The full catalog
Protocols for productivity
762 entries pulled from 62 stacks. Items are ordered by how many tracked people are on record about them, including discussion, use and recommendations.
Filter counts cover the full catalog. Type, goal and cost filters apply to items only.
Items
75 entries
Reset- ProtocolFREE, no cost01
Environment design
Change the room instead of relying on willpower
On record from 7 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it, 5 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost02
Time blocking
Give every hour of the workday a job before the day starts
On record from 7 of 62 tracked people: 5 do it, 2 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost03
Deep work blocks
Long, scheduled, distraction-free sessions on one cognitively hard task
On record from 6 of 62 tracked people: 5 do it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost04
Identity-based habits
Aim at who you want to become, not the outcome you want to hit
On record from 4 of 62 tracked people: 4 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost05
Workday shutdown ritual
A fixed end-of-day routine that closes open loops so work stops
On record from 4 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it, 1 has discussed it - ProtocolFREE, no cost06
After-action review
Debrief what happened, what should have happened, and what changes
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost07
Habit stacking
Anchor a new habit to one you already do without thinking
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it, 1 has discussed it - ProtocolFREE, no cost08
Never miss twice
One missed day is an accident; two is the start of a new habit
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 3 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost09
Temptation bundling
Only allow yourself something you want while doing something you avoid
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost10
Deliberate wandering
Unplanned, inefficient exploration kept on purpose as the counterweight to efficiency
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost11
Digital declutter
A 30-day break from optional tech, then reintroduce deliberately
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost12
Hard thinking before lunch
Book the mentally demanding work for the morning and stop making big calls late in the day
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - ProtocolFREE, no cost13
Minimalist training
Short, hard sessions built on a few sets per muscle, drop sets and non-competing supersets
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost14
Pomodoro technique
Work in timed sprints, usually 25 minutes on and 5 minutes off
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 has discussed it - ProtocolFREE, no cost15
Shipping creative work
Publishing on a schedule rather than waiting for the work to feel ready
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost16
Two-minute rule
Scale any new habit down until it takes under two minutes to start
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 recommend it - ProtocolFREE, no cost17
Vision setting
Write down a specific picture of who you are becoming, then filter decisions through it
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - ProtocolFREE, no cost18
Yearly audit
Seven questions and a scroll through the year's photos before setting goals
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
20-slot punch card rule
Imagine a lifetime card with only 20 punches: every big decision has to earn one
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
3x5 notecard planning
Write the next day's three to five most important tasks on a single index card
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
5 Second Rule countdown
Count 5-4-3-2-1 out loud and move before hesitation talks you out of it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
80/20 analysis
List what produces results and what produces misery, then cut hard
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
A few high-quality decisions a day
Aim for three well-made decisions rather than a hundred rushed ones
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
ABC goal system
Set three levels for a daily goal so a bad day still counts as progress
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Protocol$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Analog and digital desks
Two work surfaces, with nothing electronic allowed on the first one
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Anti-to-do list
A short written list of behaviors to avoid, kept beside the ordinary to-do list
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Aspirational hourly rate
Setting a personal hourly price far above what you earn, then honoring it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Attention management
Pick what deserves your focus instead of counting the minutes
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Automatic rules
Decide the behavior once, as a rule, so it is not decided in the moment
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Backward planning
Start from the fixed deadline, list what has to happen before it, then work back
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Blank sheet method
Write what you already know before reading, then add each session in a new color
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Budget and deadline discipline
Treating the number and the date as hard limits that end the project
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Challenge network
A named group whose job is to attack your work, not encourage it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
CODE method
Capture, organize, distill, express: four steps from reading to output
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Day one, week one mentality
Show up every day as prepared as you were on the first day of the job
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Decision journal
Record the reasoning before the outcome is known, then read it back later
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Disagree and commit
State your objection once, then back the decision fully instead of relitigating it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Energy calendar
Color-code each finished day's calendar by what created energy and what drained it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Evening review
Going back over the day at night: what you did, said and could have handled better
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
FBI feedback method
Say the feeling, then the behavior that caused it, then the impact it had
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Fear-setting
Write down the worst case, how to prevent it, and how to repair it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Implementation intentions
Decide in advance: I will do X at TIME in PLACE
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Infinite mindset
Play for staying in the game rather than for beating this quarter's number
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Intermediate packets
Finish one small reusable piece per work session, not the whole project
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Inversion
Ask what would guarantee failure, then avoid those things
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Long-term games with long-term people
Picking work, partners and industries where you keep meeting the same people
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Maker days and manager days
Whole days given to creative work or to other people, never both
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Microburst
Set a timer for ten minutes, then stop when it goes off
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Monk Mode
Shutting out the world for months to finish one large piece of work
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Protocol$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Notecard system
Reading with a pen, then moving the best passages onto 4x6 index cards by theme
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Obituary test
Decide what you want your obituary to say, then live so as to deserve it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
One Page Miracle
One sheet naming what you want in relationships, work, money and health
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
PARA method
Sort every note and file into projects, areas, resources or archives
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Personal Quarterly Offsite
Companies do this every quarter; the same session run for one person
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Positive framing
State the outcome you want instead of the one you are trying to avoid
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Pre-Mortem
Name what will derail this before you start, not in the postmortem
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Progressive summarization
Compress a note in layers, adding one only when you open it again
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Protocol$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Public speaking course
A structured class in speaking to a room, taken to get past the fear of doing it
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Reflected Best Self Exercise
Ask twenty people for a story of you at your best, then find the pattern
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Regret minimization framework
Picture yourself at 80 looking back, then pick the option you would regret least
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Rereading your notebooks
Opening old notebooks to today's date in previous years, as a writing prompt
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Saying No Gracefully
A three step script for declining without wrecking the relationship
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Second-order thinking
Keep asking and then what until the picture of the consequences stops changing
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Six-page narrative memo
A written memo read silently at the start of the meeting, in place of slides
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Specific knowledge
Building the kind of skill nobody knows how to teach, by following real curiosity
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Strategic quitting
Setting your quit conditions in advance, then quitting without drama
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
The 1-2-3 Method
One essential task, two urgent ones, three maintenance items, then stop
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
The Golden Circle
Explain why, then how, then what, in that order
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
The smallest viable audience
Naming the fewest people you need to serve well, then building only for them
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Twelve favorite problems
Hold a dozen open questions in mind and test what you read against them
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Two-a-day training
Splitting the day: an aerobic session in the morning, strength work later on
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Two-way door decisions
Sort choices by how reversible they are, then move fast on the reversible ones
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Walking meetings
Taking the conversation on foot instead of around a table, and ending it with the walk
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
WHY discovery exercise
Ask a close friend why you are friends, then listen for what they say about themselves
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Yesterbox
Answer only yesterday's email today, so the queue never grows
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it
Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed.