Are you a fan of “Inbox: 0?” Or would you rather keep every email you’ve ever received in the Inbox? No matter which camp you belong to, one thing is for CERTAIN. Professionals are overwhelmed with email. Some professionals are reactive to email notifications and they let those pull them away from current tasks. Others … Email Eraser: How to Empty Your Inbox and Be More Productive with Your Time
Let me ask you a few questions. When you get ready for work in the morning, do you put your pants on twice?When you arrive at work, do you enter the building, walk out, and then enter again?In the evening, do you cook and eat dinner multiple times? No! Of course not. After all, that … Groundhog Day or Productive Day? Repetition for No Reason is a Waste of Time That Wrecks Productivity and Reduces Progress
Many people are proud of how well they can rely on their memory. Maybe you’re one of those people. But have you ever had an experience at work you wish you could have avoided after your memory let you down? See if any of these memory-challenging situations sound familiar to you… If you’ve experienced any … Relying on Your Memory to Manage Your Workday Doesn’t Work and You Risk Losing Progress on Projects
Several years ago, a new buzz-word came on the scene: pre-crastination. When I first saw it, the word appeared in Health Magazine and it was defined by Psychological Science as “hurrying to complete a task as soon as possible just to get it off your plate.” Maybe you’re familiar with this concept. If you’ve ever … “Pre-crastination” and How it Hurts Your Productivity
Why unexpected issues are dangerous for workdays that don’t work well and how to be more prepared to keep your productivity on track A long time ago, a member of an executive group asked me a question I have received many times since: “What do you do when an emergency totally ruins your schedule?” The … How to Prevent the Unexpected from Derailing Your Productivity and Progress
In the professional workday, just about everyone uses a Calendar. Most people use a digital calendar in their email system that can synchronize with their phone or tablet. Wall calendars are certainly still is use, and other paper calendars appear as part of the “day planner” that some professionals still tote around. No matter what … 6 Reasons to Skip Using Your Calendar for Managing Tasks If You Want to Make REAL Progress
Do you have a file called “Waiting for” that contains all the things you’re waiting to receive from others, such as responses, emails, calls or paperwork? Or do you have a “Pending” pile containing these items? I had a “Pending” pile on my desk back when I worked in corporate(!), but it was not an … How to Handle Pending Tasks and Things You’re Waiting for to Stay Proactive and Productive
Many professionals are uncomfortable shutting their office door or disappearing for any length of time to get things done. They’re afraid of not being available to others when others need them. But this is unreasonable. Having an all-day, open-door policy will severely limit your productivity to only those moments you get to yourself and will … Vanishing Act: Making Remarkable Progress Depends on How Often You Can Disappear
There is one workday process that professionals STILL use today to try to manage their workload, but it’s archaic and outdated. It’s also inefficient, ineffective and highly unproductive. And because this is true, this process will ALWAYS put professionals into S-L-O-W motion when they MOST want to make progress. What’s the process? Writing to-do lists … This Outdated Process Is Putting Your Progress in S-L-O-W Motion
John finished a meeting with a local law firm feeling a little bit less confident than when he had started it. John had felt SO prepared for this meeting and it had gone well, except when John couldn’t produce a hard copy of a case study that had been requested by Julie, one of the … Email is Not the Problem. Not Having a Way to Manage It IS.
