Casey’s eTips

eTips are quick suggestions for improving productivity.  You can quickly digest the tip and put it to use immediately.  Sign up to receive eTips via email using the form on the right, or read them online, below and on Casey’s blog.

eTips
March 21, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Use Kanban to Visualize Your Work

When people think of to-do's, they often imagine a list of items they can check or unflag when done. But that's a bit binary and doesn't convey much context. If it feels too confining, here's another way to clarify your commitments… Casey's eTip: Use Kanban to Visualize Your Work Kanban…
eTips
March 15, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Create Structures to Avoid Group-Think in Meetings

People spend too much time in meetings to waste the participants' brainpower. To get more critical thinking and creativity from your team… Casey's eTip: Create Structures to Avoid Group-Think in Meetings Ask participants to jot down their thoughts about an agenda item before everyone shares aloud. This way, you get…
eTipsNews
March 6, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Keep Plants Nearby to Boost Productivity

Being in nature has been shown to lower blood pressure and improve wellbeing. Turns out you don’t need to leave your office to get these benefits... Casey's eTip: Keep Plants Nearby to Boost Productivity Like their outdoor counterparts, indoor plants have been shown to help you relax. It turns out,…
eTips
March 1, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Focus on Now to Expand Time

Einstein said that time is relative. It can speed by when you enjoy something and drag sluggishly when you don't. You can actually control your perception of time--aka your life--when you... Casey's eTip: Focus on Now to Expand Time A recent article about "Toddler Time" explains how an open curious…
eTips
February 22, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Keep the Tools that Work Best for You

If your company requires you to use Teams, Trello, Asana or to manage projects and the software doesn't quite work with your brain, you're not alone. Don't despair. Instead… Casey's eTip: Keep the Tools that Work Best for You If you have ways that work for you to manage your…
eTips
February 14, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Use Dictation to Work Faster

Does typing on a keyboard slow you down? You might find it interferes with your train of thought, yanking your brain into edit mode (e.g., fixing typos) and out of creativity mode. If you physically can't type well, capturing your thoughts can be even more frustrating. Fortunately, an old solution…
eTips
February 7, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Prioritize Your Project List

This idea is for people who feel pulled in all directions. Make a list of your top 20 projects (professional and personal combined). These are the significant initiatives that you want to accomplish. They matter most to you and make take weeks, months and/or years to achieve. Once you have…
eTips
January 28, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Practice Kaizen to Produce the Life You Want

Human beings are paradoxical: we are built for both continuous change and to maintain homeostasis. How can we successfully navigate this apparent contradiction? We can practice Kaizen: the art of making small, even unthreateningly tiny, changes that slowly add up to significant transformation, the way small raindrops ripple across a…
eTips
January 25, 2023

Caseys eTip: Getting Organized Means Getting Present

People think being organized is about being orderly, but having space matters more than any natural sense of order. Casey's eTip: Getting Organized Means Getting Present The best way to make space (homes) for your current needs is to let go of the past and of past dreams of the…
eTips
January 16, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Take Regular 5-Minute Walk Breaks

Sitting for hours on end will kill you before your time (see one study). But you can eliminate that risk with one small change… Casey's eTip: Take Regular 5-Minute Walk Breaks In the past, I've recommended what I call "Interval Work"--stretches of focus and effort punctuated by short breaks. New…
ADDeTips
January 11, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Create Accountability for Your Learning

Professional development, staying current with changes in your industry and others, is critical to sustainably high productivity. But who has the time? Casey's eTip: Create Accountability for Your Learning Professional development is one of those "Quadrant II" activities--important but not urgent. And so people put it off one day at…
eTips
January 3, 2023

Casey’s eTip: Do 90-90-1 to Achieve Your Goals

Here's a way to start the year off right by doing your most important work… Casey's eTip: Do 90-90-1 to Achieve Your Goals Robin Sharma explains 90-90-1 this way: "For the next 90 days, devote the first 90 minutes of your work day to the one best opportunity in your…
Casey's eTip: Reflect on the Year Gone By eTips
December 28, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Reflect on the Year Gone By

It's so easy to continually move forward, always onto the next thing. Yet research shows that reflection on past experiences and growth increases our satisfaction and promotes insight and learning. Frankly, it gives us perspective and the sense of having a life, rather than a series of moments. This week's…
Casey's eTip: Ask for Teamwork Not "Help" eTips
December 21, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Ask for Teamwork, Not “Help”

As a leader in your home or office, it's easy to fall into the trap of asking others for "help" to get work done. What's the trap? The false underlying belief there that it is truly all your responsibility and others are doing you a favor. It can seem wrong…
Casey's eTip: Cultivate a Sense of Abundant Time eTips
December 14, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Cultivate a Sense of Abundant Time

Feel that you don't have enough time? You can try to rush to cram it all in or cut obligations. It can help, but your mindset may need to change, too. Casey's eTip: Cultivate a Sense of Abundant Time The sense of "enough" is a mental construct. You can create…
Casey's eTip: Shop Less Enjoy More eTips
December 7, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Shop Less, Enjoy More

If you love gift-giving, you probably did your gift shopping much earlier in the year. If you don't love it, now is your time to open negotiations with family members about expectations and needs. The goal might be to follow Casey's eTip: Shop Less, Enjoy More. You might consider the…
Casey's eTip: Cut the Copying in Email eTips
November 30, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Cut the Copying in Email

Copying others on emails can get out of control. Some people copy supervisors and others on almost every message and it is usually not helpful for anyone. This week's Casey's eTip: Cut the Copying in Email. If your direct-reports copy you unnecessarily on emails, it might serve you and them…
Casey's eTip: Give a Heartfelt Thank You to Someone Who Rarely Gets Acknowledged eTips
November 23, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Give a Heartfelt Thank You to Someone Who Rarely Gets Acknowledged

William Blake wrote "The thankful receiver bears a plentiful harvest." He was right. Here's one way to be that thankful receiver with Casey's eTip: Give a Heartfelt Thank You to Someone Who Rarely Gets Acknowledged. Think about the people at work or in your personal life who quietly make your…
Casey's eTip: Stay Current in Your Field Part 2 eTips
November 16, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Stay Current in Your Field Part 2

Staying aware of current events, changes in your field (and your clients' industries) is key to staying viable in your career. Casey's eTip: Stay Current in Your Field Part 2 Last week I shared different sources of information so you can stay current. Here are some strategies to make it…
Casey's eTip: Stay Current in Your Field Part 1 eTips
November 9, 2022

Casey’s eTip: Stay Current in Your Field Part 1

Reading about developments in your field may seem like your lowest priority, but is it? In the 1960's, Peter Drucker coined the term "knowledge worker" to distinguish people who worked primarily with their brains from those whose labor was more manual. If you are a knowledge worker, it makes sense to…