Expert Advice

Tick Achieve App

I am delighted to announce the launch of an app based on my book Tick Achieve: How to get stuff done. It has stacks of information and reminders to help you have a better time of it, and a specific section for businesses.

It's out now for the introductory price of £1.79, and works on iphone, ipad and itouch.

Click the link to have a look, and buy:

http://www.tickachieve.com

It would also help enormously if you wrote a quick review or gave it a decent star rating, but that's your call.

2010: Survival or Growth?

To celebrate the launch of my new book Small Business Survival, I am going on a six-city book tour sponsored by the Design Business Association.

Entitled rather dramatically 2010: Survival or growth? I'll be running sessions in London, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Newcastle.

Anyone can come if they fancy it. The dates are:

London: 23 February

Bristol: 24 February

Leeds: 10 March

Manchester: 11 March

Edinburgh: 15 March

Newcastle: 16 March

Tickets are pay what you can (the DBA would typically charge £25 for this type of event) and everyone gets a free copy of the book (RRP £10).

Details and to book http://www.dba.org.uk/events/SurvivalOrGrowth.asp

BOOK LAUNCH

I have two new, updated books out this week.

Small Business Survival takes you through a system for running a healthy business and includes a stack of information from people who have lived through tricky times. If you want to know what's in it, or want to buy a copy, click the link:

http://www.expertadviceonline.com/smallbusinesssurvival.htm

It is accompanied by a spreadsheet that helps you use the method in the book, which you can download for free: click here.

The Design Business Association is sponsoring me on a six-city book tour from February 23 to March 16 to promote it, so I'll be running workshops in London, Bristol, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Leeds and Manchester. If you want to come, click the link for dates and times.

http://www.dba.org.uk/events/SurvivalOrGrowth.asp

Also, after five years and 20,000 copies, my first ever book Run Your Own Business is going to its second edition as part of a well-earned relaunch.

If you want to know what's in it, or want to buy a copy, click the link:

http://www.expertadviceonline.com/runyourownbusiness.htm

Thanks all of you who fly the flag for my writing. There will be more news later in the year when we launch the Greatest Hits package in print.

 

REVEALED AT LAST: MULTITASKERS ARE USELESS AT IT!

I was delighted to see a piece in the New York Times last week announcing research from Stanford University showing that “the most persistent multitaskers perform badly in a variety of tasks.” I have often said that too many tasks on the go at once remain unfinished.

 

“They don’t focus as well as non-multitaskers. They’re more distractible. They’re weaker at shifting from one task to another and at organizing information. They are, as a matter of fact, worse at multitasking than people who don’t ordinarily multitask.”

 

Hallelujah! Now the rest of us don’t have to feel so guilty. My suggestion? Try Rapid Sequential Tasking - it’s way better.

 

Right, I’m off to do one thing at a time, starting with a pint….

 

 

 

So What?

 

 

So What? is the definitive guide to the only business questions that matter. Here’s an overview, but you can buy the whole book from my website www.expertadviceonline.com.

 

So What? gets straight to the point so you can cut through the noise and nonsense of work. Much of what we learn in our formative years is unlearnt in later life. As grown-ups we are often unable to answer the simplest of questions in a clear, direct way, and frequently have no idea why we are doing something. This can lead to crippling inefficiency in business, and goes some way to explaining why so many people spend so much time doing things that have no bearing on the true purpose.

 

By behaving in a genuinely inquisitive way, you can get right to the heart of the matter and save yourself hours, days, and even months of anguish. The questions So what?, Why?, How?, and When? can be hugely effective when applied in the right context, and this book shows you how to use them.

 

Once all the right questions have been posed, there is a final sure-fire method for testing whether something is relevant and helpful. By completing the sentence “Something must be wrong if…”, it is simple to work out if you are wasting your time. For example, “Something must be wrong if I don’t want to go to work in the morning.”

So What? Shows you how to become truly inquisitive again. So let the questions roll. Pay attention to what the answers are. Learn from them and you will immediately improve your prospects of finally getting somewhere in life.

 

Tick Achieve

 

Tick Achieve is part of my business trilogy.   Here's an overview, but you can buy a copy from my website www.expertadviceonline.com.

