如何超过99%的人: 时间管理的奥秘

Summary

本视频探讨了生产力的真正含义，强调了专注于重要事项的重要性。通过研究Sam Altman和Elon Musk等人的时间管理方式，视频提出了四个提高个人生产力的方法：深思熟虑的大目标、简化任务列表、减少认知负荷、以及在大脑最清醒时处理最重要的事务。这些方法旨在帮助观众实现心态转变，从而提高生产力和成功的可能性。

Takeaways

• 🕒 好的时间管理等于高生产力，但真正的成功不仅仅是时间的堆砌。
• 🌟 像埃隆·马斯克这样的成功人士，他们的成功并非因为他们在固定时间内做了比别人更多的事情，而是因为他们提出了正确的问题。
• 💡 理查德·汉明的演讲《你和你的研究》对Sam Altman产生了深远影响，强调了专注于重要问题的重要性。
• 🎯 成功的关键在于投资于那些能带来巨大回报的问题，而不是在琐事上浪费时间。
• 📉 有时候，我们为了追求更高的生产力，反而陷入了一种假性工作的形式，这实际上是一种拖延。
• 📋 Sam Altman的任务管理方法是使用纸和笔，简化任务列表，每天只关注三个重要任务。
• 🤔 我们需要给自己更多时间去思考那些最重要、能带来最高回报的大目标。
• 🔄 简化任务清单，减少每天需要关注的任务数量，有助于提高效率和专注度。
• 🧠 减少认知负荷，通过简化日常决策，让我们的大脑能够专注于真正重要的事情。
• 🥇 与时间下‘田忌赛马’，把我们大脑最清醒、最高效的时间段保留给最重要的任务。

Q & A

为什么有人认为良好的时间管理等同于高效率？

许多人认为，通过学习各种时间管理技巧和生产力软件，培养良好的习惯和严格的自律，可以提高效率，从而超越大多数人并取得成功。

Elon Musk 和其他成功人士如何在有限的时间内完成众多伟大的事情？

人们通常认为他们一定是时间管理的大师，具有非凡的生产力。但实际上，他们的成功并非仅仅因为他们在固定时间内完成了更多的工作，而是因为他们提出了正确的问题并专注于重要事项。

Sam Altman 推荐了哪位科学家的演讲，以及演讲的主题是什么？

Sam Altman 推荐了科学家 Richard Hamming 在1986年的演讲，题为'You and Your Research'（你和你的研究）。

Richard Hamming 在演讲中分享了哪个观察结果？

Richard Hamming 分享了他在贝尔实验室工作时的观察，他发现通过询问不同科学小组的重要问题，可以帮助他们取得突破性的成就。

视频制作者为什么决定暂停制作金融历史系列视频？

视频制作者意识到，尽管观众喜欢这个系列，但观看次数很低，因此他决定暂停制作剩余的剧集，转而专注于有更大潜力和更广泛受众基础的内容。

Sam Altman 指出许多初创公司失败的原因是什么？

Sam Altman 指出，许多初创公司在取得初步成功后，会浪费时间在不重要的“假工作”上，如接受更多采访、参加更多高级社交活动、寻找更好的办公室等。

如何理解真正的高效率？

真正的高效率不在于在单位时间内完成更多的工作，而在于专注于那些只占用我们10%的时间却能带来90%回报的重要事项。

视频制作者提出的四个提高个人生产力的方法是什么？

第一，给自己更多时间思考重大目标；第二，简化任务列表；第三，有意识地减少认知负荷；第四，将最充裕的大脑时间自私地保留给最重要的事情。

为什么要减少认知负荷？

认知负荷是我们大脑处理新信息的能力，是有限的。简化日常决策，如建立日常规律、预计划每日餐食等，可以减少认知负荷，帮助我们专注于更重要的事情。

为什么有些人在追求生产力的过程中实际上是一种拖延？

当我们没有专注于最重要的事情时，追求生产力可能变成一种形式的拖延，因为我们可能在不重要的事情上浪费时间，而忽视了那些真正重要的事项。

Elon Musk 和 Sam Altman 如何管理他们的任务？

Elon Musk 可能不是任何生产力软件的专家。Sam Altman 的任务管理工具是纸和笔，他只有两个任务列表，一个用于记录年度重大目标，另一个用于日常任务，每天最多包括三项重要任务和不超过30项次要任务。

