WEBVTT captioned by rodrigo, checked by sachac and bhavin
NOTE Introduction
00:00:00.300 --> 00:00:00.874
Oh, wow!
00:00:00.924 --> 00:00:05.740
I'm gonna tell you about how I'm learning this new thing…
00:00:07.790 --> 00:00:08.539
Okay…
00:00:11.840 --> 00:00:15.157
Hey dude, I am recording, okay? So, I'll call you back
00:00:15.757 --> 00:00:18.074
yeah yeah I'm doing learning the new thing.
00:00:18.724 --> 00:00:20.574
Yeah yeah yeah later later later
00:00:20.624 --> 00:00:22.924
not right now later later later later.
00:00:24.024 --> 00:00:24.990
Sorry about that.
00:00:25.390 --> 00:00:28.719
Okay, as I was saying, I'm going to tell you all about
00:00:28.920 --> 00:00:30.774
how I'm learning this new thing.
00:00:32.074 --> 00:00:36.440
Ooh, Sacha Chua's Emacs newsletter is out.
00:00:36.490 --> 00:00:38.874
Maybe I should spend some time…
00:00:38.924 --> 00:00:41.769
Oh, wait a second. I have to learn this new thing.
00:00:43.370 --> 00:00:46.790
Haha. Okay, so I'm going to tell you
00:00:47.290 --> 00:00:51.474
how we can learn new skills in the middle of
00:00:51.524 --> 00:00:54.359
so many other wonderful things that you want to do
00:00:54.360 --> 00:00:56.959
and to speak to wonderful people that you have to speak to.
00:00:57.460 --> 00:01:01.407
My name is Bala Ramadurai and I'm going to be talking about
00:01:01.607 --> 00:01:06.307
the Survival of The Skillest, that's what I call it, okay?
00:01:07.407 --> 00:01:11.574
Survival of The Skillest. Thriving in the Learning Jungle.
00:01:11.724 --> 00:01:14.149
Here I'm going to give you some tips and techniques
00:01:14.250 --> 00:01:17.490
as to how you can learn skills, new skills.
00:01:17.990 --> 00:01:22.974
I'm going to give you a quote from a multi-talented teacher.
00:01:23.224 --> 00:01:27.007
He was the second president of my country, India.
00:01:27.357 --> 00:01:29.440
S. Radhakrishnan, he says,
00:01:29.590 --> 00:01:32.324
“When we think we know, we cease to learn.”
00:01:32.674 --> 00:01:33.849
That was his quote.
NOTE What is a skill?
00:01:35.350 --> 00:01:36.240
What is a skill?
00:01:36.540 --> 00:01:39.157
A skill is the knowledge and the ability
00:01:39.507 --> 00:01:42.707
that enables you to do something well.
00:01:43.157 --> 00:01:45.557
There's the knowledge first and the ability
00:01:45.607 --> 00:01:46.474
and you have to do it well.
NOTE Why should you learn a new skill?
00:01:47.424 --> 00:01:50.324
Right. So why should you learn a new skill?
00:01:50.824 --> 00:01:53.474
Now if you can pause this video,
00:01:53.674 --> 00:01:55.224
watching streaming part of the video,
00:01:55.524 --> 00:01:57.990
then come up with your own reasons.
00:01:58.040 --> 00:02:00.290
I'm going to give you my top three reasons
00:02:00.340 --> 00:02:02.424
that you might want to learn a new skill.
00:02:02.574 --> 00:02:03.989
Get ahead in your career.
00:02:04.390 --> 00:02:08.040
Look good or cool in your community or peer group
00:02:08.640 --> 00:02:09.890
or someone forced you to.
NOTE What skills should you learn?
00:02:11.040 --> 00:02:14.174
Now, what skills should you learn?
00:02:14.574 --> 00:02:16.124
Ok, there could be a whole list.
00:02:16.674 --> 00:02:19.479
Let me take a stab at some of the ones
00:02:19.529 --> 00:02:21.757
that I think could be cool: bungee jumping,
00:02:22.057 --> 00:02:24.340
teaching your pet to pick up the newspaper
00:02:24.390 --> 00:02:25.679
without tearing it to shreds.
00:02:26.330 --> 00:02:29.974
Perhaps with Python rearing, I meant coding, coding,
00:02:30.024 --> 00:02:31.090
you can do learning coding.
00:02:31.240 --> 00:02:34.340
So you could list your own skills that you have to learn,
00:02:34.390 --> 00:02:35.174
you want to learn.
