提高效率？成就清单好过待办事项

当待办清单往往变成“未完成”清单，总让人备感压力和消沉。不如列一个成就清单来鼓励自己吧！

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

demotivate 使变得消极[di:'məutiveit]

journal 日记；分类账['dʒɜːn(ə)l]

rational 理性的['ræʃ(ə)n(ə)l]

jot down 草草记下；匆匆记下

meditation 冥想；沉思[medɪ'teɪʃ(ə)n]

treadmill 跑步机['tredmɪl]

embroiled 卷入的；纠缠不清的[im'brɔild]

阅读即将开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用时间，并对照我们在文章最后给出的参考值来估算您的阅读速度。

Is ‘done’ better than ‘to do’ when it comes to making lists?（541words）

By Emma De Vita

* * *

Writing a “done” list instead of a to-do list, and leaving your problem-solving to when you are tired are two of the productivity tips in a new book, Brainhack .

Neil Pavitt, the author, says a to-do list often turns into a “what you haven’t done” list, leaving you feeling stressed and demotivated. He suggests keeping a “done list” — a journal of your biggest achievements, which will remind you of your successes and motivate you.

“Get a nice paper diary and only put down things that are really of value to you, whether inside or outside of work,” Mr Pavitt says. He makes three entries a week and reappraises it every couple of months to give himself a boost.

A hack that may work for some is to save creative thinking for when you are tired. “If you have to be focused and analytical you need to be fresh, but if you want to come up with creative ideas, late at night or when you have just woken up are useful times.”

Mr Pavitt says that because your brain is in a different state, it operates in a less rational way. “Your mind will wander more and therefore you’ll be far more likely to create new connections and come up with unexpected ideas.”

Just keep a pad to hand to jot down ideas before you forget them, he adds.

Morning, McKinsey-style

A compulsive checking of emails as soon as he woke was a productivity-destroying habit for Manish Chopra, a partner at McKinsey, the management consultancy. He dropped the habit as part of an overhaul of his morning routine.

Where previously he felt stressed, he says he now feels energetic and enjoys a greater sense of purpose.

The first thing Mr Chopra aims to do after waking at between 5am and 6am, is up to an hour’s meditation.

Ideally, he then exercises for 20 to 30 minutes on a treadmill before eating breakfast and spending time with his family. During his first two waking hours, he finds 10 minutes to plan his day. He does this before opening his laptop and becoming embroiled in emails. He also writes down on an index card the five things he would like to get done, keeping it in his pocket for reference. At 7am he will start on work emails and phone calls.

Under his old routine, he would not have woken up before 7am and would not have meditated or exercised. By shifting his day so he gets up and winds down earlier, he has made time to fit these in.

Checking emails in bed or rushing to get dressed will not set you up for the day in the best way, says Benjamin Spall, co-founder of My Morning Routine, an online collection of interviews with successful people about their morning habits.

Mr Spall recommends spending quality time with family, or working on a personal project that you enjoy, to make the morning a time that you will look forward to.

Blockages in the stream

Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal, on how past success can block future innovation: “Spotify could never have started life in the US, the record labels are too big,” he told students at HEC Paris business school last week.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1. What should be recorded on a “done list” as Neil Pavitt said?

a. biggest failure

b. unfulfilled desires

c. biggest achievements

d. forgotten little things

2. How many entries does Mr. Pavitt make within a week?

a. 3

b. 2

c. 10

d. 1

3. What made Manish Chopra, a partner at McKinsey, feel stressed in the past?

a. made ‘to do’ list

b. checked emails compulsively

c. woke up too early

d. an hour’s meditation

4. What can block future innovation from the example of Spotify?

a. capital controls

b. past induction

c. bad habits

d. past success

[1] 答案c. biggest achievements

解释：他认为，列出一个“已完成”清单，记录你取得的最重要成就，将让你想起自己的成功并产生动力。

[2] 答案a. 3

解释：帕维特表示：“准备一个漂亮的日记本，只记下对你来说真正有价值的事情，不管是工作外还是工作内。”他每周列三条，每隔两个月进行重新评估来激励自己。

[3] 答案b. checked emails compulsively

解释：对于管理咨询机构麦肯锡Manish Chopra而言，以前早晨一醒来就强迫性地查看电邮是一种破坏生产率的习惯，这个时候他会感觉压力极大。

[4] 答案d. past success

解释：PayPal联合创始人Peter表示过去的成功可能阻碍未来创新：“Spotify永远不可能在美国诞生，美国的唱片公司太大了。”