'Organising our small business' is now 'Working with Johnny.Decimal'
'Organising our small business' is now 'Working with Johnny.Decimal'
Johnny.Decimal
Content feed for Johnny.Decimal.
Latest posts
Obsidian links break. Mine don't. (video)
I'll show how Current You can make links, templates, and Johnny.Decimal IDs work together to help Future You.
Indicating levels of Johnny.Decimal complexity
The previous post was very 'advanced'. I should have made that clearer. Here's how I'll do that in the future.
RFC W0192: Use of +, ~, @; clarifying extend-the-end
A request-for-comments. Closes 2026-07-30. On the use of symbols ~, +, @; and clarifying the extend-the-end concept.
WwJD: Spend less time doing boring admin (video)
[Link to YouTube] This video shows how my system helps me calmly complete two simple, infrequent tasks.
WwJD: This is what Johnny.Decimal was designed for (video)
[Link to YouTube] Managing complex tasks is not just possible, it's easy with Johnny.Decimal.
This week at JDHQ – 2026-07-13
The weekly email update, cross-posted here.
Purpose, mission, values
If you're a small business, I think you should write down your purpose, mission, and values. We did. Here they are.
Once again, we failed to focus
Why do we keep doing things that aren't our core mission? Because we'd never thought about what that was.
SBS Zoom minutes for 2026-07-02
Thoughts on purpose, mission, and vision statements from our weekly SBS Zoom call.
Thinking out loud about project management
[Link to YouTube] I've been thinking a lot about project management for the last 6 months and I'm thinking out loud here, nothing is set in stone. However, me and Lucy are using the concepts mentioned and it's working really well in our business.
Registration review: Taiwan
A review of the vehicle registration plates of Taiwan. The first of an ongoing series.
A realisation on the nature of information storage
Sometimes it can be annoying, but the benefit of this system is that, at the very least, you must store your information _somewhere_.
In need of numbers?
It took me a while to figure out what this even was. So much potential…
The Filing Association of New York
A newspaper report on the annual meeting of the Filing Association of New York. Unfortunately we all missed it by 104 years.
This week at JDHQ – 2026-06-15
The weekly email update, cross-posted here.
Hobbling my app launcher
When 'efficiency' becomes distraction, is it time to become less efficient?
SwissMicros calculators
I have no use for a desk calculator, but as soon as I have a desk again I'm buying a SwissMicros DM41L.
Identifier: Taiwanese survey markers
Numeric identifiers are ubiquitous in real life. Taipei has survey markers embedded in the pavement. The physical world, tagged.
Deciding to work for myself
Thoughts on self-employment and being the smallest business.
This week at JDHQ – 2026-06-01
The weekly email update, cross-posted here.
Announcing the SBS annual maintenance calendar
A shared schedule that covers the entire SBS over the course of a year, backed up by in-person Zoom calls for accountability.
New playlist: 'Organising our small business'
New playlist: 'Organising our small business'
Recommendation: PikaPods
A godsend for small business: PikaPods is like employing a team of app developers.
100 email list unsubscriptions is a good thing
I see losing 100 people from my email list as a feature. It means those that who remain, care.
This week at JDHQ – 2026-05-25
The weekly email update, cross-posted here.
Startup routine
We both find great comfort in our morning startup routine.
New miniseries: 'Online security essentials'
New miniseries: 'Online security essentials'
Going to try shutting down my laptop every night
When you have the safety net of 'never close anything', you don't really have to think about where a thing goes.
Context switching
Tracking 'what I'm doing' reveals how much we context switch.
PSA: PDFs leak data
There's a lot more to a PDF than the title of the document and the words you see on the page.
Why wouldn't every meeting have an ID?
Now there's no doubt what it's about and where the actions and minutes are.
SBS Zoom sessions tomorrow are open to the public
The Zoom details are in the post. Come and say hi.
undermanager: Three things about data
Data is a risk. Data is distracting. Critically analyse all external data that you hold. Do you really need it?
This week at JDHQ – 2026-05-18
The weekly email update, cross-posted here.
An ideas 'registry' organised with structured tags
This is a super early idea that I've been thinking about for a few months. It’s not ready yet. But you can tell me what sounds good and bad.
Think small: achieve something / Think big: probably fail
How I failed to build Castle Hill Infant School a website in 1998, and how it haunts me to this day.
A nice surprise in Things
I was feeling organised and smug. Until I wasn't.
Position statement: AI-generated apps
Everyone can make an app now. As a result, it's unlikely that yours is very interesting. Sorry.
Spend time with your own words
You can't hope to understand something unless you put the work in.
A new website, and a focus on small business
Big news.
Small Business System — 9 IDs in category 12 renamed and a zero tweak.
Small Business System — 9 IDs in category 12 renamed and a zero tweak.
Life Admin System — 3 IDs in category 12 renamed and a zero tweak.
Life Admin System — 3 IDs in category 12 renamed and a zero tweak.
March's YouTube roundup
Links to the videos we published this month.
Monodraw: create lovely ASCII diagrams
Monodraw is a lovely little Mac app and only costs $10.
Decimal Diary: Happy 1st birthday to the SBS
Lucy reflects on the Small Business System's 1st birthday.
Documenting my security practices
Here's an in-depth look at my security practices. In the hope of making it readable by the layperson, I'll give background where necessary. I welcome feedback.
A Productive Conversation with Mike Vardy
Last week it was my pleasure to have A Productive Conversation with Mike Vardy.
Post-incident review
Here's what happened, how it happened, what I did about it, and what I'm doing to make sure it can't happen again.
I uploaded your email address to GitHub
I really did.