Outlines

00:00

🕒 重新认识生产力与时间管理

本段讲述了作者对生产力和时间管理的重新认识。作者通过研究Elon Musk和Sam Altman等人的成功，意识到成功并非仅仅依靠时间管理技巧或生产力软件，而是要关注真正重要的问题。作者通过阅读Sam Altman推荐的Richard Hamming的演讲，深刻理解到应该专注于那些能够带来最大回报的重要问题。此外，作者分享了自己在YouTube频道上的实践和转变，强调了专注于重要问题的重要性。

05:01

🎯 确定最重要的目标和简化任务列表

这一部分，作者分享了自己如何确定最重要的目标，并简化任务列表以提高效率。作者强调，要花更多时间去思考和设定宏伟的目标，因为这些目标能带来最大的回报。同时，作者介绍了Sam Altman的任务管理方法，即只保留两个任务列表：一个用于记录年度重大目标，另一个用于记录日常任务，每天最多三项重要任务和不超过30项次要任务。作者还提到了如何通过减少认知负荷来提高效率，包括简化日常决策和忽略无关紧要的干扰。最后，作者提到了如何利用大脑最清醒的时间来处理最重要的任务。

Keywords

💡时间管理

时间管理是指通过各种技巧和工具有效地安排和利用时间，以提高个人或组织的效率和生产力。在视频中，时间管理被视为提高生产力的关键因素，但同时也指出了人们对于生产力的常见误解，即不是通过在单位时间内完成更多工作来实现高生产力，而是通过专注于重要的事情来实现。

💡生产力

生产力是指在单位时间内创造产出的能力。视频强调，真正的生产力并非通过提高单位时间内的工作量来实现，而是通过识别并专注于那些最重要的问题和任务来达成。

💡Sam Altman

Sam Altman是知名的创业家和投资者，曾在Y Combinator担任总裁。视频中提到他推崇的一场演讲对如何管理时间有着深远的影响，这表明他对于生产力和时间管理有着独到的见解。

💡Richard Hamming

Richard Hamming是一位科学家，他在1986年的演讲'You and Your Research'中分享了在贝尔实验室的观察和经验，强调了提出重要问题的重要性。

💡重要问题

重要问题是指那些对个人或组织目标具有决定性影响的问题。视频强调，成功的人是那些能够识别并专注于解决这些重要问题的人。

💡假工作

假工作是指那些看似忙碌但实际上对实现长期目标没有实质性帮助的工作。视频指出，许多人在取得初步成功后，会陷入假工作的陷阱，浪费时间在不重要的事情上。

💡任务列表

任务列表是一种管理工具，用于记录和组织需要完成的任务。在视频中，Sam Altman通过简化任务列表来提高效率，只记录年度重要目标和每日任务，每天专注于完成三项重要任务。

💡认知负荷

认知负荷是指大脑在处理信息时所承受的心理压力和工作量。视频建议通过减少不必要的决策和简化日常生活来降低认知负荷，从而更有效地专注于重要任务。

💡心态转变

心态转变是指改变个人的思维模式和行为习惯，以适应新的挑战或达成新的目标。视频最后提到，通过理解和实践视频中提到的原则和方法，可以帮助观众实现重要的心态转变，从而提高个人效率和生产力。

💡效率

效率是指以最少的资源投入获取最大的产出。在视频中，效率与生产力紧密相关，但视频强调真正的效率来自于专注于那些能够带来最大回报的重要任务。

💡目标

目标是指个人或组织希望实现的具体成果或成就。在视频中，目标的设定与追求是推动个人向前发展的关键动力，特别是那些能够带来重大变革的大目标。

Highlights

好的时间管理等于高效率

人们如何像埃隆·马斯克一样在有限的时间内完成伟大的事情

学习各种时间管理技巧和生产力软件

生产力的悖论：即使努力工作，我们仍然远非卓越

对ChatGPT背后的CEO Sam Altman的思考方式感兴趣

Sam Altman推荐的1986年科学家Richard Hamming的演讲《你与你的科研》

Hamming在贝尔实验室的观察：重要的问题值得投入时间

YouTube频道的反思：制作能够吸引大量观众的内容

高产出的秘密：专注于重要的事情，用10%的时间获取90%的回报

埃隆·马斯克成立新的AI公司XAI，关注基础性未解问题

许多初创公司失败是因为创始人浪费时间在不重要的“假工作”上

Sam Altman的任务管理工具是纸和笔

追求生产力时，若不专注于最重要的事情，则会变成一种拖延

超越大多数人的四个方法：思考大目标、简化任务列表、减少认知负荷、与时间下‘田忌赛马’

