Table of Contents

Endorsements

Title page

Copyright page

Dedication

Introduction: My Own Personal Chaos

Process isn't a talent – it's taught

Someone capable of achieving something

Ever-decreasing circles

Lost in a fantasy world

The painful truth

PART ONE: The Unproductive Mind

1: Organizational Incompetence

Early-life conditioning

Testing the marshmallow test

Delayed gratification is developmental

Freud's id, ego and superego

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Texts that ignore the psychological issues

2: Conditions and Types

Distractibility, impulsiveness and risk-taking

The hunter of pre-history

Normal human behaviour

Women and ADD

Asperger's syndrome – more than just low empathy

Other disorders

MBTI types

Are types useful?

3: Procrastination, Clutter and Self-sabotage

The toxic internal critic

Self-belief: the missing ingredient

The Procrastinator's Code

Clutter – the not so benign symptom

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory

Deserve levels

4: Motivation, Goals and Flow

Motivation is the key

Plan-beliefs replace self-beliefs

Seven key steps for goal-setting

Finding flow

Flow is a pleasure

Encouraging flow

PART TWO: Tools and Resources

5: The Need for Desire

Desire – the starting point of all achievement

Definiteness of purpose

Growing a vocation

Suffering's meaning

Finding faith

Looking for the nugget

6: Planning for Freedom

The Pomodoro Technique

The rhythm of process

So how, and what, do we plan?

Begin with the end in mind

Beyond the desired end result

Mind mapping

7: Getting Started

Point One: Love your workstation

Point Two: Invest in the right equipment

Point Three: Buy lots of stationery

Point Four: Gather/capture everything

Point Five: Do some filing

Point Six: Finish that plan

Point Seven: Write a checklist

Point Eight: SWOT that strategy

Point Nine: Focus

Point 10: Make that call

8: Managing Time

Our ideal day

Dealing with interruptions

Activity quadrants

To time log, or not?

Instead, keep a diary

9: Developing Good Habits

Wasteful routines

The habit loop

Bad habit replacement

Self-addiction and its consequences

Building support

10: Making Decisions

Decisions made at four levels

Risk, benefits and costs

Decision trees

Avoiding ‘rule of thumb’ thinking

The weighting dilemma

PART THREE: Get Things Done …

11: … On the Phone

Make calls work

Establishing red zones

12: … Using Email

A fantastic tool if …

Avoiding email landmines

Tackling the randomness of email

13: … In Meetings

What's our purpose?

The people

Place is important

Go prepared

How do we get what we want?

14: … When Managing Others

The power of delegation

The task, the ask and the timing

15: … Beyond Work

Develop themes for your life

Points of entry

Tackling financial phobia

Money is our slave not our master

PART FOUR: Other People

16: Persuasion and Influence

Persuasion is a survival tool

Winning influence

Be liked

Be believed

Gaining influence from below

17: Dealing with Conflict

Don't be a conflict coward

The fruits of dealing with conflict

Classic conflict errors

Cognitive dissonance

Bringing it to work

Choose to defuse

18: Dealing with the Family

The Satir Model

Self-worth is a birthright

Developing insight

The family we create

Work and families can be allies

The joy of juggling

Juggling productivity with our significant other

Both men and women keep score

Conclusion: ‘It's All Chaos’

Chaos reigns

The joy of winging it

Act or be acted upon

Are you ready?

The 7 Habits of Highly Ineffective People

1. Procrastination

2. Avoiding direction

3. Blaming others

4. Obsessing about others' impact on us

5. Having a fixed mindset

6. Ignoring progress

7. Being derailed by every setback

Bibliography

About Robert Kelsey

Index