I'm using Personal Kanban to visualize the work I am doing and follow through with it to successful completion. I'm using Pomodoro to help with focus and sequestering, so that I can get into that FLOW that makes for excellent work and customer satisfaction.

1. “We Are Drowning in Work”
Get control of your to-do list!
Trish Perkins, Consultant
Worldstouch

2. Who’s Trish?
• Nonprofit systems
analyst and designer
• Affordable nonprofit
technology consultant
• Trainer, cheerleader,
support personnel

3. I do cloud computing solutions

4. How I Got Here
I got interested in this company called
“Bigger Boat.”
From their website, one thing led to
another to… Personal Kanban
http://biggerboatconsulting.com/our-agile-
approach-no-surprises/

5. Two Steps
• Visualize your work
• Limit Work in Progress
Most of the ideas in this slideshow were lifted from Jim Benson’s Personal Kanban book and web site, which
has inspired me very much.

6. The Science
The underlying principles and
research

7. Lesson from 1927
Russian psychologist: Bluma Zeigarnik
“When we finish tasks, we get closure and move
on. When we don’t finish tasks—we don’t.”
This means our overloaded work-in-progress is
robbing us of our memories, we don’t
remember what we’ve done.

8. How do we concentrate?
• Coherence – following a linear line through a
story
• Concentration – focusing our minds, limit our
options (distractions)
• Sequestering – being left alone to finish stuff,
also eliminating distractions

10. Jerry Weinberg’s Chart
http://www.infoq.com/articles/multitasking-problems

11. The story of the Cookie and the
CocoPuffs

12. Work does not fill a
vessel or a jar.
Work is more like a
highway that flows.
Highways at 100%
capacity STOP.
So do people!

13. Effectiveness over Productivity
• Productivity is measured by quantity against
capacity
• Effectiveness is measured by value against
effort
• “The paradox is that you can be very
productive without being effective at all.”

14. My latest and greatest Kanban

19. Your Turn!

20. Four Steps, a bit more complex
1. Value Stream – graphic visualization of the
steps in a process/project.
2. Populate Backlog
3. Limit Work-in-Progress
4. Pull Work – Pull not Push!

21. What are your Value Streams
Name some projects, processes,
dreams, goals

22. Establish the backlog

23. What’s your WIP Limit?
Mine is three.

24. Begin to PULL!

25. Pomodoro Video
http://pomodorotechnique.com/ - the first video on the site

26. Pomodoro Technique
• Set a timer for 25 minutes
• Focus on your work, minimize distractions,
note intrusions
• When it goes off, take a five minute break.
• That is ONE POMODORO
• When you have four, take a longer break.
THAT’S IT!

27. My Pomodoros
I keep track of the number of Pomodoros on a scratch pad next to my desk.

28. Pomodoro MindMap
http://mastermindmaps.wordpress.com/2010/10/29/using-pomodoro-more- productivity-less-procrastination/

29. Questions???

30. Have fun!
…and thanks for coming!

31. Resources in the handout
Books:
• Personal Kanban: Mapping Work | Navigating Life, Jim Benson & Tonianne DeMaria Barry
• Why Limit WIP: We Are Drowning in Work, Jim Benson
Web resources:
• PersonalKanban: visualize, learn, improve
• http://www.personalkanban.com/pk/#sthash.iE0BjZTW.dpbs
• Especially the blog and pk101
• LeanKit Slide show on using Kanban for work teams
• http://leankit.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Designing-Your-Kanban-Board-to-Map-Your-Process-
PDF.pdf
• LeanKit itself:
• www.leankit.com
• PomodoroTechnique Site
• http://pomodorotechnique.com/
• Great Post on Using Agile and Kanban with GirlScouts
• http://www.projectsatwork.com/blog/Dave-Prior/6390/