NOTE What stops you from learning new skills?
00:02:35.974 --> 00:02:38.540
But what stops you from learning new skills?
00:02:39.140 --> 00:02:41.030
The most common reason that I've heard
00:02:41.230 --> 00:02:42.690
in the past is lack of time.
00:02:42.790 --> 00:02:45.174
“Oh Bala, I have to do so many things.”
00:02:45.474 --> 00:02:47.540
“I don't have the time to learn any new skills.”
00:02:48.140 --> 00:02:50.440
Lack of motivation could be another reason.
00:02:50.740 --> 00:02:52.257
Or you're just a rebel.
00:02:53.307 --> 00:02:56.407
Who is he or who is she to tell me what I should learn?
00:02:56.507 --> 00:02:57.707
I'm going to learn things like that.
00:02:57.857 --> 00:03:00.040
So then it stops you from learning a new skill.
00:03:01.040 --> 00:03:04.307
But there's even more fundamental reason
00:03:04.357 --> 00:03:06.874
for why we don't learn a new skill so easily.
00:03:07.374 --> 00:03:10.074
And this comes from the story of scholar in the teacup.
00:03:10.174 --> 00:03:12.157
I can pass on the link later to you.
00:03:12.257 --> 00:03:15.424
You can watch this, my own version of the story.
NOTE Empty your teacup
00:03:16.274 --> 00:03:18.740
The ultimate truth in this story
00:03:18.790 --> 00:03:20.757
or the moral in this story is that
00:03:21.057 --> 00:03:23.657
we are filled with preconceived ideas
00:03:23.957 --> 00:03:25.874
and the Zen master in the story says,
00:03:26.074 --> 00:03:27.540
it's like a full teacup.
00:03:27.940 --> 00:03:32.107
In order to learn new skills, you have to empty your teacup.
00:03:32.807 --> 00:03:34.674
Now, how do you empty your teacup?
00:03:34.724 --> 00:03:37.607
You just can't pour everything out of your head, right?
00:03:37.707 --> 00:03:39.824
So how do you really empty your teacup?
00:03:40.624 --> 00:03:43.340
So the way to empty your teacup,
00:03:43.790 --> 00:03:46.540
simplest way to do it is write down your thoughts.
00:03:46.790 --> 00:03:48.390
As simple as that.
00:03:48.740 --> 00:03:51.157
Just take a piece of paper and write it down.
00:03:51.657 --> 00:03:53.674
Or if you are on electronic means,
00:03:53.724 --> 00:03:57.840
use Emacs Org Mode and type out your thoughts, okay?
00:03:58.490 --> 00:04:00.007
There is a task for you right now.
00:04:00.507 --> 00:04:02.607
What you have to do is to create a folder
00:04:02.657 --> 00:04:05.774
in your documents folder called Inbox.
00:04:05.824 --> 00:04:09.874
Create one and create a new file called todo.org.
00:04:10.224 --> 00:04:11.240
If you are paper based,
00:04:11.290 --> 00:04:14.607
you can use a notebook or any other forms of the same file.
00:04:15.257 --> 00:04:18.407
In that, write down all your unfinished tasks
00:04:18.707 --> 00:04:19.969
personal and professional.
00:04:20.270 --> 00:04:23.207
Write down some things that have been worrying you,
00:04:23.607 --> 00:04:25.074
whatever worries you right now.
00:04:25.124 --> 00:04:27.569
just write it down, the whole thing, okay?
00:04:28.019 --> 00:04:29.957
Write down some tasks or actions that
00:04:30.107 --> 00:04:32.174
you are waiting for somebody else
00:04:32.524 --> 00:04:34.740
that could also be part of your list here.
00:04:35.640 --> 00:04:37.859
Great. Now that you have emptied your tea cup,
00:04:38.160 --> 00:04:40.374
I'm going to tell you the origin of these ideas.
NOTE Getting Things Done
00:04:40.424 --> 00:04:42.990
These come from “Getting Things Done” by David Allen.
00:04:43.090 --> 00:04:46.207
It's a great book. I've read it multiple times. Fantastic.
00:04:46.657 --> 00:04:50.240
And he says, your mind is for having ideas,
00:04:50.390 --> 00:04:51.424
not holding them.
00:04:52.274 --> 00:04:54.740
You have to hold on to this idea in your mind.
00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:55.840
Keep it in your mind.
00:04:55.890 --> 00:04:59.107
saying it's for having ideas, not holding them.
00:05:00.757 --> 00:05:05.007
Alright, perform one of four actions on your task list.
