Monday list.

A couple weeks ago, I discovered that there are 3×5 cards with squares instead of lines. More accurately, they are printed as graph paper rather than notebook paper.

I was thrilled.

I think in pictures, in charts, in drawings on napkins. Ideas are related to each other as blocks rather than as lines. These cards let me capture that.

What they don’t let me capture is what needs to be done.

That isn’t the fault of the cards, that is the “fault” of the card creator, the thinker, me. I’ve been jotting notes and lists and blocks of information on cards for the past two weeks and none of it was getting onto a coherent list of tasks.

So I took my pile of cards, of scraps, of notes (lower left in the picture) and they are all in a google documents file called “list for may 11 week.” (If you really want to see that list to find out if YOUR project is on MY list, email me and I’ll share the file with you). I’m starting to work through the list in my usual non-linear manner.

Lessons:

1. Find the way to capture thinking that suits how your brain thinks. If pictures, use picture capturing paper. If mindmaps, then use mindmapping software. If lists, use lists. If on a really big white board, then have Matthew hang your new whiteboard on the wall of your office. (Wait. Sorry. That was something on MY list).

2. Find the way to interface that capture technology with kind and timing of output the rest of the world needs. Some of my thinking needs to be available in the form of emails, posts, summaries. Some of it needs to be available in the form of answers for other people. Some of it needs to be available in the form of gifts and affirmations. Some of it needs to be available in the form of timeliness. I need to process that through to how THEY/YOU need the information.

3. Make the list isn’t doing the work. I’m going to try the “change the world in an hour” technique I used last week one day. Enough hours will get something significant done.

4. Writing the post about the process isn’t doing the process.

Oops. Okay. Bye.