Discussion Forum > The stalactite and stalagmite method
I've been an Autofocus user since January, and I've been using the stalactite/stalagmite method (great name, by the way!) for about a month (after starting with a single combined list, then switching to two separate books for Work and Home, then finally switching to this method).
I find this method to be the best, by far, for my needs. I work from home most of the time, but even so, I am an employee and need to put in my hours each day. Even when I really need to focus on work, it's still nice to have the personal items there (many of which I can do when I'm on a break at work).
I must say, however, that I haven't been forced to dismiss "half a page" yet. I actually forgot that I was intending to try it that way. The biggest benefit for me was NOT being able to dismiss half a page (dismissing only the Work items, for example, and leaving the Home items intact). Rather, it was having the clear delineation between Work and Home, so I can focus on one or the other more readily, as needed.
I *have* dismissed several of these combined pages -- but following the normal dismissal rules.
Anyway, I'll let you know if I do get around to dismissing any half-pages, and what kind of effect that has.
I find this method to be the best, by far, for my needs. I work from home most of the time, but even so, I am an employee and need to put in my hours each day. Even when I really need to focus on work, it's still nice to have the personal items there (many of which I can do when I'm on a break at work).
I must say, however, that I haven't been forced to dismiss "half a page" yet. I actually forgot that I was intending to try it that way. The biggest benefit for me was NOT being able to dismiss half a page (dismissing only the Work items, for example, and leaving the Home items intact). Rather, it was having the clear delineation between Work and Home, so I can focus on one or the other more readily, as needed.
I *have* dismissed several of these combined pages -- but following the normal dismissal rules.
Anyway, I'll let you know if I do get around to dismissing any half-pages, and what kind of effect that has.
June 17, 2009 at 3:09 |
Seraphim
Seraphim
Hi, Seraphim,
Thank you for your answer! Yesterday I dismissed my first half-page. It felt too soon, but it was an item that had been dismissed before anyway,
So you treat each page as a unit then, no matter if you are "at work" or "at home", right? I'll stick to my half-page unit this week and might give a try to each-page-as-a-unit next week.
Thank you for your answer! Yesterday I dismissed my first half-page. It felt too soon, but it was an item that had been dismissed before anyway,
So you treat each page as a unit then, no matter if you are "at work" or "at home", right? I'll stick to my half-page unit this week and might give a try to each-page-as-a-unit next week.
June 17, 2009 at 8:33 |
Natalia
Natalia
Natalia:
My original suggestion for this method was:
"I'm wondering if anyone has used the method I suggested way back in the forum of entering Work items from the top of the page downwards and Home items from the bottom of the page upwards, then drawing a line where they meet and treating it as one page for all purposes except dismissing items. You don't dismiss the Home items on a page when you're at Work, or the Work items on a page when you are at Home."
The idea was that it would save having to have two notebooks and also from having to write the same tasks in both notebooks if they were ones that could be done in either location. I've not tried it out myself as I work at home.
My original suggestion for this method was:
"I'm wondering if anyone has used the method I suggested way back in the forum of entering Work items from the top of the page downwards and Home items from the bottom of the page upwards, then drawing a line where they meet and treating it as one page for all purposes except dismissing items. You don't dismiss the Home items on a page when you're at Work, or the Work items on a page when you are at Home."
The idea was that it would save having to have two notebooks and also from having to write the same tasks in both notebooks if they were ones that could be done in either location. I've not tried it out myself as I work at home.
June 17, 2009 at 10:58 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Mark, thank you for pointing out to your original suggestion! I could not find that post when I searched the forum. All right, starting today I am treating each page as a unit --- except for dismissal purposes. That makes more sense.
Seraphim, it looks like we are going to try the same thing from now on: I am starting to treat pages as a unit and you are going to apply the dismissal rule to only half-pages. Let me know how it goes for you!
Seraphim, it looks like we are going to try the same thing from now on: I am starting to treat pages as a unit and you are going to apply the dismissal rule to only half-pages. Let me know how it goes for you!
