I wrote the following response to a friend who just read the David Allen book Getting Things Done. I thought it might help this audience too.

Huge fan of GTD in all of my life. It has helped me to far better be the out-of-the-box thinking, spontaneous, creative leader that I’m actually wired to. Apply it to your whole life. Practice it. Make it true for you. Practice it more.

I’ve followed it for a dozen or so years. I keep getting better at it.

Last year I switched from digital to Bullet Journal. Integrating GTD methodology into the BuJo world has vaulted my creativity and productivity at a rate that I never would have even hoped. I wish I would've done so half a decade sooner.

I’m happy to share coaching...

I answered this question recently. I thought it was a good question so I copy/pasted both the question and my immediate response:

I wrote this commitment in my Commitments page (pg. 2 right after my Vision/Values page) of my Bullet Journal last summer. I have held to this discipline on a daily basis now for more than half a year straight. The fruit of such has indeed been experienced.

Where design and context are aligned,clear purpose can be found. As a designer, we are the answer for how we can improve the world. Bring beauty and care to the context of the situation. Make it better.

A combination of strategies I choose to utilize in my work as a Creative Director is creating algorithms for human intuition to be maximized as I help coach and reveal beauty to enhance story and experience. This is a key part of the "process architecture" that I put in place for our teams to use in our planning process: A series of questions and process guides to begin with as well as a timeline with both back burner space for peace as well as checkpoints and prototyping deadlines that each can yield an "eureka idea" to add to the plan. It’s a magical thing when both both logic and instinct are allowed to team up as part of the creative process.

I was asked recently about what prototyping looks like in my design process. It varies. It depends a lot on the timeline of the project, but I really do love to bring both my team and the client along with the idea. Even if only for myself, I like to play with the idea in tangible space. Sometimes it’s as low-fi as a sketch and some card-stock that I cut out for shapes that I play around with in a scale model of a stage. Sometimes a 3D rendering is helpful. If possible (especially when designing for a build for multiple locations) it’s great to build as near to a actual size prototype that we can play with in the lighting and context of the actual stage

We wanted to see how the arches and ramps would let us see performers through and atop of the beauty; and get a sense of what the layers of design would feel like from various angles.

The pastors of this old church wanted a way to update the look of their space that for low cost could help give their congregation more than just a fresh coat of paint but see a vision for the future

We wanted to talk about a road into the mountains where the narrater could take the audience on a journey along a dusty road; but that on a cue, the mountains could literally move to reveal a live band that could add to the experience. I began with a sketch; I then moved to playing with the model. Then, we built prototype flats to test how the rolling worked. We learned that putting them on rails was key to the success of everything being in the same exact place for lighting and blocking every move. We also had a main campus to show how the texturing with paint as well as light was so crucial to realism. A bonus that you might notice in the bottom left image is that you can see how I even added a bit of screen material to show what a scrim might be placed in the mid depth to help add to the forced perspective and picturesque scene.

—unknown

A friend read me this quote. I like it. It’s a reminder to be about the daily work of living out your vision with purpose and commitment.

Do you have a Vision and Values document for yourself? If you don’t yet, please reach out to me. I would love to talk about what a coaching relationship might look like.

Know what your "ship" is; know who your "crew" is. Understand what they are capable of. Define a high standard and point in the right direction. Then adapt along the way to maximize what the "wind" offers. It doesn’t even mean changing course; it only means changing tactics. Enjoy the journey. "Sailing" is fun. The stories are treasures.

—William Arthur Ward

Excellence is not to be confused with perfection. Excellence is beautifully imperfect; as it recognizes the continued pursuit of improvement. The iterations will always continue; so make the most of the time and resources we have. Recognize when it’s better to leave one project at good and refocus by encouraging each other and developing another project until it’s time to call that one great. (Even though we have such high standards that we know what we wish we could keep tinkering further...) Then celebrate! Especially after big projects, remember that "We get to be a part of this!" Then next week, begin working on v2.0!

I used to struggle with perfectionism. I remember in high school when I couldn’t understand my best friend who could just rip through homework and turn in something that was barely 80% effort. Instead I wouldn’t turn something in because it wasn’t worthy of what I knew it should be. I’ve come a long way since then. I now can present something if it’s the best I believe it can be with the recourses justifiably allocated. I can reconcile that. It has actually become a core value for me. A Maximizer shall get greatest value out of resources…. I still want for perfection, but I also find beauty in excellent. I can coach that now. I’ve come a long way.

I just read a Forbes article written by Victor Lipman that included five tips for taming perfectionism. I thought I’d share.