I came across this great wee productivity book written by a Zen monk Paul Loomans.
“This book is for anyone who feels trapped by over-full, over-scheduled days. It explains how to escape the raging storms of busyness and find your way back to a more enjoyable and natural relationship with the clock. Time Surfing is a beautiful idea, expressed brilliantly in this beautiful book.”
I’ve throughly enjoyed working my way through his 7 part approach. To date I’ve been a time blocker and Paul’s more intuition based approach might not appeal to everyone. His explanation of gnawing rats really resonated with me.
Has anyone else on the forum read this book and have experience of working this way?
Haven’t looked at the book, but I do have some naive questions. What does productivity look like for a Zen monk? Do Zen monks have a lot on their plate?
Ha! Good point. It does seem that he has a busy schedule. I think he’s a director of a zen Buddhist group in Amsterdam, runs courses for businesses and has a young family. He’s also quite open about the times he’s not been as “zen like” as he wants to be.
I’ve never heard of this book before today- but now it’s come across my radar twice this week (did you hear about it from Oliver Burkeman’s newsletter?)
Just bought it, and going to read it this week. I am thinking of going back to paper and pencil for planning and getting my projects in order. I get so caught up in learning a new “system” I get further behind and then move to the next shiny new system. Noteplan Vs Agenda Vs Things Vs Reminders…
The book has been discussed at length on Mark Forster’s site. I’ve read the book twice, and found Paul’s ideas work well with my distaste for GTD-style lists and time blocking. I think it’s a good read for people who find traditional time management approaches to be ineffective.
Hi Avrum - thanks for the information on Mark Forster. I must confess I’d not heard of Mark before so I’ll be heading down that rabbit hole soon! Is this his website that you refer to?
