Ever heard about the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule? This idea states that for most processes, 80% of the outcomes come from only 20% of the input effort. It’s been applied in many areas of life: In economics Pareto noticed that about 80% of Italy's land was owned by 20% of the population (Manual of political economy, 1971). In computer science Microsoft discovered that by fixing the top 20% of the popular bugs, 80% of the co-related errors and crashes in a given system would be eliminated (Microsoft's CEO, 2002). There are many applications of the [...]
“Distringit librorum multitudo – The abundance of books is a distraction”. This is how Seneca the Elder, famed Roman rhetorician and father of the infamous stoic philosopher of the same name, expressed the inconvenience of what we nowadays call ‘Information Overload.’ Information overload is recognised as the No. 1 problem in organisations. (Williams, 2012) Studies show that in 2010 information overload cost the US economy approximatelyUS$ 1trillion (Spira, 2011) From the minute we leave the safety of our mother’s womb we become overexposed to all [...]
When it comes to personal productivity, we are exposed to gazillions of theories and opinions. Distinguishing facts from fiction isn’t always a simple task, but this is why I like to make sure all my knowledge and practical tools have a scientific basis… The truth about Multi-tasking Multi-tasking has long been considered a cornerstone of productivity, and we constantly use the analogy of juggling to optimise our tasks. But what’s the reality? Evidence says that media multitasking weakens the working memory and long-term memory. (Uncapher et al., 2016). Nobody is performing [...]
“Spend more time doing things that make you forget about the time.” ― Charlotte Eriksson Ever been so absorbed in a particular task that you didn’t notice the phone ringing, the emails piling up or the dog whining for dinner? Or been so immersed in reading a great book that, despite being ravenous, you totally forgot to eat for 8 hours? What activities suck you into this state of complete involvement and concentration that you lose contact with space and time? The Concept of Flow Flow was discovered by a Hungarian psychologist with an unpronounceable name who studied[...]
‘Complicated’. How many times have you heard this word describing a relationship? These days complicated relationships seem to be the norm, but what if I told you that it really takes just a bit of attention to make your relationships work. Why do relationships fail so easily nowadays? Are relationships not “necessary” anymore? We don’t need a partner for security, we don’t need a partner for comfort, we don’t even need a partner for having children! Are we all so independent, self-sufficient, self-centred and selfish that we’re simply not [...]
“That which does not kill us makes us stronger” - Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Nietzsche was one of the most influential and contentious philosophers of Modern Age. As well as being my favourite philosopher of all time, he is renowned for his universal psychological insights. But is his infamous comment on the benefits of trauma simply something you can tell your friends next time they are suffering, or does it have scientific merit? Think about the totality of your suffering. Would you erase that from your life or your memory just to keep the happiest moments? Nietzsche [...]
Ever heard about the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule? This idea states that for most processes, 80% of the outcomes come from only 20% of the input effort. It’s been applied in many areas of life: In economics Pareto noticed that about 80% of Italy's land was owned by 20% of the population (Manual of political economy, 1971). In computer science Microsoft discovered that by fixing the top 20% of the popular bugs, 80% of the co-related errors and crashes in a given system would be eliminated (Microsoft's CEO, 2002). There are many applications of the [...]
When it comes to personal productivity, we are exposed to gazillions of theories and opinions. Distinguishing facts from fiction isn’t always a simple task, but this is why I like to make sure all my knowledge and practical tools have a scientific basis… The truth about Multi-tasking Multi-tasking has long been considered a cornerstone of productivity, and we constantly use the analogy of juggling to optimise our tasks. But what’s the reality? Evidence says that media multitasking weakens the working memory and long-term memory. (Uncapher et al., 2016). Nobody is performing [...]
“Distringit librorum multitudo – The abundance of books is a distraction”. This is how Seneca the Elder, famed Roman rhetorician and father of the infamous stoic philosopher of the same name, expressed the inconvenience of what we nowadays call ‘Information Overload.’ Information overload is recognised as the No. 1 problem in organisations. (Williams, 2012) Studies show that in 2010 information overload cost the US economy approximatelyUS$ 1trillion (Spira, 2011) From the minute we leave the safety of our mother’s womb we become overexposed to all [...]
“Spend more time doing things that make you forget about the time.” ― Charlotte Eriksson Ever been so absorbed in a particular task that you didn’t notice the phone ringing, the emails piling up or the dog whining for dinner? Or been so immersed in reading a great book that, despite being ravenous, you totally forgot to eat for 8 hours? What activities suck you into this state of complete involvement and concentration that you lose contact with space and time? The Concept of Flow Flow was discovered by a Hungarian psychologist with an unpronounceable name who studied[...]
