Time in the INFORM frame

Inform is the term we use for getting better at doing what you do. For example, in my case it might be spending an hour learning how to use my slide software faster. (I use Keynote, if you're interested.) What it is for you depends on what you do.

Your company's obligatory CPD might count – assuming it's not utterly a waste of time 😉
Watching a YouTube video to learn a time-saving trick on Word would be another example.
Reading "Coming Up for AIR" will count.

The process of "doing Inform" is as simple as it is challenging. This audio talks you through it in principle. (Quick note of caution – the audio is less than two minutes long: don't assume it's not a big deal just because of that!)

Here's a personal example of when Inform would be a great idea. I use MailChimp as my email package. It's not the most sophisticated but it does about 80% of what I need and the hassle of moving to a different provider would be greater than the benefit. (There's an example of the Good Enough ideas we talked about earlier.)

Obviously I'm on their mailing list and today, while I was drafting this very page, and email arrived from them telling me there was something new in their software. I'm busy and otherwise occupied so my instinct was to hit the Delete button but instead I've set 20 minutes aside this afternoon to look into it – they look to have something that will save me ten minutes or so every time I send an mailshot in the future. As I send two or so a month, the maths isn't hard to do!

As you can see – the idea is almost painfully simple. The hard part is having the confidence to realise you're not stealing time from your job or employer to do this… and then being organised enough to actually do it! 😉