Productivity tips for work

Tips for working together as a team

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I love to write and create as an individual, but my energy lifts and flows when I collaborate with focused, tight groups. This includes my team work at Catalog University, and with the volunteer work I do – especially in the theater. My family is also a great team. We get a ton done and have fun doing it!

So I was super psyched when Charles Duhigg’s new book Smarter Faster Better (awesome read) took a dive into figuring out what makes a great team. Charles writes about how Google spent four years on this problem. First, they looked at who was on a team and could find no pattern. It was only when they looked at how teams worked that they found magic.

So what do the most productive teams have in common? Continue reading →

Getting in the flow

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Can you remember a time in your life when you were working on something that completely captivated you – and how delicious that felt?

Author and thinker Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes this as being in a state of “flow”. Flow isn’t a random thing that just happens from time to time. Flow is something you can look for and welcome into your life.

How can you bring flow into any activity?

Choice
Choose what you’re working on. Think about why you’re doing what you’re doing. What is your intent? There’s lots of stuff you have to do. What do you want to do? Continue reading →

The disorganization habit

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Have you ever uttered these words?

  • I’m not messy – I’m creative
  • I’ve always been disorganized
  • Someone will remind me if I forget
  • I run late – people are used to it
  • Don’t mind the mess at my house – it’s my mess and I love it

Then you may be in the disorganization habit. And maybe it’s working for you. But if you’re reading this post, then maybe you’re looking for a change. Continue reading →

How do you spend your time?

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How do you spend your time? Do you choose with focus and intent? Or are your days more random?

When you’re surfing the net or watching TV, is your energy up, or down? When you stop, do you feel lighter or heavier? Are you learning something? Sharing something?

Do your activities make a difference in your life or in the lives of others? Are you using your time well? Does what you’re doing affect you at a soul level? Continue reading →

15 ideas to manage a more effective meeting

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If you’re working to achieve organizational Zen and not waste time, corporate meetings are a huge challenge! According to a survey of U.S. professionals by Salary.com, meetings ranked as the number one office productivity killer.

Here are 15 ideas to help you run more effective meetings. Continue reading →

Embrace the facts – and move on

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Do you ever have these types of thoughts run through your head?

  • What if there’s traffic and I’m late?
  • Will my flight be on time and will I make my connection?
  • I want to talk to the new person at work, but what if they don’t want to talk to me?
  • What if my kid picks a career path I don’t like?
  • What if it rains tomorrow?

Continue reading →

Declutter Quickies

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If you’re feeling overwhelmed by stuff at home or at work, it’s time to declutter. Decluttering is not neatening up, sorting, or organizing, it’s actually getting rid of stuff and that’s tough for many. The cool thing about decluttering is that if you do it right, you have a very clear idea of what you own. And when you put things again in their own place, you also know where to find them.

And remember: The goal is Organizational Zen which is the peace of knowing you’ve got a handle on your life. You don’t have to organize the entire world – just your world 🙂 Continue reading →

Your time is valuable; set your intent!

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When I am giving a talk, or I’m working with a group on organizational skills, the first question I ask is about intent. The question of the moment is:

“What do you want to get out of this class?”

Thinking about why you are doing something helps you focus on the task at hand. And when I’m giving a talk, I want people to focus, to listen with an end-goal in mind. It’s not that I think the content is so important; it’s that I think each person’s time is so important.

Which gets to the bigger question, and the one I hope you ask yourself before committing your time to any work, project, or person:

“Is spending time on this something that’s important to me?” Continue reading →

25 tips to help improve your productivity at work

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Being organized at work isn’t all that different from being organized at home. You just have more people to deal with. The number one productivity tip I can offer for each is the same: Write it down. Writing things down saves your brain from trying to remember everything you have going on. And seeing things on paper helps you sort out and prioritize.

Use one calendar to write down meetings, appointments, and important deadlines. And use a planner to write down your daily tasks and things you’re keeping track of.

“Do I have to write everything down?”
“No, just the things you want to get done.”

Here are 25 additional tips to boost your productivity at work Continue reading →