00:05:05.207 --> 00:05:07.474
Okay? The one that you just wrote down.
00:05:07.974 --> 00:05:10.274
You delete them, okay? As simple as that.
00:05:10.324 --> 00:05:13.574
Strikethrough the task, hit the delete
00:05:13.624 --> 00:05:16.274
or change the state to cancel, okay?
00:05:16.674 --> 00:05:18.307
Alright, If you don't want to delete it,
00:05:18.357 --> 00:05:20.074
you want to defer it, do it later.
00:05:20.524 --> 00:05:21.807
Add it to your calendar.
00:05:22.107 --> 00:05:23.840
Add a reminder to it if you want.
00:05:24.190 --> 00:05:27.307
Or in Emacs Org Mode use C-c C-s to
00:05:27.357 --> 00:05:31.207
schedule it to a different time that you feel
00:05:31.257 --> 00:05:32.940
you would be able to do that task.
00:05:33.640 --> 00:05:35.374
Or just delegate it to somebody else.
00:05:35.424 --> 00:05:37.380
Maybe you are not the best person to do it
00:05:37.430 --> 00:05:40.090
or you probably won't find time to do this.
00:05:40.590 --> 00:05:43.357
Send it to your colleague, student, assistant,
00:05:43.807 --> 00:05:46.524
maybe even your favorite LLM to do this.
00:05:47.374 --> 00:05:49.624
LLM being large language model.
00:05:50.274 --> 00:05:53.457
Or just do it, right? As they say, just do it.
00:05:53.807 --> 00:05:56.140
Set a timer for two minutes and do the task.
00:05:56.190 --> 00:05:57.807
Finish the task, right here right now.
00:05:58.257 --> 00:05:59.207
Nothing is stopping you.
00:05:59.257 --> 00:06:00.909
Finish it. Oh, great, I'm going to do this
00:06:01.360 --> 00:06:02.457
but set yourself two minutes
00:06:02.507 --> 00:06:04.940
because sometimes it may spill over to half an hour
00:06:04.990 --> 00:06:06.674
and you still haven't processed through your list.
00:06:07.024 --> 00:06:08.407
That's why the timer for two minutes.
00:06:08.907 --> 00:06:10.524
One tip I'm going to give you is:
00:06:10.624 --> 00:06:13.459
Don't skip any of the items from your list
00:06:13.910 --> 00:06:16.490
because it's tough work you've been trying to avoid it,
00:06:16.640 --> 00:06:17.374
don't do that.
00:06:17.724 --> 00:06:22.974
Be rigorous and finish it off, processing at least, okay?
00:06:23.324 --> 00:06:25.607
Now you can do the absolute same process
00:06:25.657 --> 00:06:26.940
on your email inbox.
00:06:27.090 --> 00:06:31.490
I know, I know some of you have 55,000 emails in your inbox.
00:06:31.540 --> 00:06:33.274
How am I going to process all of them?
NOTE Archive
00:06:33.724 --> 00:06:36.490
Well, Tiago Forte, whose method
00:06:36.540 --> 00:06:39.157
I'm going to be also talking about, says:
00:06:39.257 --> 00:06:42.657
Archive them all and pull out the top 100, okay?
00:06:42.707 --> 00:06:45.007
The last latest 100 and process that.
00:06:45.757 --> 00:06:48.207
That's a cool way to do it, okay?
00:06:48.407 --> 00:06:50.674
So you're not stuck to those 55,000,
00:06:50.724 --> 00:06:52.340
but just the top 100 of those.
00:06:52.990 --> 00:06:53.957
You can do the same,
00:06:54.007 --> 00:06:55.140
absolutely the same thing
00:06:55.190 --> 00:06:57.624
to any of your messaging apps as well:
00:06:57.674 --> 00:07:01.240
WhatsApp, Matrix, Slack, whatever you choose.
00:07:01.890 --> 00:07:03.099
Even to your physical inbox,
00:07:03.200 --> 00:07:04.540
you can do the absolute same things.
00:07:04.590 --> 00:07:06.574
You lift your items and
00:07:06.624 --> 00:07:09.707
see if you can need to process them, okay?
00:07:10.407 --> 00:07:13.174
What if the email or message or task is something
00:07:13.224 --> 00:07:14.974
that you might need in the future?
00:07:15.274 --> 00:07:16.807
Great! Archive them
00:07:17.107 --> 00:07:19.507
or move it to a place you may refer to later.