June 17, 2009 at 14:27 |
Natalia
Natalia
I was surpised to see Mark say that was his original idea.. I really thought it was mine! :)
http://www.markforster.net/forum/post/626353
http://www.markforster.net/forum/post/626353
June 19, 2009 at 14:28 |
Jon
Jon
Jon:
Happy to be corrected and to give you the credit for the idea.
The problem was that, althought I searched long and hard, I just couldn't find the original posts in which the idea was suggested - and I still haven't found the one in which you say I suggested splitting the page 2/3 work and 1/3 personal.
Happy to be corrected and to give you the credit for the idea.
The problem was that, althought I searched long and hard, I just couldn't find the original posts in which the idea was suggested - and I still haven't found the one in which you say I suggested splitting the page 2/3 work and 1/3 personal.
June 19, 2009 at 15:59 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Thanks Mark!!
Afraid I couldn't find the original post of yours..
Although I did just find a post from Leon who seems to have mentioned it before I did!
http://www.markforster.net/forum/post/622318#post622812
Afraid I couldn't find the original post of yours..
Although I did just find a post from Leon who seems to have mentioned it before I did!
http://www.markforster.net/forum/post/622318#post622812
June 19, 2009 at 17:12 |
Jon
Jon
I found it awhile agolll Check the forum topic with the thread as the title!
learning as I go
learning as I go
June 19, 2009 at 17:54 |
learning as I go
learning as I go
June 19, 2009 at 17:57 |
learning as I go
learning as I go
June 19, 2009 at 18:07 |
Jon
Jon
Hi Jon
You're welcome. It's really COOL that you're able to distill it down to the exact reply in the forum post! How did you do that???? When explaining the exact procedure, please assume NO knowledge base on my part! LOL! *blush*
Thank you in advance
learning as I go
You're welcome. It's really COOL that you're able to distill it down to the exact reply in the forum post! How did you do that???? When explaining the exact procedure, please assume NO knowledge base on my part! LOL! *blush*
Thank you in advance
learning as I go
June 19, 2009 at 18:38 |
learning as I go
learning as I go
What I did, was copied the first line of Mark's post 'Since it seems to be a concern for many people, I've been thinking' and put that into the main 'Search This Site' box, and hey presto, a direct link to the post will appear in the results! ;-)
June 19, 2009 at 18:45 |
Jon
Jon
(((Jon)))
Brilliant!!! Thanks again!
learning as I go
Brilliant!!! Thanks again!
learning as I go
June 19, 2009 at 18:57 |
learning as I go
learning as I go
As I was working from home most of the time, one notebook was more than enough. However, in the last months I have worked at university most days, and was unhappy with my one-notebook method: I was getting a bit unfocused at work. I tried using two notebooks, as Mark suggests in the rules, but it did not work well for me. My home notebook started being neglected and I was worried things were falling through the cracks.
To make a long story short, I am trying the stalactite and stalagmite method. See, e,g., how Giulia B. described it recently:
------
http://www.markforster.net/forum/post/764772#post765806
Some time ago someone (thank you, whoever you are) suggested adding work items from the top down and home items from the bottom up, on the same page, drawing a line where they eventually meet somewhere in the middle of the page.
------
It has been a week, and it seems better than my two-notebook experience. I always make a point of reading *all* the items on a page, above and below the line. Constantly reading and reviewing the items on my list is one of the best benefits AF brings me.
However, I am worried about the effect this line will have on my dismissing things. Right now, for instance, if am at work, I treat the items below-the-line as a unit. I dismiss the items there if none stands out. I do not dismiss things above the line at work, because they are home items. At home, I treat the above-the-line units the same way. But some pages have very few home or work items --- and I know few lines do not make me happy! I could consider two pages as a unit, but I had tried that with my small notebook and that confuses me. I really do not like leaving my notebook open and scanning two pages at the same time.
My question is, to the ones using the stalactite and stalagmite method: is the reduced number of lines having any impact on how your work the list and on dismissing items? Am I getting worried too soon in my experiment? :)