I’m a great believer in the power of the keyboard as a productivity tool. Mice are great pointing devices, and if you spend your day working with graphics then they’re probably your best friend. But for people like me who mainly deal in words, whenever our hands leave the keyboard it’s both a waste of time and an interruption to the flow of thought.

Another criticism of the mouse as a control device is that it’s fundamentally serial access rather than random access. To perform a function you need to move the pointer from A to B via all pixels in between. Keyboard shortcuts allow you to effectively jump through a wormhole to your destination.

As a Mac user I’m pretty lucky, OSX supports the keyboard pretty well out of the box. However not quite well enough for me, so I looked for ways to make it even better.
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I do some of my best work with my eyes closed. I know, I know - pull the other one. OK so I admit that sometimes I also need to rest, however the fact remains that some of my best idea moments come when my eyes are shut.

Being focused on actions and tasks is usually a great way of maximising productivity. However there are times during any day when I feel the need to step back. This might be to consider a particular issue in depth, to brainstorm ideas, to take time to get the big picture, etc. All valuable actions that rarely appear on the standard “To Do” list.

For me the best way to do this is to put on some light classical music and close my eyes. The cynics can tell I’m not asleep by the way I’ll frequently be mouthing what I’m thinking or opening my eyes to jot down a note.

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I don’t have an artistic neuron in my skull. If I try to draw a cute kitten it ends up looking like a lizard-beast from the planet Zorg. As for my singing or music-making… you really don’t want to know.

So does that mean I’m not creative? Of course not.

I’m always surprised by the way many people say “Oh, I’m not the creative type”. It’s as if creativity were somehow the preserve of the artist.

We’re all creative. You, me and the next person. Creativity is a natural and essential part of being human. A few examples of how you might be using your creativity without realising it:

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I love games of all sorts, from abstract board games like Go to console based shoot-em-ups. One of my favourites remains Grand Theft Auto 3 (GTA3). Despite having played it through numerous times it’s still one I go back to.

What’s this got to do with personal productivity? The other day I was playing when it struck me just how well I knew the game world. I recognise landmarks, have a mental map of the city and can easily navigate from one location to another. I know the virtual world better than my own neighbourhood!

That realisation led me to wonder how much time and brain power I’d spent becoming an expert on one silly little computer game. It’s a lot.

What a waste.

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Motivation can be a tricky thing at the best of times. Even when we’re powerfully motivated that feeling can dissolve like a whisp of smoke.

A common example of this - at least for me - is the reaction just after achieving something, some sort of milestone or interim goal.

Logically I’m on a roll and should be able to follow through. However the time just after a major achievement is often when my motivation is most at risk. It’s almost as if my subconscious is saying “Go on, take a break, you’ve earned it”. Or, less positively, “Was that it? Was it really worth the effort?”

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Since you’re visiting this site then you’ve probably already read Getting Things Done by David Allen . If you haven’t then I suggest you take a look.

Unlike some people I’m not a GTD “groupie”, however I do think it’s an excellent book with some great ideas. Just as important than the practical advice is the philosophy of GTD.

GTD is, at heart, about making lists. Lists of actions. I’m a great believer in the power of lists and of taking action, so it fits naturally into my approach to life.

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Welcome to Limorefe, thanks for stopping by.

This site is basically an extension of my lifelong interest with the mind and how to use it better - how to get more out of life. Everything that can help towards that end is valid subject matter for this blog, be it practical lifehacks or more abstract ideas such as motivation. There are so many little things we can do that taken together can have a major impact on our quality of life. That’s key: quality of life. I’m not interested in just getting “more” done for the sake of it. It’s important to do what matters. Which is very often not what we concentrate on 90% of the time.

The plan is to share some ideas and tips as well as just to throw out some thoughts to see what the reaction is. I very much want your input, let’s put our heads together.

I hope you’ll find the site interesting and informative, I certainly feel very positive about it. If you enjoy what you see then please consider subscribing to the Limorefe RSS Feed. Thanks.

Photo Credit: mcclouds (Creative Commons)