Building Systems, maximizing clarity
The optimal way to deploy our human brains is sequentially.
— Cal Newport, A World Without Email
Systematizing what is repeatable, manageable, and predictable may feel daunting and time-consuming in the short term, but can lead to exponential quality of life (and work) improvements. According to *Systems thinking, *a system can be more than the sum of its components, when structured deliberately and viewed holistically.
As professor Cal Newport postulates in his book A World Without Email, (knowledge) work is composed of two parts: *work execution *and workflows. "If work execution is what generates value, then workflows are what structure these efforts" (Newport, 2021). Workflows are not what generates value tangibly, and hence they are oftentimes discarded as not important by organizations and individuals. Workflows can feel abstract and blurred. Workflows that minimize *context switching *and hyperactive *communication overload *are likely the most valuable for cognitively intense activities/jobs. With time and consistent *reliable *output, you will gain idiosyncratic credits, as organizational psychologist Adam Grant puts it.
The better you are at what you do, the more freedom you earn to be idiosyncratic in how you deliver—no explanation required.
— Idiosyncrasy credits, a concept put forth by Adam Grant
Building effective, intentional systems ultimately is all about reducing to a minimum the amount of *attention switching *(switching context only when you intend to do so, and not based on other people's needs—unless urgent). This is based on the *specialization principle: *"working on fewer things, but doing each thing with more quality and accountability" (Newport, 2021). Focused, deep work on *what is essential *can be made possible also through reviews and planning sessions, where we can understand what went well and what can be improved, to move forward in life, with purpose and calmness.