How to get stuff done. Ever thought of something crucial to do and then completely forgotten to do it? Tick Achieve will show you hundreds of way to get things done more effectively, with no nonsense. Here are some ideas to get you started…   Stop making excuses We live in an excuse culture. Stop inventing reasons why you can’t do things and get on with it. Learn to spot waffle – in yourself and others.   Aim for progress not perfection Many tasks are mundane and cannot be done well or badly – they just need to be done. So just do it.   Don’t delay Tasks do not improve in quality if they are delayed, so get on with it now.   Leave it out The more you eliminate, the faster you can reach sensible conclusions and get the right things done.   Outthink yourself Knowing what you are unlikely to do can increase your likelihood of doing it. Acknowledge your failings and put tripwires in place to combat them.   Tick achieve You need a system to get things done. The PERFECT system will help you. By applying just a fraction of the advice in Tick Achieve you will revolutionise your life and work.

How to Tick Achieve

Business intelligence?

Many businesses do not always conduct themselves in a very intelligent way. Much of what is done has no bearing on the main point – far too often, activity is confused with genuine action. This is what can you do about it.

Talk straight

People who are incapable of coming to the point are, literally, pointless. The problem is that if no one is talking straight then it is very hard for anyone to think straight. A reasonable rule of thumb is that if you can explain something to your mother, then it is probably comprehensible and appropriately phrased.

Leave it out

Brevity holds the key to intelligence. The more you are able to eliminate, the faster you will reach sensible conclusions and get the right things done. Many thoughtful lines of inquiry will reveal that a lot of things actually do not need to be done at all, thereby saving you hours of toil.

One in a row

Achievement does not have to be a relentless series of successes. Break big problems down into mini steps. Never touch a piece of paper or email more than once. Think hard, then either do it, or don’t. Celebrate each small piece of progress and regard it as one in a row.

Tick Achieve

You need a system or structure to get a lot done. The PERFECT system might help you: Personal priority, Emotional importance, Reason for doing, Financial value to you, Everyone else’s priorities, Chronological sift, and Time shifts. Choose a combination that suits you best.

Look Lively

Liveliness of the mind is more effective than physical activity. Think hard and early, thereby preventing yourself from rushing about doing ill-judged things.

Be alert to external stimuli and try experimenting with new approaches.

Outthink yourself

Knowing what you are unlikely to do can increase your likelihood of doing it. The knack is to acknowledge your failings and put things in place to combat them. The modern excuse culture is a major culprit here – there always seems to be a reason why something hasn’t been done.

Progress not perfection

The fact that nothing is perfect needn’t stop you making progress. There is a huge difference between quantitative and qualitative perfection. Many tasks are mundane and cannot be done well or badly – they just need to be done. Aim for progress, not perfection.

Tick Achieve by Kevin Duncan is out now.

Tick Achieve

New Book

My new book So What? will be out in November. Subtitled "The definitive guide to the only business questions that matter", it is based on the lines of inquiry usually pursued by children, such as Why? and Are we there yet?

This is what advanced readers have said about it.

"Being successful in business is not a matter of being clever-clever but plain-and-simple-smart. Unfortunately being clever-clever is much easier than plain-and-simple-smart, and that is what most business books focus on.
So What? is different. It gets you to ask yourself (and your colleagues) those questions that get to smart answers and helps you turn them into smart habits and smart actions. Oh, and it's a pleasure to read too"

Mark Earls, Author, Herd and Welcome To The Creative Age

“I sit in meetings discussing businesses almost every day. Sadly, much of the talking just doesn’t move anything forward. Kevin makes observations that are so sharp that it could save you months of wasted time. If you really want to get straight to the point and sort your business out right now, read this book as soon as possible.”

Don Williams, Partner, BDO Stoy Hayward

"A refreshingly different kind of business book, full of the straight-talking, no-nonsense and practical advice we have come to expect from Kevin Duncan. Also, lots of useful quotes throughout, and a very handy at-a-glance collection of summaries from the works of other business gurus"

Rita Clifton, Chairman, Interbrand

"Far too much business analysis ends up in serving to over complicate the issues. The bigger the company, the more opinions on the table. Kevin's clinical style cuts through all this static so you know exactly where you are. With so much on at any given moment, that's a really valuable quality these days.  For people who value their time and need to move forwards quickly, then I strongly recommend you read this book."

Mark Giffin, Head of Brand Strategy and Creative Development, Visa Europe

“There are far too many so-called business gurus who have too much to say about nothing. But Kevin Duncan has proved that there is much we have yet to ask of business and ourselves. His book So What? really is the indispensable book for business we have searched for all these years.

If you only ever carry one book with you through your business life, it really needs to be this one.”

Jo Cooper, Brand Manager, Orange

MY BOOKS

I have two books out.

Teach Yourself Running Your Own Business (over 9,000 sold)

Teach Yourself Growing Your Business (over 2,500 sold)

If you find these interesting, go to the Expert Advice link or amazon, or ask me a question!