每天早上问自己最重要的是什么，决定投入时间的问题是否重要

简化日常生活决策，减少认知负荷，如制定日常饮食计划

忽略无关紧要的噪音和无实质内容的新闻报道、八卦和无意义的社交

Transcripts

Like many others,

I have always believed that good time management equals higher productivity.

Why can people like Elon Musk,

who also have only 24 hours a day,

accomplish so many great things?

We naturally assume

that they must be masters of time management

with extraordinary productivity.

In pursuit of this productivity,

we study various time management techniques and productivity software,

cultivate good habits and strict self-discipline,

hoping that through these efforts, we can surpass 99% of people and achieve success.

But gradually, we discover a paradox,

that even though we work hard,

constantly improving productivity,

not wasting a minute of time,

we are still far from excellence.

Recently, I have been fascinated by ChatGPT,

and I realized that I know very little about the CEO behind it,

Sam Altman.

I wanted to understand how he thinks,

to explore the secrets of his success.

So I read all the articles I could find by him,

on his blog.

I found a speech he highly recommended.

He said it was one of the best speeches he had ever seen.

It had a profound impact on how he manages his time.

After watching this speech,

I also had many moments of enlightenment.

This is when I realized that many of us have a wrong understanding of productivity.

So in today's video,

I want to share with you

some important insights I gained from these readings,

as well as some personal stories.

If you stick with the video until the end,

I will share four

executable methods that I personally use

to help you surpass 99% of people.

Sam Altman recommends

a speech by scientist Richard Hamming in 1986

called "You and Your Research."

I found a video of him giving this speech again in 1995.

In the 50-minute speech,

Hamming shared an observation from his work at Bell Labs,

Hamming told a story

about lunchtime,

when he would often go to different scientific groups' tables to talk.

He would always start by asking

and after a week or two,

he would ask again.

Whenever he asked this question,

he found himself unwelcome at that table.

But one day,

a scientist told him

A few months later, he became a department head,

and later he became a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

The story Hamming told was to express

that if you want to win a Nobel Prize,

you need to invest your time in the questions

that can win a Nobel Prize.

If you want to achieve success in your field,

you need to ask yourself which questions are important,

and then start tackling those questions.

Hamming's speech inspired me greatly,

which led me to reflect deeply on my YouTube channel.

You see, the most direct measure of a video's success

is its number of views.

So if I want my videos to reach millions of views,

I should make videos that can reach millions of views.

This means my topics should have a broader audience base.

But obviously,

I haven't been doing that in the past.

This year, I spent a whole three months

from preliminary research to filming in Europe,

and then post-production,

to release a series of financial history videos.

I planned a total of four episodes,

and now I have produced and released two episodes.

Although the viewers who have watched this series really like it,

the number of views is pitifully low.

Hamming's speech made me realize

that if this series cannot bring in views,

why should I continue to invest so much time and effort

in this niche topic?

So, I decided to pause the production of the remaining episodes

and instead focus on content with more potential

and a broader audience base.

I know some people will be disappointed,

thinking that I am too utilitarian,

or blaming the unfairness of the YouTube algorithm.

But as a creator,

a reality I must accept is

that in order to survive and succeed on the YouTube platform,

I must create content according to its rules.

I need to find content that I love and can attract a large audience,

that is where my true focus should be.

So, the so-called high productivity

is not about accomplishing more work in a unit of time,

but the real secret of time management

lies in focusing on the important

the things that only take 10% of our time

but can bring 90% of the return.

While I was preparing this video,

Elon Musk announced the establishment of a new AI company, XAI.

