--- title: Two Measures of Productivity - The Inbox and the Kitchen Sink description: A couple of odd measures of productivity image: https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Two-Measures-of-Productivity.png --- ![burger-icon](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/icons/burger-icon.svg) [![Kourosh Dini - Homepage](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/logos/kourosh-logo.svg)](https://www.kouroshdini.com) ![close-icon](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/icons/close-icon.svg) - [Blog page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog) - [Podcast page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/podcast) - [Music page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/music) - [Courses & Books page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/courses-and-books) - [Psychoanalysis page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/psy) - [About page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/about) - [Contact page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/contact) - [Waves of Focus page](https://www.kouroshdini.com/waves-of-focus) ![Search](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/icons/search-icon.svg) [![at-icon](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/icons/at-icon.svg)](mailto:kmdini@gmail.com) [Return to Blog](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog) # Two Measures of Productivity - The Inbox and the Kitchen Sink Aug 09, 2021 ![](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Two-Measures-of-Productivity.png) Any measure that becomes a target ceases to be a good measure.\[^1\] Having said that, two tools I use to measure productivity are: 1\. The Inbox 2\. The kitchen sink These may seem odd, and of course, I’ll explain… ## The Inbox The Inbox is a singular place where I can set thoughts aside. It helps me keep my focus. When I am engaged, I can toss ideas there, knowing that I can rest on habit to clear them. In order to clear the Inbox, there need to be places where those ideas can responsibly wait. I have to genuinely trust that those places will remind me of those ideas, with minimal friction, at the moments they are useful, and that they will stay out of the way, otherwise. All that is to say, I have places for my ideas to go. When I can clear the Inbox regularly, it is ready to capture my thoughts for development. Once addressed, they tend not to come to mind. I have a sense that my concerns are addressed, and so I can continue to develop those things that I find meaningful at a pace that honors the flow between me and the things that matter. So a regularly cleared Inbox, or more accurately a mind with its intentions regularly addressed, is one useful measure. ## The Kitchen Sink The kitchen sink might seem to be a strange choice. Cleaning the dishes is often upsetting or dreaded for many. A kitchen is the heart of the home. It’s where we eat, connect, and pass moments between moments. Parties often wind up in the kitchen. Of course, the kitchen sink is where dishes, pots, and pans can pile. It’s also where they are cleaned and renewed. A clean set of dishes, much like any cleaning routine, is about supporting the things that are meaningful in life. If something meaningful is not developing, we can be angry, distressed, or upset. Much like we might kick the wall on a bad day when the wall had nothing to do with the day, our routines often bear the brunt of our anger. If we have no time to do the dishes, we are likely overwhelmed by our responsibilities. If we cannot easily dry dishes in the rack and add them to cabinets with room for reach, we likely have too much competing for space. The same processes likely appear elsewhere in our home and office, with our self and relationships. If we do not have a clear process to add soap and water to a bowl, then wash, and add the dishes to a drying rack, we likely don’t have supportive routines elsewhere in our lives. When these matters are in place, when we genuinely feel that the routines we do support the gentle pace of a meaningful life, I find doing the dishes enjoyable. The flowing water, the cleaning of a dish for use once again, and my movements taking part in the act of renewal join into moments of reflection. This is all to say, enjoying doing the dishes is one useful measure of meaningful productivity. When I do not, I have a prompt to consider what might be amiss. If you are interested in finding a clear deck, where you have a relaxed, intuitive sense that what needs to get done will get done and where you still have time to allow your mind to wander, consider [*Being Productive: Simple Steps to Calm Focus*](https://gum.co/Being_Productive).   \[^1\]: [Goodhart's Law](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodhart's_law) ![Divider](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/separator.svg) Share this article ## Recent Articles [![Is the Medication Working?](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/S01E77%20-%20Is%20the%20Medication%20Working-blog.jpg)](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/is-the-adhd-medication-working) #### [Is the Medication Working?](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/is-the-adhd-medication-working) Oct 16, 2026 Hmm, I wonder if this medication's working. Maybe it is. I've been at this game for about four hours, and the ... ![Bottom card separator](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/faq/line-mobile.svg) [![No Pain, No Gain, and the Wandering Mind](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/Ep%2076%20No%20Pain%20No%20Gain%20and%20the%20Wandering%20Mind.jpg)](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/no-pain-no-gain-and-the-wandering-mind-adhd) #### [No Pain, No Gain, and the Wandering Mind](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/no-pain-no-gain-and-the-wandering-mind-adhd) Oct 09, 2026 It's 9:00 at night. The report is maybe two-thirds done. My back is killing me. Well, maybe I'll just keep pus... ![Bottom card separator](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/faq/line-mobile.svg) [![Building Trust With a Wandering Mind](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/Blog%20Building%20Trust%20With%20a%20Wandering%20Mind%20-%20ep75.jpg)](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/abuilding-trust-with-a-wandering-mind-agency-adhd) #### [Building Trust With a Wandering Mind](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/abuilding-trust-with-a-wandering-mind-agency-adhd) Oct 02, 2026 Maybe others can do it, that trick, that hack, that system. I'm just not sure that I trust I could. We said th... ![Bottom card separator](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/faq/line-mobile.svg) [Return to Blog](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog) ## Publications Over the years, I’ve written five main works on productivity. Sign up for the Weekly Wind Down newsletter to get free previews. ![Kourosh Dini courses](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/courses%20and%20books/books%20left.webp) ![Kourosh Dini books](https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/courses%20and%20books/books%20right.webp) [See all the publications](https://www.kouroshdini.com/courses-and-books) - [Kourosh Dini Instagram (opens in new window)](https://www.instagram.com/kouroshdinimd/) - [Kourosh Dini LinkedIn (opens in new window)](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kouroshdini) - [Kourosh Dini X/Twitter (opens in new window)](https://x.com/kouroshdini) - [Kourosh Dini YouTube (opens in new window)](https://www.youtube.com/c/KouroshDini) ### Contact Us If you have a clinical matter, please call. For books and productivity matters, please email. - [1020 South Wabash Ave, Unit 4G, Chicago, IL 60605 (Opens Address in google Maps)](https://maps.app.goo.gl/7agnPcDjwB6PRNuX6) - [312-391-3171 (opens phone dialer)](tel:+13123913171) - [dinigroup@kouroshdini.com (Opens mail application)](mailto:dinigroup@kouroshdini.com) - [Home](https://www.kouroshdini.com/) - [Blog](https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog) - [Podcast](https://www.kouroshdini.com/podcast) - [Music](https://www.kouroshdini.com/music) - [Books & Courses](https://www.kouroshdini.com/courses-and-books) - [Psychoanalysis](https://www.kouroshdini.com/psy) - [About](https://www.kouroshdini.com/about) - [Contact](https://www.kouroshdini.com/contact) - [Privacy Policy](https://www.kouroshdini.com/privacy-policy) - [Terms & Conditions](https://www.kouroshdini.com/terms-and-conditions) © 2026 The Dini Group, Ltd. ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Kourosh", "url" : "https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/author/kourosh" }, "dateModified" : "2026-03-31T17:47:27.346Z", "datePublished" : "2021-08-09T15:00:17.000Z", "headline" : "Two Measures of Productivity - The Inbox and the Kitchen Sink", "image" : [ "https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Two-Measures-of-Productivity.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.kouroshdini.com/the-dini-group-ltd-blog/two-measures-of-productivity-the-inbox-and-the-kitchen-sink", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.kouroshdini.com/hubfs/logos/kourosh-logo.svg" } } } ```