1SRC Podcast Four

[Jeff Kirvin]

Just in time for New Years Resolutions, Jeff has an overview of how to use LlamaGraphics's Life Balance to make sure you stick with them. [details (http://www.1src.com/?m=show&id=749)]

[strider_mt2k]

Always interested to hear the latest podcast.
In fact the 1SRC 'cast was my introduction to the whole idea. Now I'm listening to the one at engadget too.

Life Balance seems like a cool product that uses the PDA well for it's task.
I guess the trick is wanting to use it and sticking by it, as was pointed out already.

[Jon1270]

I've been using LB for almost 2 years now. I can't claim any experience with Covey or the Franklin Planner methods because I've always been suspicious of anything seeming like a flavor-of-the-month panacea for getting organized. My wife suggested Life Balance and I was almost immediately hooked.

What I like about LB is that it provides a very flexible environment in which to implement all sorts of time management strategies and ideas. It is a deceptively simple, straightforward tool and as David Allen points out in Getting Things Done (quoting someone else), simple principles lead to complex, intelligent behavior while complex rules lead to simple, stupid behavior. Because of it's elegant simplicity, using Life Balance has allowed me to test my changing ideas about how I ought to set my priorities, and continually evolve a system that works for me. I highly recommend it.

--Jon

[Reggie]

Llamagraphics has just informed 1SRC that 1SRC members and guests can avail of a $5 discount on the mobile version of Life Balance or $10 off the Life Balance desktop/handheld bundle.

The article has been updated to include the promotional code.

[Chuck Tomasi]

As a LB user for the past two years I'd like to give my comments (good, bad, and ugly.)

LB is a very powerful tool, but I highly recommend a couple things. First, get someone who knows the program to show you what it can really do, or read the forums at Llamagraphics to get neat tips and tricks. It's more than just lining up tasks and prioritizing them.

Like Jeff Kervin said in the podcast, I also recommend using it in conjunction with David Allen's program "Getting Things Done" (http://www.davidco.com). This will help you get everything out of your head and in to LB as your 'system'. David really works on the 'context' aspect. Don't think of LB as a high-powered to-do system. It really drives what you tell it to, and that should be everything. Using the PDA as a universal capture tool, you can grab tasks as they come and get them in the right place right away. LB also falls apart right away if you don't keep it up to date. For this, you really need to employ David Allen's weekly review.

Now for the bad. Try as we wish, Llamagraphics just isn't too concerned about a PocketPC version of the program. I know this is a Palm based forum, but if they really want to make the market they need to cover more than one platform.

LB (3.2.5) has been pretty static for the past two years. Other than some performance issues, the software hasn't seen much evolution. I just migrated from a Tungsten T to a T|3 and found that LB doesn't do well with the new databases. It only works with the classics. That too needs to be addressed.

One really good point is how it links tasks to the datebook. Obviously a lot of appointements are just tasks to certain projects. Having those linked is great. Unfortunately the LB IDs are stored in the notes part of the datebook item. If someone invites you to a meeting in Outlook or you have a crazy sync with your PC, things can get whacked. You'll have items in your outline and they won't have a time because it lost the link to the datebook. Kind of annoying. I've been told this will be improved with the "Cobalt release" of the software. We'll see. I'm not a banker on vaporware.

Support for the program is great. Listing problems in the forums or emailing them gets a pretty good response. Often times they'll send unpublished software to fix a problem on the Palm. The few times I've had to contact them, they've been very responsive.

Anyone wishing to discuss LB or integrating it with David Allen's "Getting Things Done", I'd be happy to talk. I've trained several people in our company and am working on a few 'external links' as well. I firmly believe this is a valuable tool, but it appears to me that improvements are being ignored.