Interestingly, the company's first tweet was

"What are the most fundamental unanswered questions?"

This is definitely not a coincidence,

the reason people like Elon Musk succeed

is not because they do more things in a fixed amount of time than others,

but because they ask the right questions.

When they decide how to spend their time,

they always ask themselves what really matters.

Sam Altman pointed out that many startups fail

because after founders achieve initial success,

they waste time on unimportant “fake work”.

For example, accepting more interviews,

attending more high-level social events,

looking for better offices, and so on.

This is true for startups,

and it is also true for individuals like us.

Many people only appear to be working hard on the surface,

but they waste a lot of time on unimportant things.

For example, as soon as they have an idea, they think about what domain name to buy,

how the website should be designed,

instead of quickly making the product.

Then we spend time researching the best and most professional equipment,

the best office setup and environment,

and then we participate in various

online and offline seminars and social events

to gain the kind of influence and network that makes us feel good about ourselves.

Finally, we keep searching for

the perfect productivity tools and systems, overplanning.

The increased productivity we gain may be more fake work.

And those truly important things are overshadowed by this noise.

Sam Altman's task management tool is paper and pen,

and Elon Musk is probably not an expert in any productivity software.

I'm not saying that pursuing productivity is wrong,

I'm saying that

when we don't focus on the most important things,

pursuing productivity becomes a form of procrastination.

Okay, so how can we surpass most people?

I have summarized four methods that I am using.

First, give yourself more time to contemplate your big goals,

the things that are most important and have the highest return for you.

Because only big goals can bring big results.

Many of us don't give ourselves time to think about what is most important,

let alone think big.

When you start spending time thinking about how to change your destiny,

earn your first million,

develop a world-changing app,

become a company executive,

start your own company,

or achieve financial freedom,

your actions will unconsciously move toward these goals.

To surpass 99% of people,

you need to devote 100% of your time to doing

the things that 99% of people don't think about or do.

Next, we need to simplify our task list.

Here we can learn from Sam Altman,

who has only two task lists.

One is for recording major annual goals,

and the other is for daily tasks.

Each day should include a maximum of three important tasks

and no more than 30 minor tasks.

We should focus on completing those three major tasks.

Once they are completed,

the day can be considered a victory.

But we don't need to worry too much about those minor tasks.

This form of task list may seem simple,

but it is actually a powerful mindset shift.

It has tremendous power.

Now, the first thing I ask myself when I wake up every morning

is what is most important to me.

And when I decide to spend time on something,

I also ask myself

if the problem I am solving is important.

If it's not important,

why should I spend time on it?

Why does it have to be done now?

I have found that when I honestly face myself

and habitually ask myself these questions,

I choose to postpone those unimportant things selectively,

avoiding false work,

and immediately doing important things.

I am amazed to find that this is very helpful in overcoming procrastination.

Third,

consciously reduce cognitive load.

There is a concept of cognitive load in psychology.

Simply put,

we can divide our brain resources into two parts.

One part is long-term memory,

like an infinite computer hard drive.

The other part is our cognitive load,

which is like the running memory of a computer.

This part is limited.

The brain can only process a limited amount of new information each day.

Every decision we make, every thought we have,

increases this cognitive load.

Even trivial things like deciding what clothes to wear

also consume our cognitive resources.

So we need to consciously simplify daily decisions

to reduce cognitive load.

For example, establish a regular routine,

pre-plan daily meals, and so on.

Simplify life.

This is why Mark Zuckerberg decided

to wear the same clothes every day.

Similarly, we should ignore those irrelevant noises,

meaningless news reports,

and gossip without substance.

Give up fruitless arguments and meaningless socializing.

Don't worry about things we can't control, and so on.

Fourth, play the game of "Tian Ji's Horse Racing" with time.

Keep the most abundant time of our brain selfishly reserved for

the things that are most important to us.

About this, I have a detailed explanation in my video about waking up at 5 a.m.

I won't repeat it here.

In fact, this video is a supplement to the theoretical basis of that video.

Together, these two videos

are the core principles of my time management.

All my productivity software and techniques

are built on these principles.

Okay, that's all for this video.

I hope it can help you

achieve an important mindset shift.

Thank you for watching.

See you next time. Goodbye.