Stand up to problems
You can make difficult decisions up to 20% faster when standing instead of sitting, says recent research. One possible explanation: The increased heart rate stimulates the brain to work faster.
Year: 2010
Our HR colleague is a gossip
Question: “I sit near a human resources employee who talks very loudly on the phone. She gossips about confidential personnel matters, such as the amount of someone’s bonus check or which employees are being pursued by collection agencies. Everyone in the group can hear her, even if we try not to listen. We are all afraid to go to her boss, because they are good friends. What can we do?” —Concerned
Make worry WORK
“I’m worried the team won’t like my suggestions.” “I’m worried I didn’t give my boss enough time between flights.” “I’m worried they’ll eliminate my position.” Everybody worries sometimes, but too much worrying becomes a mental bad habit that costs time, money and personal sanity. What to do instead? Make worry WORK for you.
How to take smart meeting notes
Some of the most successful businesspeople, such as Bill Gates, are known for taking detailed, effective meeting notes. Gina Trapani, a technology writer and software developer, recently shared three different note-taking systems in Fast Company:
Track call-backs
When you leave a message, jot the name and purpose of your call on a list beside your phone. Later, when you receive that mystery greeting, “Hi, this is Joan,” you won’t have to wonder who Joan is and why she’s calling.
6 words tell the tale
Ernest Hemingway once bragged that he could write a compelling story in only six words. It would have a beginning, a middle and an ending. And it would sing. His friends scoffed. They each bet $10 he couldn’t do it. Here’s what Hemingway wrote:
Share phone duties
Create a phone-answering schedule with another admin and automatically forward calls during that period. You’ll both benefit from some time without ringing interruptions.
Toot your horn
Next time someone asks, “So, what do you do?” toot your horn. Don’t hem and haw and answer with something like, “You probably won’t find this interesting, but …,” Carol Roth writes.
One page, please
Trim documents to one page to cut back the time it takes others to read and review your correspondence. You can always explain that support material is available upon request.
Turning nothing into something! PowerPoint tricks with shapes
Start with a simple circle and experiment with the new powerful graphics tools in PowerPoint® 2007/2010. Very soon, you’ll find yourself forgetting all about hours of working in custom graphics packages, painstakingly crafting creative objects to enhance your presentations.