00:07:19.757 --> 00:07:23.240
So, you have plenty of storage in your cloud space,
00:07:23.290 --> 00:07:25.690
in your email space, in your computer space.
00:07:26.040 --> 00:07:27.790
Use that. Archive it.
00:07:27.890 --> 00:07:29.719
You can refer to it later. Not a worry.
00:07:29.820 --> 00:07:31.040
Don't want it right in front of you.
00:07:31.090 --> 00:07:32.740
That's the only thing here, right?
NOTE Multiple steps
00:07:33.290 --> 00:07:35.207
Now another question that pops in your head is:
00:07:35.257 --> 00:07:38.807
What if something that requires multiple steps, right?
00:07:38.907 --> 00:07:42.774
not all steps are created… not all tasks are created alike,
00:07:43.074 --> 00:07:44.474
There are multiple steps to a task.
00:07:45.024 --> 00:07:47.959
That's when a task becomes a project, ok?
00:07:48.009 --> 00:07:49.990
An example or few examples of those
00:07:50.190 --> 00:07:53.840
are finishing a course on say Coursera or NPTEL or Udemy,
00:07:54.340 --> 00:07:56.224
teaching a course if you are a teacher
00:07:56.274 --> 00:07:57.874
in your college or school.
00:07:58.224 --> 00:08:00.807
If you are organizing a conference
00:08:00.957 --> 00:08:03.607
such as the Emacs conference, it's a huge project,
00:08:03.957 --> 00:08:05.990
you will need to use… it's a project.
00:08:07.440 --> 00:08:10.359
Arranging a birthday party for your spouse, that's sweet,
00:08:10.560 --> 00:08:13.170
but it's still a project, you will have many tasks in it.
00:08:13.220 --> 00:08:14.824
So these are examples of projects.
00:08:15.874 --> 00:08:17.374
Here's how one can handle projects.
00:08:18.024 --> 00:08:19.940
Create a folder for each project.
00:08:20.390 --> 00:08:24.340
Create a text or word doc or title it as todo.txt
00:08:24.390 --> 00:08:26.559
or todo.docx or todo.org.
00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:28.507
I prefer .org and you can do it.
00:08:29.057 --> 00:08:32.340
And in that, write down the success criteria,
00:08:32.440 --> 00:08:35.079
the goal or the deadline of the project.
00:08:35.730 --> 00:08:38.290
Write down all the tasks that need to be done.
00:08:38.340 --> 00:08:40.040
You don't have to think about all of it,
00:08:40.190 --> 00:08:41.529
but whatever comes to your mind,
00:08:41.579 --> 00:08:42.474
just put it in there
00:08:42.524 --> 00:08:45.974
as some tasks that you need to get done inside this project.
00:08:46.624 --> 00:08:52.174
Now, identify the immediate action that needs to be done
00:08:52.224 --> 00:08:53.740
for the project to move forward.
00:08:54.040 --> 00:08:56.279
That's usually something that's stopping the project
00:08:56.580 --> 00:08:57.257
from progressing.
00:08:57.457 --> 00:08:58.874
So identify that and say:
00:08:58.924 --> 00:09:00.307
“That's the next thing I'm going to do.”
00:09:01.557 --> 00:09:03.974
An example of a project is right here.
00:09:04.274 --> 00:09:06.107
Goal of the project is to deliver a talk
00:09:06.207 --> 00:09:09.157
about my organization system,
00:09:09.257 --> 00:09:12.709
make it like a workshop with pauses for activities.
00:09:13.010 --> 00:09:14.890
You can see that this is the talk
00:09:14.940 --> 00:09:16.174
that I am delivering right now.
00:09:16.424 --> 00:09:19.590
And right now if you see recording the talk, okay?
00:09:19.840 --> 00:09:21.907
Of course, the next one I'm going to do after this
00:09:21.957 --> 00:09:24.024
is going to be sending the recorded talk,
00:09:24.074 --> 00:09:25.339
the file and the PDF for the talk.
00:09:25.389 --> 00:09:27.974
Now, if you want, you can add some sub steps and all that
00:09:28.024 --> 00:09:28.774
also into this.
00:09:29.174 --> 00:09:31.599
Of course, I'd like to thank the coordinators for their
00:09:31.600 --> 00:09:33.479
absolutely wonderful work that they're doing
00:09:33.480 --> 00:09:35.240
throughout this, okay?
00:09:35.640 --> 00:09:37.274
Now, tasks for you.
00:09:37.474 --> 00:09:38.579
You can take your time.
