Many people may have heard about or read Hugh MacCleod’s free report / manifesto, How to Be Creative. But it’s worth passing on again, if you happen to have missed it. Hugh’s blog, Gaping Void, is one of those uber-blogs which has a lot of power out there on the web, and it makes for a good read also. The subtitle for this blog is “cartoons drawn on the back of business cards” and the blog itself does have a lot of pencil drawing images in it - as does the Creative manifesto.

But it’s the How to Be Creative report which initially intrigued me, relevant as it is to both my interests in creativity and writing, and in writing eBooks also. The report, written as a free giveaway from an initial blog article on the Gaping Void blog (you can still find this full article in the archives for the blog), is now available (still free) from the wonderful Change This website, where you can find many other manifestos with some quality content, all free, and on a large range of topics.

Here’s my two perspectives on the manifesto :

1. On a creativity / inspiration front - read it.
2. On an eBook perspective, it’s a good example of using a free info product built from a popular blog article to market your blog and work further afield. Read it.

Read : How to Be Creative (Manifesto at Change This)

Technorati Tags: change this, creativity, Hugh MacCleod

Without one doubt, I would suggest that currently Zen to Done is my favourite eBook. It’s about productivity, not eBooks, but the format and simple teachings inside make it a must-read for me.

Written by Leo Babauta, this book is a compilation of his blog series, Zen To Done: The Ultimate Simple Productivity System which featured on his popular blog, Zen Habits. It was my discovery of Leo’s first eBook, Zen to Done which first set me off on wanting to write my own also. Since then he has also produced another eBook compilation from his site, called The Zen Habits Handbook for Life, which is another good read, and bargain at the price.

The ebook’s style, with a simple table of contents image at the bottom is what initially drew me to the book itself - very Zen-like in appearance. The eBook itself contains copious information, requiring perhaps more than one read to take it in. There are grammatical errors I noticed also at the start - but I found Leo’s writing style as skillful as the principles and methods he has developed. The eBook is pure information however - I would have liked perhaps some more graphics to break up the sheer weight of the information, perhaps. However, the text in Zen to Done is broken up with sidebars and quotes rendered in a very appealing style. And despite those minor niggles, I must re-iterate that it was the actual style of the whole eBook which actually drew me to it in the first place.

Then I delved into the contents, which can be summarised as -

1. 1. The key habits needed to be productive, organized, and simplified (10 habits)
   2. How to implement these key habits with tips on forming a habit.
   3. How to organize these habits into a simple system that will keep everything in your life in its place.
   4. How to simplify what you need to do.
   5. Minimal ZTD. Also includes an even simpler version called Minimal ZTD.

The 73 page eBook contains 17 sections plus some checklists and exercises which extend David Allen’s Getting Things Done principles (fundamentally task management for business users) with Stephen Covey’s goal setting and prioritization methods.

That, initially, sounds quite complicated, but Zen to Done provides ten very do-able habits, and even provides a “4-Point” Simple ZTD system called “Minimal ZTD” (located on Page 17) for those who want it. The final product actually simplifies the GTD system for anyone like me who found the GTD system quite overwhelming at first, and gives it structure. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about regarding GTD, then Zen to Done may also be a very good book to get hold of, simply because it makes no prior-knowledge expectations on your own productivity skills.

If you do a search over the web for Zen to Done reviews you will find several sites where the ten habits are listed along with some discussion over these. I won’t be doing that here, because I believe to get the most from the principles, you can at least pay out the small charge for this information, and purchase a Zen to Done copy for yourself. Here are the 10 habits however, to allow you to see the layers of information found within this economical and highly recommended eBook:-

1. 1. Collect.
   2. Process.
   3. Plan.
   4. Do.
   5. Simple trusted system.
   6. Organize.
   7. Review.
   8. Simplify.
   9. Routine.
   10. Find your passion.

Looked at this way, it makes sense. And Leo Babauta’s eBook gives you the processes and habits to be successful in that passion.

Leo Babauta’s Zen to Done system makes a workable solution to our busy personal lives. For the principles and depth of content inside, Leo only charges $9.50 through his site. That’s incredibly reasonable pricing for a system which will easily prompt us all into organising our lives into more productive ways. I actually consult this eBook consistently.

Recommended reading : Zen to Done (5 out of 5)

Technorati Tags: productivity, Recommended Ebooks, review, ztd