Productivity - Sam Altman

Source: Productivity - Sam Altman

Compound growth gets discussed as a financial concept, but it works in careers as well, and it is magic. A small productivity gain, compounded over 50 years, is worth a lot.

  1. What I Work On
    • Picking the right thing to work on is the most important element of productivity
    • Develop the confidence to stick with my convictions
    • Leave enough time in my schedule to think about what to work on
    • I’ve learned that I can’t be very productive working on things I don’t care about or don’t like. - So I just try not to put myself in a position where I have to do them (by delegating, avoiding, or something else)
    • Stuff that I don’t like is a painful drag on morale and momentum
    • Delegation: remember that everyone else is also most productive when they’re doing what they like, and do what I’d want other people to do for me — try to figure out who likes (and is good at) doing what, and delegate that way
    • It’s important to learn that I can learn anything I want, and that I can get better quickly
    • Doing great work usually requires colleagues of some sort. Try to be around smart, productive, happy, and positive people that don’t belittle my ambitions.
    • Both pick the right problem and do the work
    • Work both smart and hard
  2. Prioritization
    • Three key pillars
    • Make sure to get the important things done
    • Don’t waste time on stupid things
    • Make a lot of lists - Make lists of what I want to accomplish each year, each month, and each day - Prefer lists written down on paper - Re-transcribe lists frequently - Try to prioritize in a way that generates momentum. The more I get done, the better I feel, and then the more I get done. I like to start and end each day with something I can really make progress on. - I am relentless about getting my most important projects done—I’ve found that if I really want something to happen and I push hard enough, it usually happens. - I try to be ruthless about saying no to stuff, and doing non-critical things in the quickest way possible. - I generally try to avoid meetings and conferences as I find the time cost to be huge. - However, it is critical that I keep enough space in my schedule to allow for chance encounters and exposure to new people and ideas. Having an open network is valuable. - Have different times of the day to use for different kinds of work - Value my time - Chasing productivity for its own sake isn’t helpful - The right goal is to allocate my year optimally, not my day.
  3. Physical Factors
    • Experiment to find out what works best for my body
    • Sleep, excercise and nutrition
  4. Other Stuff
    • Don’t neglect family and friends for the sake of productivity — that’s a very stupid tradeoff (and very likely a net productivity loss, because I’ll be less happy). Don’t neglect doing things I love or that clear my head either.

4 Unsexy One-Minute Habits That Save Me 30+ Hours Every Week

  • https://betterhumans.pub/4-unsexy-one-minute-habits-that-save-me-30-hours-every-week-5eb49e42f84e