00:09:38.779 --> 00:09:40.440
And first of all, think of a project
00:09:40.490 --> 00:09:42.374
that you have to absolutely get done.
00:09:43.474 --> 00:09:48.274
Create a folder on your computer or phone
00:09:48.324 --> 00:09:49.557
with the name of the project.
00:09:50.157 --> 00:09:51.724
Create a todo.org.
00:09:52.024 --> 00:09:56.024
If you want to use a notebook, you can use a fresh leaf.
00:09:56.524 --> 00:10:00.074
Write down all the tasks associated with this project.
00:10:00.524 --> 00:10:02.524
That's going to be how you handle it, right?
NOTE Multiple projects
00:10:02.874 --> 00:10:04.540
Now, what if you have multiple projects?
00:10:05.490 --> 00:10:08.107
Not many of us have only one project.
00:10:08.157 --> 00:10:09.757
In fact, many of us have multiple projects.
00:10:09.807 --> 00:10:11.240
What do we do in that situation?
00:10:11.790 --> 00:10:12.974
Well, the answer is simple.
00:10:13.274 --> 00:10:15.174
Create a folder for each project.
00:10:15.624 --> 00:10:20.157
Add this Org file called todo into each of those folders
00:10:20.657 --> 00:10:25.040
and write down the task for all of these projects as well.
00:10:25.190 --> 00:10:29.107
Write down all of these tasks and mark one of them as next.
00:10:29.207 --> 00:10:30.590
There can be only one next action.
00:10:30.790 --> 00:10:31.940
It can't be multiple next actions.
00:10:32.390 --> 00:10:34.840
That's the immediate thing that has to be done
00:10:34.990 --> 00:10:37.674
to take this project forward, okay?
NOTE What if the project stops before completion?
00:10:37.874 --> 00:10:40.390
What if the project stops before completion?
00:10:40.440 --> 00:10:42.974
There are possibilities sometimes you lose interest,
00:10:43.024 --> 00:10:44.874
sometimes your collaborator loses interest.
00:10:45.124 --> 00:10:46.707
What do you do in those situations?
00:10:47.157 --> 00:10:49.590
Have a folder in your computer or phone
00:10:49.740 --> 00:10:52.040
for abandoned projects called resources.
00:10:52.590 --> 00:10:53.270
Oh, by the way,
00:10:53.320 --> 00:10:57.157
for your projects folder, create an
00:10:57.557 --> 00:11:01.239
overarching projects folder and inside that are
00:11:01.289 --> 00:11:02.507
all the project folders.
00:11:02.607 --> 00:11:03.507
I forgot to tell you that.
00:11:03.707 --> 00:11:06.807
Same way, on the same level, create a resources folder.
00:11:06.957 --> 00:11:09.057
That's for all your abandoned projects
00:11:09.107 --> 00:11:13.040
or even could be on your research material as well,
00:11:13.090 --> 00:11:14.859
which you are not currently working on.
00:11:15.509 --> 00:11:18.669
Move this particular project that's abandoned or stopped
00:11:18.769 --> 00:11:20.274
somewhere in between to that folder.
NOTE What if you successfully complete the project?
00:11:20.974 --> 00:11:23.590
Now, there's a possibility you might successfully complete.
00:11:23.640 --> 00:11:26.840
I hope all your projects end up being successful.
00:11:27.190 --> 00:11:30.174
But there are quite a few which will end up in this,
00:11:30.224 --> 00:11:32.857
quite a few which will end up abandoned as well.
00:11:33.757 --> 00:11:37.390
Now, I write an end report so that I can learn from this.
00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:39.274
What did I enjoy most in the project?
00:11:39.324 --> 00:11:40.574
What could have been better?
00:11:40.874 --> 00:11:43.024
What did I learn from this particular project?
00:11:43.724 --> 00:11:45.699
Now, you will need to move that folder
00:11:45.849 --> 00:11:47.490
to a folder called archives.
00:11:47.790 --> 00:11:50.757
This is the final resting place for the project,
00:11:50.807 --> 00:11:53.490
completed projects because if you come up
00:11:53.540 --> 00:11:55.640
with another project which sounds similar
00:11:55.690 --> 00:11:56.807
to the archives one,
00:11:56.857 --> 00:11:59.140
you can pick that out and create that as a template,
00:11:59.190 --> 00:12:00.124
use that as a template.
00:12:00.524 --> 00:12:04.290
Now, why would I have one folder per project
00:12:04.340 --> 00:12:07.457
when there's only one file sitting in it called todo.org?
