Life is full of it and often is seen as wrong. What am I speaking about?
Constraints.
It will be difficult. I have the budget, people, skills constraints…
But why not see constraints as an ally of our projects?
Constraints bring creativity, kill waste, protect against the one killer of productivity — Perfectionism.
And when we think about it. We see it everywhere. Productivity, business, creativity, investment.. You name it.
So why not use constraint as a development tool? Usually, your boss applies constraints on you. But why not develop your own constraints to become more productive.
Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash
Productivity.
The Pomodoro Technique is a good example. Work on projects with a time-limited period followed by a short break. Often it’s used with 25 minutes focus and 5 minutes break. It could be a big project split into small chunks of 25/5.A lot of people become much more productive by applying it.
Limiting your choice is focusing on the essential. When you start your day, your week, your month, define what good looks like. It means having to select what you’re going to accomplish and what you are going to let out.
“I cannot do anymore, my agenda is so full, I have too many meetings.”
If you don’t put constraints on your schedule, then others will.
Block hours every week for your thinking and productive time.
Business.
The most innovative business has come from start-up these last years. Big corporations try to reinvent the ecosystem of a start-up as a tool for creativity
And what does a start-up have? Money and resources constraints.
Thanks to that, they become a champion of innovation.
“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do“
– Michael Porter.
Specialization is a strategy of constraint. It’s letting go of many potential opportunities to win in one.
Creativity.
There is no limit to creativity. Twitter is an example. The 280 characters are helping creators to build better messages. The 18-minute format of a TED talk has produced the best presentations in the world.
On a larger scale, Sönke Ahrens, in his inspiring book “How to Take Smart Notes”, made a comparison with the language.
“We are restricted to the use of only 26 letters, but what that enables us to do! We can write novels, theories, love letters or court orders – just by rearranging these 26 letters.”
Investment.
In 20 years of investment, I was never as successful as these last years, where I imposed on myself a set of principles (constraints).
- I invest only for the long run;
- I do it only through ETF;
- I do it mainly with one ETF;
- I invest every month;
- I invest more when the market is going down.
And with every additional constraint I add, I limit my choices. My decision process becomes easier.
Conclusion.
“Life ceases for the rest of us just when we are getting ready for it” ― Seneca, On the Shortness of Life.
In the famous book “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying” author Bronnie Ware, who was caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives, summarized the five regrets as follows:
- I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
- I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.
- I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
- I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
- I wish that I had let myself be happier.
So let’s not forget the most considerable constraint of our life. The one that we all have. The rule of life. We are here for a limited time. Let’s take advantage of it and make it great.
Dror
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