sense. But, when you can control the outcome, why hope? Why not just plan and do?

Even the most action-oriented people can fall into the “hope trap” on occasion. Regardless, if we can catch ourselves doing it, we can plan and do instead.

That brings me to some thoughts on planning and what a plan should entail:

• A statement of the desired successful outcome. David Allen reminds us of this time and again in his classic Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity … it is something we need to be reminded of until it becomes a habit, a way of thinking. And, of course the outcome should focus on win-win outcomes, as Covey would remind us in his classic The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
• A sequence of actions and a timeline. This is pretty obvious, but to be complete, we state the obvious as well as the sometimes-overlooked.
• A listing of contingency steps, as needed. Things don’t always go as planned (or hoped), and you need contingencies for when they don’t.
• A list of resources and accountabilities. Not needed for the simple plans that you can implement yourself, but an essential element for a plan involving others.
• A list of assumptions. An often overlooked but important element to consider. Your action sequence is based on assumptions, as is your successful outcome. You serve yourself well to write those assumptions down and think about how realistic they are.

Anything I’ve overlooked?

If I didn’t know the answer, I might guess “reality.” But, of course I would be wrong, as a lot of plans survive contact with reality. I’ve had plenty of them and so have you.

The full phrase is No Plan Survives Contact With The Enemy, a military phrase acknowledging that you cannot fully plan for a fluid situation. To address this, the military has sets of Commander Intentions, which are what the troops turn to when the plans go astray. Of course, as is evident in Iraq, CI’s are not always successful either. But, they stand a better chance of success than detailed plans because they focus implementers on desired outcomes. While I personally disagree with some of the Getting Things Done philosophy (particularly its priority-setting methods), I really like the GTD focus on always clearly defining a successful outcome for every project (and on doing so upfront, before beginning any planning).

Footnote: For those interested in further reading on this phrase, I came across it in reading Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. It covers some interesting examples of how a clearly-stated core idea/principle/intended outcome can help us ad-lib our way to success when the detailed plans fall apart (or where no detailed plans are available). For example, it addresses an example or two of how Southwest Airlines’ core principle was used in making decisions in the field, that principle being: “We are THE low-fare airline.”

As I’ve noted in other posts, I sometimes use MindManager 6 on my iMac to do brainstorming (and is noted in the post below, to do visioning). What I just discovered today is that MindJet, the developers of MindManager, have several AppleScripts for converting map elements to iCal events or tasks, and even a script for converting an entire mindmap into an OmniOutliner project. How cool! I just tried it out with a semi-complicated mindmap and it worked just fine, creating an OmniOutliner project for me, with all of the proper indentation of “subtasks” and so on.

A very handy tool for Mac folks! You do have to sign in to MindJet’s site to download the scripts. However, registering to download is incredibly easy: I just filled in a Gmail address and set a password and began downloading within seconds.

Related article:

• Map Your Way Through the Jungle of Life