00:12:07.757 --> 00:12:10.774
Well, most projects also have some project files
00:12:10.824 --> 00:12:13.574
and this folder can be a storehouse of all of that
00:12:13.824 --> 00:12:15.824
and you can access all of them at one shot.
00:12:16.174 --> 00:12:16.990
That's the advantage.
NOTE What if the project is ongoing and doesn't really end?
00:12:18.140 --> 00:12:20.740
What if the project is ongoing and doesn't really end?
00:12:20.790 --> 00:12:23.590
That doesn't seem to have a deadline or an ending point.
00:12:24.190 --> 00:12:27.107
That's called an Area. This is now an Area.
00:12:27.157 --> 00:12:31.674
Examples of Areas: gardening, paying bills, never stops,
00:12:32.024 --> 00:12:34.574
bills never don't stop, blogging.
00:12:34.624 --> 00:12:36.974
These are all some examples of Areas that really
00:12:37.024 --> 00:12:39.474
don't have a definite deadline.
00:12:40.374 --> 00:12:44.559
For Areas also, create a folder for each of them, right?
00:12:44.710 --> 00:12:47.274
You can create a parent folder called Areas
00:12:47.324 --> 00:12:50.540
and under them you can have those areas, okay,
00:12:50.990 --> 00:12:53.519
and have a todo [file] in each of those folders.
NOTE What if you forget to visit the TODO files?
00:12:54.320 --> 00:12:56.724
Now what if we forget to visit the todo files
00:12:57.024 --> 00:12:58.824
which in my case often happens?
00:12:58.974 --> 00:13:00.790
I forget to visit those todo files
00:13:01.040 --> 00:13:03.540
and see what the task net needs to be done.
00:13:03.940 --> 00:13:08.174
You can of course add all of this todo.org
00:13:08.224 --> 00:13:11.110
and into your org-agenda-files variable
00:13:11.360 --> 00:13:14.014
so that when you pull up your Org Agenda,
00:13:14.015 --> 00:13:14.729
all of them show up.
00:13:15.080 --> 00:13:15.790
That's a good idea.
00:13:16.440 --> 00:13:18.574
You need to have a weekly review with yourself.
00:13:19.624 --> 00:13:22.090
Weekly review is essentially a weekly appointment
00:13:22.140 --> 00:13:24.207
with yourself for you to stay
00:13:24.357 --> 00:13:28.674
in control of your life or career. To keep things on track.
00:13:29.524 --> 00:13:32.474
In the weekly review, you need to empty your teacup.
00:13:32.724 --> 00:13:34.974
That's the first and foremost, okay?
00:13:35.274 --> 00:13:38.539
Then process all your items in the TODO file.
00:13:39.239 --> 00:13:42.007
Process all your emails from the last week.
00:13:42.057 --> 00:13:45.340
Use the exact same structure of do, delete, defer, delegate.
00:13:45.390 --> 00:13:47.074
These are the four D's that you can use.
00:13:47.474 --> 00:13:51.740
Process all your messaging app messages from the last week.
00:13:51.890 --> 00:13:54.024
So last one whole week, whatever has come up,
00:13:54.074 --> 00:13:56.824
you need to process all of them, okay?
00:13:57.174 --> 00:13:58.174
In the weekly review,
00:13:58.224 --> 00:14:01.439
you also need to archive all your emails and
00:14:01.440 --> 00:14:03.839
messaging app messages that you have processed.
00:14:03.990 --> 00:14:05.707
You've already taken care of it.
00:14:05.857 --> 00:14:07.690
You don't need to have it right in front of you.
00:14:07.740 --> 00:14:09.707
You can move them all into archive.
00:14:09.957 --> 00:14:12.240
Most messaging apps and email systems
00:14:12.290 --> 00:14:14.774
have archives as part of their features.
00:14:15.524 --> 00:14:17.124
Look through the project TODO files
00:14:17.174 --> 00:14:20.290
to see if the next action is marked, okay?
00:14:20.690 --> 00:14:22.374
Now look through the project folder list
00:14:22.424 --> 00:14:24.157
to see if some of them need to be archived
00:14:24.307 --> 00:14:26.274
or moved to resources.
00:14:26.474 --> 00:14:28.390
Some may be abandoned, some may be done.
00:14:28.640 --> 00:14:30.490
You can move them successfully to
00:14:30.540 --> 00:14:32.407
all of where it needs to belong.
00:14:33.257 --> 00:14:34.942
Now task for you, you can pause this,
00:14:34.943 --> 00:14:36.290
of course, and do this.
