How to Prevent Yourself From Becoming a Tip-a-Holic

vintage decor with chemical bottleThe headline for this post may be playful but the problem is a very real one.

Many professionals want to improve their time management skills. The simplest method that we hear broadcast over the Internet is simply to pick up the right tip, trick or shortcut. Choosing the right one will magically transform everything.

Like magic. Or should that be snake-oil?

They promise the same thing: put little or no work into using this tip, and you’ll be able to save hundreds of hours per year / triple your productivity / never fall behind on anything ever again. Apparently, there’s a lot of money to be made selling these “solutions” to people who want to believe that they can pretty much get something for nothing.

I have just initiated a 7 part series over at Lifehack.org that starts with the idea that we should stay away from these trivial bits of advice, and look for substantial help backed up by research.

Here’s The new Lifehacking #1: Why You Should Stop Feeding Your Addiction to Tips, Tricks and Shortcuts.