In April 2019, I published my first "productivity" blog [^1] on my wife's website at Linda's Brick Barn. Until then, I had only used the site for trip reports outlining the hikes and travel we've taken and highlighted the story behind many of the rocks and stones Linda uses in her jewelry works.
The Bullet Journaling article was my first attempt to explain something that makes a big difference in my life on a day-to-day basis. Bullet Journaling using Todoist Part 1 is still the number one read article on the website, and as I said in a recent update, I continue to use the methodology as outlined in parts 1-3.
In Bullet Journaling using Todoist Part 2, I mention using a separate program [^2] for all my 20,000-foot elevation and up categories. [^3] The elevation rhetoric is a nod to David Allen's Horizon of Focus planning mentioned in his book Getting Things Done. Throughout my professional career, I have used various "day planners," including the Franklin Planner; however, I favored Stephen Covey's overall philosophy, [^4] and Covey's book First Things First which is still one of my favorite books.
I soon grew tired of the weekly top-down approach of Covey's Mission statement to planning the week. For example, I had trouble remembering to take out the garbage on Thursday, and Mr. Covey had me planning to take over the world every week. Thankfully, I soon stumbled upon David Allen's methodology, which greatly relieved Mr. Covey's top-down approach. Clear the runway (small daily items) and give yourself the bandwidth to move up to higher altitudes. The bottom-up approach resonated with me, and I have successfully kept Getting Things Done as my primary methodology at work.
The runway or zero altitude includes all the physical next steps required to move anything forward. If it is a physical step, phone calls, things to buy, or errands to run, Mr. Allen considers it a next action. So many action items are one and done, and due to the simplistic nature of Todoist, capturing those items that, when completed, were finished [^5] proved a fantastic shortcut to clearing the deck.
If taking that single step at the runway level does not complete the task, then according to Mr. Allen, you have a project on your hands and have lifted off to the 10,000-foot elevation. Anything that requires more than one step is considered a project and should serve as a reminder that future actions are still necessary.
The "Area of Focus" or 20,000-foot horizon primarily ensures that each project and associated next actions are accounted for and defined. [^6] Many of our goals (30,000-foot level) and the roles we utilize to achieve the goal require rigorous attention to detail. The 20,000-foot horizon is our "trigger" list of items to be reviewed regularly. [^7]
Thirty thousand feet is the goal. The goal is the objective, an outcome, the mission, or the role; however, you want to label the goal's final achievement. Remember, however, that the goal is a specific real-world target [^8] and needs to be treated as such with objectives, milestones, and as many identifiable next actions as are feasible at this moment in time.
The vision includes our broad, sweeping dreams. The view from 40,000 feet is expansive and majestic. The clouds verify that this is the elevation of ambitions and bucket lists. Someday I will go; someday, I want to, and someday, I will learn. The wishes and dreams set up the filtering process so that our brains will cull through the everyday noise and make us aware of items on our wish list. Dream of sailing? The next time you stand in front of the magazine rack, you'll notice magazines about sailing. Want to own a red sports car? You'll see red sports cars everywhere you look. But, once you settle on a specific make and model of the car, now you have a detailed real-world target, the dream notches down a level to 30,000 feet, and the work begins.
Fifty thousand feet define our purpose in life. After attending a work meeting this past summer, I wrote a two-part series about Finding Purpose. My life during COVID hadn't changed much; however, as I write in part 1, most people had very different experiences during the lockdowns and school closings. In part 2, I expanded on a program our company had spent considerable money developing. I had completed a similar program years earlier, so this blog won't go into much additional detail. A personal mission statement can define our purpose in life, or it can be choosing to live our top values in life every day. As usual, the choice is always up to us.
Written December 7, 2022
Footnotes:
[^1]: I now reserve every Wednesday's essays to focus on tools and methods that increase productivity.
[^2]: In 2019, that separate program was TheBrain; today, I am moving all my past notes, books, and journal entries to Obsidian.
[^3]: Elevation categories are a reference to David Allen's Getting Things Done and his Horizon of Focus which I will attempt to explain in the remainder of the essay.
[^4]: Apparently, the owners of Franklin Planner (Franklin Quest) did as well, merging with Covey Leadership Center in 1997. (Franklin Planner. (2022, September 1). In _Wikipedia_. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Planner )
[^5]: Granted, the action might need to be done again next week, i.e., "take out the garbage;" however, the next step doesn't build into anything more significant. There is never going to be a monumental project around garbage. I had a three-item project when the trash can needed replacing and a small recycling project of more than one step.
[^6]: Allen, David, *Horizons of Focus* David Allen & Co. 1990-2006.
[^7]: Ibid
[^8]: Many goal-setting methods start at the 30,000-foot level., i.e., S.M.A.R.T goals and work backwords.