00:14:36.540 --> 00:14:39.679
Set an appointment with yourself, sacrosanct time,
00:14:39.730 --> 00:14:42.124
only with yourself and title it weekly review.
00:14:42.324 --> 00:14:43.674
Start with half an hour,
00:14:43.924 --> 00:14:45.907
perhaps you can have it longer later on.
00:14:46.057 --> 00:14:47.712
As you need more time,
00:14:47.713 --> 00:14:49.096
you can have more time with yourself.
00:14:49.846 --> 00:14:51.907
And make it repeating every week.
00:14:53.607 --> 00:14:56.307
Now you can complain, I can hear you some of you complain
00:14:56.357 --> 00:14:58.507
“Oh, this is such a microscopic view of my life.
00:14:58.557 --> 00:14:59.707
What about the big picture?”
00:14:59.857 --> 00:15:03.674
Well, there is quarterly review, once every 13 weeks
00:15:03.724 --> 00:15:06.107
you can mark an appointment with yourself.
00:15:06.357 --> 00:15:08.274
Right after your weekly review
00:15:08.324 --> 00:15:11.240
to do your quarterly review, okay?
00:15:11.290 --> 00:15:14.116
And also every year, mark yourself--
00:15:14.117 --> 00:15:15.174
it could be at the start
00:15:15.224 --> 00:15:18.840
or the end of an academic year or a calendar year--
00:15:18.990 --> 00:15:21.840
mark yourself an appointment again with yourself
00:15:21.940 --> 00:15:22.890
called yearly review.
00:15:23.790 --> 00:15:26.474
And these contain some big life questions, okay?
00:15:27.074 --> 00:15:31.157
Now I'll give you some examples but feel free to modify it,
00:15:31.207 --> 00:15:32.274
have it as your own.
00:15:33.324 --> 00:15:34.799
How much money did I make?
00:15:34.850 --> 00:15:36.540
How much money did I save?
00:15:36.640 --> 00:15:38.440
How many people did I help?
00:15:39.040 --> 00:15:42.307
How many do I plan to help in the future?
00:15:43.457 --> 00:15:44.690
What projects did I enjoy?
00:15:44.740 --> 00:15:47.707
Look through your archives and resources.
00:15:47.907 --> 00:15:49.840
Which one are best avoided?
00:15:49.890 --> 00:15:52.440
I don't want to get on to this, okay?
00:15:52.490 --> 00:15:55.359
You can look through a personal and private… I'm sorry…
00:15:55.360 --> 00:15:56.707
personal and professional and
00:15:56.757 --> 00:15:59.324
see how much is there a balance between all of these.
00:15:59.724 --> 00:16:01.640
These are some questions you can answer.
NOTE Planning for the future
00:16:02.740 --> 00:16:04.840
Now that you know how to manage them now...
00:16:04.890 --> 00:16:06.590
So far we have looked at the now,
00:16:06.840 --> 00:16:08.240
how do you plan for the future?
00:16:08.290 --> 00:16:09.674
like really into the future?
00:16:10.224 --> 00:16:13.174
Well, I have a trick called nine windows for you.
00:16:13.474 --> 00:16:15.340
Nine windows are essentially,
00:16:15.640 --> 00:16:18.257
it's like a tic-tac-toe grid
00:16:18.507 --> 00:16:25.174
and the left column is your past,
00:16:25.574 --> 00:16:27.740
the middle column is your present
00:16:28.090 --> 00:16:31.740
and the right column is your future, okay?
00:16:31.940 --> 00:16:37.590
and the bottom row is your skill set,
00:16:37.940 --> 00:16:40.519
the middle row is what you do
00:16:40.920 --> 00:16:44.607
and the top row is whom do you work for
00:16:44.657 --> 00:16:46.674
or whom do you serve, right?
00:16:46.724 --> 00:16:50.349
So you are doing something for an organization
00:16:50.500 --> 00:16:51.869
so those could be in your top row.
00:16:52.570 --> 00:16:54.974
Let me give you an example from my own life.
00:16:55.424 --> 00:16:58.874
This I made about 10 years ago, okay?
00:16:59.024 --> 00:17:05.674
So the middle column is the what I did 10 years ago.
00:17:05.724 --> 00:17:09.207
So that is the now let's keep it as the now, okay?
00:17:09.257 --> 00:17:11.390
So five years before that, I used to work
00:17:11.440 --> 00:17:12.990
for General Electric (GE).
00:17:13.090 --> 00:17:14.790
I was a research scientist for them
00:17:15.240 --> 00:17:16.874
and the skills that I had was:
00:17:16.924 --> 00:17:22.474
I had a PhD which was used in this profession.
00:17:22.824 --> 00:17:23.740
I had writing skills,
00:17:23.790 --> 00:17:25.224
I had some teaching skills,
00:17:25.424 --> 00:17:28.224
and I love to interact and learn from my teammates.
00:17:29.224 --> 00:17:32.540
Then I joined Mindtree, which was the current job
00:17:32.590 --> 00:17:35.774
when I did this, software services company.
00:17:36.824 --> 00:17:38.474
I co-founded TRIZIndia also.
00:17:38.524 --> 00:17:40.574
These are two organizations that I served.
00:17:41.124 --> 00:17:44.940
And facilitator, that was the main profession that I was in.
00:17:45.240 --> 00:17:46.874
And the skills I had was:
00:17:46.924 --> 00:17:47.399
TRIZ [Theory of Inventive Problem Solving],
00:17:47.800 --> 00:17:51.874
interacting with people outside of my team,
00:17:52.224 --> 00:17:54.840
and I could align well with my organization.
00:17:54.890 --> 00:17:56.224
I knew exactly where they were going
00:17:56.274 --> 00:17:58.407
and how to align myself, my goals with that.
00:17:59.107 --> 00:18:02.174
Now, I said, five years later,
00:18:02.224 --> 00:18:04.674
I want to be an entrepreneur and an author.
00:18:05.174 --> 00:18:06.924
And I want to do this for,
00:18:07.224 --> 00:18:11.557
I want to really work with academia and corporate companies.
00:18:11.757 --> 00:18:12.790
That was my goal.
00:18:13.240 --> 00:18:15.007
So the skills I needed to have were:
00:18:15.057 --> 00:18:18.157
marketing, writing, sales, hiring, people management,
00:18:18.207 --> 00:18:19.474
all of that I needed to have.
00:18:19.924 --> 00:18:21.490
And I had to plan that so I used
00:18:21.540 --> 00:18:22.740
the PARA structure [projects, areas, resources, archives]
00:18:23.090 --> 00:18:27.240
to manage how I'm going to learn all of these skills
00:18:27.290 --> 00:18:29.207
and imbibe those and get better at it.
00:18:29.257 --> 00:18:30.357
So that's where I use this.
00:18:31.157 --> 00:18:32.439
Ok, your turn.
00:18:32.639 --> 00:18:34.940
You can pause this video and build your own nine windows
00:18:34.990 --> 00:18:36.007
to plan for the future.
NOTE Summary
00:18:36.957 --> 00:18:39.957
So in summary, you need to empty your teacup
00:18:40.007 --> 00:18:42.740
before engaging with the work in front of you.
00:18:43.040 --> 00:18:45.340
Use the PARA structure: projects, area,
00:18:45.390 --> 00:18:46.669
resources and archives.
00:18:46.770 --> 00:18:51.479
Create this folder structure and use reviews regularly,
00:18:51.480 --> 00:18:53.474
weekly, quarterly and yearly.
00:18:54.024 --> 00:18:55.740
Use the nine windows to your advantage
00:18:55.790 --> 00:18:57.290
for your future career planning
00:18:57.640 --> 00:19:00.340
and of course, apply PARA to your future plans
00:19:00.440 --> 00:19:02.859
to plan for those as well, ok?
NOTE References
00:19:03.210 --> 00:19:04.790
Now, these are the references I have used.
00:19:04.840 --> 00:19:07.240
heavily borrowed upon Tiago Fortes' PARA,
00:19:07.640 --> 00:19:09.239
David Allen's “Getting Things Done”
00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:13.039
and Tasshin's way to implement this in Emacs and Org Mode.
00:19:14.190 --> 00:19:15.457
These are some acknowledgments.
00:19:15.507 --> 00:19:17.790
I used some generative AI for this.
00:19:18.290 --> 00:19:20.590
And this is a question to you:
00:19:20.790 --> 00:19:24.090
What parts of this talk are you planning on implementing?
00:19:24.140 --> 00:19:26.274
Please write this in the Etherpad.
00:19:26.824 --> 00:19:28.519
Thank you so much. If you have any questions,
00:19:28.569 --> 00:19:30.357
let me know in the Etherpad as well.
00:19:30.857 --> 00:19:32.724
Good luck managing your tasks,
00:19:33.474 --> 00:19:36.650
emptying your teacup, and planning for the future.
