Tag: GTD

Transformers Macbook Pro Decal

The Finished Product

I used to be one of those people who took really good care of his possessions. Everything I owned had to be cleaned and put away back in its proper place. I was verging on the edge of obsessive compulsive. Then something changed and I am not totally sure what it was.

Reading books like Timothy Ferriss’s The 4-Hour Workweek and David Allen’s Getting Things Done have really changed how I look at life and day to day living. I find myself trying to live more for the now then to save and anticipate for a hard and unknown future. To be honest I feel it has payed off greatly. I am a lot less stressed out and more aware of what is going on around me with family and friends.

My Desktop Pictures and iPhone Vinyl Sticker. This Photo Does Not Do The Desktop Pictures Justis

I recently purchased a new 15″ MacBook Pro. A computer I use all the time and take with me just about everywhere I go. It truly is a powerhouse work horse for me. When I got the computer I new right away I wanted to sticker it with some cool Transformers art. I had seen a few photos of other Apple users who had put Ironman or Snow White vinyl stickers on their Macbooks. Both stickers are really awesome and I wanted to do something smiler with my Macbook Pro and Transformers.

I ended up searching on Etsy and finding Rob who makes vinyl stickers for MacBooks. I sent Rob an e-mail asking him if he could make me a vinyl sticker for my new Macbook Pro. For the next two weeks we worked together over e-mail to come up with just the right Transformers image I wanted displayed on my computer.

I really wanted to find and image that worked with the Apple logo on my Macbook Pro  much like the Ironman and Snow White images did. I was sent a couple mock ups of  Optimus Prime with the Apple logo in his hand. It was a great image but I was not happy with that rendition of Optimus Prime. So we both went back to the drawing board. I finally came up with three images I sent in and asked Rob what he could do with them.

Autobot Matrix of Leadership

The first image was of the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. I was soon sent back a render of the image with the Apple logo in the center of the Matrix. It’s a great graphic and I ended up using it on my older 15″ Apple Powerbook.

Getting Ready To apply The Vinyl Stickers

The second two images I sent in came from IDW Transformers posters. One of Megatron and one of Optimus Prime. I ended up having vinyl stickers made out of these posters and I ended up placing them on my Macbook Pro.

When I got the stickers in the mail they came in a large envelope between to peaces of cardboard to prevent them from getting bent or damaged. Inside the envelope where some simple instructions on how to apply the vinyl stickers along with a couple of Popsicle sticks to smooth out any air bubbles that might happen to form.

Wet Erase Marker
Wet Erase Marker

Putting the vinyl sticker of the Matrix on my Powerbook was pretty easy for the most part. I just lined up the Apple logo in the center and smoothed it out. The Optimus Prime and Megatron Vinyl stickers where a little bit harder to apply because they didn’t incorporate the logo. There was a lot of adjustments I made to make to make sure the images where level and centered. Once I had the image placed on my MacBook Pro just the way I wanted them I used a green wet erase marker from my Dungeons & Dragons battlemat to outline the stickers. That way when I picked up the stickers and remove the backing from the sticky side I could align it back up correctly before sticking them to my computer.

I am really happy how this little project turned out. I had a really great first experience with etsy and everything went so well. Rob no longer has a store front on etsy. He does however have an eBay page and he can be e-mailed here. He still makes custom vinyl stickers for computers and he is really great to work with.

I show off my computer every chance I get. You might just catch me with one of my laptops at PAX Prime this year. You never know.

Productivity In 11 Words

It’s Friday and I am finding trouble being motivated. I found a great quote that I think just rocks. I am such a huge fan of the GTD system and this is just a great quote to go alone with it’s methodology.

One thing at a time.

Most important thing first.

Start now.

This quote was found on http://www.skelliewag.org/

E-Mail Productivity and Edict

I think my current and most active hobby has become productivity in general. Something about learning new ways to be come more efficient at what I do at the office excites me. I share this hobby with people I work with and friends. I do this because it might improve their productivity as well. The process of talking with people about my ideas can also lead to new ideas that can improve productivity even more.

E-Mail

E-mail IconInterruption is the most detrimental thing to productivity. It doesn’t matter what is going on. If you ask a coworker a question, that person has to switch gears to answer your question, and then switch back to address the task they where originally working on. To me that is just bad edict. Especially when the question does not need to be answered right that second.

The next time your at the office and you have a question for one of your coworkers you should ask yourself the following:

“Do I need an answer to this right this second?”

In my experience the answer to that question most of the time is “no”. What you should do is write the question down in an e-mail, send it off, and then move on to the next task. Your coworker will address the question the next time he or she is focused on their e-mail. You will then have the answer for your question during an appropriate time you can deal with it. This kind of work flow really does make one much more productive.

But to approach someone or to call out their name from across the office will interfere and affect their work flow. Sometimes it is just unavoidable. Nothing much can be done about that. However, most of the time it is avoidable. Not everything you are working on requires an instant response. So rather then interrupting a person, no matter what they are doing at the time, send your question in an e-mail. If someone writes you with a question, respond to them in that e-mail rather then verbally interrupting them. This process will save you so much time in the long run.