Reading Time: 5 minutesI do a quarterly review and planning session each quarter. I thoroughly review the prior quarter and plan for the next near the beginning of every quarter. I follow the system described by David Sparks in his Productivity Field Guide. I use a template (provided by David Sparks in the Productivity Field Guide) with questions …
Reading Time: 6 minutesThis is the first blog post in a series about my experiences working through the Productivity Field Guide by David Sparks, available in the Plus and the Standard editions. I intend to write 10-12 posts covering each of the major topics in the Field Guide. The Productivity Field Guide comprises a 100+ page PDF or …
Reading Time: 4 minutesRecently, I watched a video recording of a Q3 Planning with Sparky (MacSparky Labs) session. It was a time for MacSparky Labs members to assess their progress on their quarterly plans halfway through the quarter. Many participants felt they had gone off track during the first few weeks and needed to find a way to …
Reading Time: 6 minutesRecently, I completed my Quarterly Review and Planning Session for the 2nd quarter of 2023. I typically go to an off-site location and spend a night, so I can focus. As a part of this process, I review how I did the past quarter. I ask myself, What are my wins? This gives me a …
Reading Time: 7 minutesLast week, I performed my regular quarterly review and reflection retreat. However, I used an entirely unique method than what I’ve used in the past. I used dictation to answer the questions on my Quarterly Review Template. Normally, I write out my answers on a copy of the Template. The day before I began my …
Reading Time: 4 minutesDeepstash is a service that lets you read shortened versions of different media types. The App Store description states, “Learn something new in just 5 minutes, with daily bite-sized knowledge from books, articles, videos, podcasts & more.” I heard about this app during a MacSparky Labs member meetup earlier this month. One of the participants …
Reading Time: 5 minutesAccording to writer Todd Henry in Daily Creative, steady, deliberate progress is the key to creative success. It takes three things to get things done and bring about creative success: 1. Commit to steady, deliberate progress; 2. Do it every day, and; 3. Work even when you don’t feel like it. The key to creative …
Reading Time: 6 minutesDuring the first week in December, my wife and I when to Disneyland to celebrate our 50th Wedding Anniversary (we’re not really that old — we married when we were 5 😉). The event and discussions with friends about it have prompted some thoughts I’d like to share. Don’t panic, it’s not all mushy stuff. …
Reading Time: 6 minutesA couple of years ago I was at a point in my retirement where the “permanent fun vacation” (finally freed from work!) period was over, and I was feeling bored, unproductive, and unfulfilled. I fortunately encountered material written by David Sparks (aka MacSparky) on how to do a life roles inventory and evaluation. I took …
Reading Time: 5 minutesI’m the kind of person that seeks to be intentional in my life. When I did my initial life roles identification and evaluation, I also wrote descriptions of my ideal behavior for each role. These descriptions are idealistic and aspirational. I’m not there yet, and likely never will completely arrive. They describe the type of …