eTips

Resources is an important link in your Productivity Chain. Resources may be people, equipment, software, and so on. The right resources enable you to make huge productivity leaps, shaving hours off your week and days off your year. If you use Outlook, for example, make sure you have Outlook 2010.…

Pull out the goals you set for yourself for this year, both personal and professional. Is that first goal still relevant? If not, discard. If so, how is your progress? What is the VERY NEXT ACTION you need to move the ball forward? Add that action to your task list.…

Some emotions make productivity plummet. If you feel sad, grieving, depressed, or ticked-off, the best way to feel better is to help another person. Do a secret kind act for someone TODAY. If s/he finds out, pick someone else to help. Be especially kind to that coworker who annoys you.…

If you allow a person, a behavior, or a situation to frustrate, annoy, or pre-occupy you repeatedly, you are giving away your power to that person, behavior, or situation. Take it back! Change what you can (e.g., your attitude and actions). Accept the rest. Then turn your attention to some…

If you think you don't have time to get enough sleep, exercise, nutrients, or relaxation, think again! Without these key fuels, your productivity engine will stall. And you don't have time to be sick. Pick one way to care for yourself this week and do it.

When you set a goal this year, make sure it stretches you. Easy-to-reach goals are boring and more likely to be discarded. They almost imply that you can't do any better. Challenging goals inspire and motivate. Even if you don't achieve them fully, you will accomplish much in the attempt.

Use the calendar that works best for you--paper or electronic. (Ignore pressure to go to a PDA device if it's not right for you.) Productivity depends upon comfort, simplicity and speed. Choose the system that helps you achieve the maximum of these for your needs.

Do you feel guilty about the stacks of reading you've neglected this year? Here's a way to get over it. Mark each newsletter, periodical, and other reading material that you think you "should" read. Mark it again each time you pick it up or THINK about it. When you have…

Don't wait for the moons to align and your motivation to go into hyperdrive so you can go into an organizing frenzy. Instead, find a home for one thing RIGHT NOW. Then another. And maybe tomorrow, another. Bit by bit, you'll be done.