April 2010
19 posts
1 tag
How to Get Into a State of Flow
Image by cloois via Flickr
Have you ever been so immersed in a task that it feels like time speeds by? You can do anything and you’re extremely productive. You aren’t distracted and you’re only focused on the matter at hand. This is a state of flow. Every time I work I try and attain this state. At this state I feel like superman. If you want that feeling all the time then...
2 tags
Write it Down
Image via Wikipedia
One of the best things I’ve done to increase my mental health, relieve stress, and boost productivity has been to write everything down. Any task, mental note, or whatever I want to do I write it down in my system.
First, you must create a system. You can go old school with a pen and paper or new school with some sort of digital system. I personally prefer Things for...
1 tag
The Ultimate Deadline: Death
I started thinking about yesterday’s post called The Deadline Dilemma after I published it and I realized the ultimate deadline is death. Everything before then is a long marathon trying to get the most out of every step. No one knows when they’ll die but they do know it’s coming. Death is the greatest equalizer among all people. We are all going to experience it and each and...
1 tag
The Deadline Dilemma
Image by wallyg via Flickr
A problem I’ve recently run into is having to explain to my friends and family that I have other things to do that I have to take care of in the day when I can’t do whatever it is that they want me to do. For example, I may have to make some progress on some projects I’ve decided to try out for myself or blog a little bit. When they ask what I have to...
Site now Optimized for iPhone Users
Just wanted to let everyone know that Tumblr has now introduced iPhone optimized versions of their sites so you can now view this blog much better on your iPhone. Just point Safari to http://neildesai.tumblr.com and you’ll now see a much better version for your eyes. Android, Blackberry, etc support will be coming soon.
10 Things that Make me Faster on my Mac
Image via Wikipedia
I don’t know about you but I spend a lot of time on my computer. Think about how many times you do mindless tasks on your computer that really should be automated or maybe tasks that could be done much more efficiently. Here are 10 applications/tricks that make me faster on my Mac.
Quicksilver. By far the one application you must have if you have a Mac. I can’t...
2 tags
How to Wake Up Early
Image by farnea via Flickr
Yesterday, I wrote a post on Why You Should Wake Up Early and today I wanted to outline a couple of steps to help you do so.
Don’t hit snooze. This is the single biggest problem of mine when I’m trying to wake up. I love the snooze button. Those extra 10 minutes in my nice comfortable bed are heaven. And then it becomes another 10. And then 30. By the time...
2 tags
Why you Should Wake Up Early
Image by alancleaver_2000 via Flickr
I wake up every morning at 6am every day. Sounds brutal right? It’s actually amazing. I’m so used to it that I actually wake up about 20 minutes before 6am and could really wake up without an alarm clock. I’m going to detail in today’s post on why you should wake up early and tomorrow I will write about how to wake up early....
2 tags
Becoming an Avalanche: Building Your Own Momentum
Image by flicksta via Flickr
I recently finished the book From Good to Great which I’ve talked about before and I started reflecting on some of the concepts talked about on how companies went from good companies to great companies. One of the most dramatic things I learned was that it wasn’t a breakthrough moment that caused the dramatic change in the companies but a buildup of...
1 tag
“COME my tan-faced children,
Follow well in order, get your weapons ready,
Have...”
– I love this poem (Walt Whitman’s ‘Pioneers! O Pioneers!’). I will admit that I first heard about it from that Levi’s commercial but it just struck me so hard that I had to go look it up. Read the full poem here.
1 tag
The Farmer Work Ethic
Image via Wikipedia
Day after day farmers tend to their land and livestock and put in an honest day’s work. There are no excuses and laziness is not allowed. They always have something that needs to get done and they seem to be some of the most positive people out there. They are relentless and vigilant in everything they do. What other choice do they have? If they aren’t working...
1 tag
Learning to Read Again
I used to love reading. Back in middle school I was one of those kids who read constantly. I couldn’t put down books. I was addicted to it. Then somewhere between middle school and high school I lost it. I didn’t want to read anymore or I just didn’t have time to read (so I thought). I knew I should because it was good for me but I never did. I was too busy with school etc. I...
1 tag
Modern Maturity: Create More, Consume Less →
But it is boys that live only for themselves; men fully enjoy life’s pleasure but also live for a higher purpose. Boys try to find themselves in what they buy; men find themselves in what they do. Boys base their identity on what they consume; men base their identity on what they create.
I completely agree with this article on Art of Manliness. One of the biggest problems I find in guys of my...
1 tag
How to Stop Your Facebook Addiction
The average facebook user spends >55 minutes per day on the site. That’s an hour of time wasted. That’s 365 hours per year. I used to be one of those people. I was always on Facbook procrastinating and wasting my time. Now I’m rarely on it except for maybe once a day and only for about 10 minutes. Very rarely has Facebook ever been useful to me but in the few times that it has...
Blog Launch
Welcome to my new blog! Thanks for visiting and I hope you come back again soon.
About Me: I’m a productivity loving, life experimenting, self motivating, computer engineering student who wants to make the most of my time awake and learn all I can.
For a while now I’ve been trying to improve every single possible aspect of my life. I’ve learned a lot about myself and life so I wanted to...
How to Not Have a Case of the Mondays
Recently, I’ve been realizing I really enjoy Mondays. People typically hate Mondays and I used to be one of them but I learned that they’re really not that bad if you use them them right.
It’s all about the mindset. If you want to be negative you will be negative. If you want to be positive you will be positive. It sounds simple because it is. For example, next time...
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How to Develop Discipline
With the rise of the internet and the role of technology in our lives people have become more easily distracted and constantly surrounded by information and entertainment. This is fine, but like most things it isn’t ok in excess. Never before have humans been this surrounded by information. Information is freely available online and we can search for anything we want to know. However, every...
2 tags
From Good to Great
I recently started reading a new book called From Good to Great by Jim Collins. It’s a fascinating book about how companies make the leap from good companies to truly great companies. It got me thinking about the Pareto Principle. The Pareto Principle (also known as the 80/20 rule) says that roughly 80% of the results comes from 20% of the causes. One example is that 80% of the wealth is...
March 2010
3 posts
1 tag
Where to Find Motivation
Every day can’t be a resounding success. It’s hard to push through those bland days that make you just want to relax and not do anything. Everyone has these types of days and it takes some supreme motivation to get you going. Even when you think a day is useless you can still try and turn it around. Here’s where to look for some motivation to get you going.
Read some...
1 tag
How to Make the Most of Dead Time
What is Dead Time? Dead time is when you’re waiting for your computer to reboot after a restart. It’s when you’re walking from one place to another. It’s when you’re on the can. It’s when you are doing something but not really and can’t use that time to do some of the more productive things in your life. Dead time is what tends to shorten days and make you...
1 tag
How to Set Better Goals
If you ever want to do anything meaningful in your life then you should set a goal. Goals are a great way to raise expectations of yourself and create a new standard in your life. Most people I know set goals and fail miserably in them. Here are some steps to set better goals and actually accomplish them.
Create a Mission Statement for Your Life. I got this tip from the Seven Habits of Highly...