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Eric Mack reached out to me recently and offered to show me how he uses IBM Notes. I wanted top see eProductivity in operation anyway so this was my chance to learn from its creator

My first One on One coaching session with Eric Mack focused on an introduction to eProductivity which I found impressive. Eric Mack and David Allen have created an optimized software package and user interface for IBM Notes.

(As an aside, I believe that it  would behoove anyone working in software development to preview the demo and see what a completely optimized life management tool looks like.) Over a three day period, I implemented all 57 exercises to properly demo the software. In my next post, I will describe more about this experience.

One of my biggest takeaways from our conversation was the idea of a “Trusted System.” Eric Mack and David Allen do not merely use IBM Notes, they live in the software. They use IBM Notes for almost everything. When you invest in application software it’s highly important that you can rely on it. Many third party vendors offer software with shaky synchronization capabilities on proprietary databases. IBM Notes runs on a far more open and more secure platform, it is an industry standard and it synchronizes using Microsoft’s active sync protocol for it mobile platform IBM Notes Traveler, making it extremely reliable.

If you are going to invest in a “Trusted System” then it has to be both reliable and ubiquitous. Frankly, in my opinion, you must use it consistently and keep all your key information for reminders of actions and projects and for reference in one single place -- not in multiple places across multiple platforms and software applications.  You should have access to all this material from a single trusted system which is why David and Eric use IBM Notes.

In my situation, I still have too many balls rolling with multiple applications serving the same function.  I have started using IBM Notes, Evernote and OneNote for journals, check lists, reference material and older project notes. Similarly, I use Skydrive and Dropbox to shared data and two external hard drives further making my digital management system not fully trustable. I believe that Eric Mack’s advice about having a single trusted system and a consistent methodology is paramount to anyone wishing to completely get a handle on better managing their life.