Do you procrastinate? Outsmart the habit
When resolving to reach a goal, it might help to commit to a hard deadline, and then tell colleagues, friends or a spouse about it. A public commitment might strengthen your resolve.
Category: Time Management
Web-based productivity tools
Everyone has a preferred method of organizing to-dos and notes. Your computer monitor may be littered with Post-its, or you may use your e-mail software to track action items. Increasingly, though, people are turning to web-based tools. The benefit? To access these “cloud-based” tools, you don’t need to be on a particular computer, network or browser. A few suggestions:
Get twice as much done in half the time
You want to make every hour count, so you plan your day in 15-minute chunks and prioritize your tasks. That’s smart time management, but it doesn’t guarantee you’ll work productively. You’ll operate most efficiently if you banish aimless anxieties and the urge to procrastinate. Here’s a road map to boost your productivity:
1-Minute Strategies: Oct. ’10
Tap the knowledge of people in your network with Aardvark … Block yourself from frittering away hours online by trying out these two applications … Boost your energy by tackling an item on your to-do list … Cut out that trip to the post office … Never shy away from negotiating …
Reclaim your calendar … and your life
Stever Robbins, who dispenses advice on maximizing your creativity and whipping your e-mail into submission, now is integrating time management and innovation into a coherent system for getting things done. Here are tips from his new guide to working less and accomplishing more:
Stretched between 2 bosses
Anyone who has worked for two or more bosses can tell you: The division of labor often leaves you feeling stretched both ways. But with some schedule-wrangling and communication skills, you can manage the work more smoothly.
1-Minute Strategies: Sept. ’10
Strip formatting from a Word document … Work toward a big health goal one text at a time … Make clutter disappear by turning each piece of paper into an action item in your planner … Avoid information overload—and save time—by asking a specific, “micro” question … Connect with people who want your cast-offs …
Striking a work/life balance
Question: “I can’t seem to find the happy medium between too much work and not enough. Although I’ve been doing training for 20 years, I still spend a million hours on my lesson plans and class materials … I’d like to nurture my creative side by trying out some new hobbies and activities. How can I stop devoting so much time to my work?” — Too Dedicated
Time management = calendar management
Time is finite. All the more reason to give special attention to managing time blocks on your schedule and the boss’s schedule. Here are two tactics, taken from two executives who use time management to boost their productivity:
Dread doing it? 5 ways to nudge yourself
With dreaded tasks hanging over your head, you’ll feel more drained and uneasy than if you just tackle them, says author Gretchen Rubin. Next time you don’t feel like making that phone call or going to the gym, try these strategies: