1Percenter

There are three (closely-related) reasons that incorporating a new tool into your time management system often fails:

1. It is too complicated

2. It is too inflexible

3. It is too hard

Too Complicated

A tool is too complicated when it does too many extra things that you don’t need.

For example, the much heralded Kinkless GTD is too complicated for me because it is based around contexts, and I don’t use contexts.

When you are talking about software, too complicated can also mean that it uses too much system resources for the benefits it affords.

Too Inflexible

Too inflexible means that the tool has limitations that prevent it from being useful in enough situations.

For example, iCal’s built-in to-do system doesn’t give me a way to associate additional information with to-dos (such as links and my own notes), so it is too inflexible.

Too Hard

It is too hard to use a tool when you don’t use it in an appropriate situation because of the effort it requires.

When advising clients on their office arrangements, David Allen says that one of the first things he does is position their filing cabinet where they can reach it without getting up from their desk. Because a filing cabinet on the other side of the room is too hard.

Balance

These probably sounds like common sense, and they are. The idea is being able to quickly identify when and why something isn’t working. These are the distillation of the many specific reasons that tools or approaches haven’t become permanent parts of my system over the years.

The VPZtms is about striking the perfect balance. Receiving the maximum benefits of structure, without going too far in any of the above directions.