I’ve been pushing myself to try a new habit. Anytime I need to type one sentence or more, I talk to my computer or device instead of typing. It is so hard to break this habit after so many years of typing!
“You mean you’re talking to your devices? All the time?”
Yep! I talk to my phone, even out in public. I talk to my computer at home. I talk to my computer at work. I do it as much as possible. So. Freaking. Cool! It must be hilarious to be around me while I am working. I’m just taaaaaalking away with no one around.
“Alright, but HOW MUCH faster is it? Why isn’t everyone doing it?”
What if the emails in your inbox were definitely the important ones?
What if you could automatically divert more than half of your interesting but not important emails to another folder?
I’ve implemented 2 email rules in my work email inbox that have done just that.
The good news is, technology and apps are being developed to help you keep social media under control.
Here are some of the apps and tech hacks you can use to help rein it in.
“There just aren’t enough hours in a day!”
Ever find yourself thinking that? Have you spent hours working on something, only to realize “That took me SOO LONG.” I’ve had those same thoughts at my job: “Wow, did I really just spend 40 minutes crafting the language in that email?” or “I just spent hours on this report that no one is going to read!”
What if we could actually assign a dollar value to that time?
I haven’t done my own laundry since 2014. Not because I can’t do my own laundry though.
If you experiment with my time value calculator you can see a starting estimate of what your personal time is worth. For me, when thinking about opportunities like this around the house, I value my time at $35 per hour…
I started trying other wash-and-fold services. My perception was that the cost of sending the laundry through a separate service was going to be too high. This isn’t necessarily true though.
I’ve been pushing myself to try a new habit. Anytime I need to type one sentence or more, I talk to my computer or device instead of typing. It is so hard to break this habit after so many years of typing!
“You mean you’re talking to your devices? All the time?”
Yep! I talk to my phone, even out in public. I talk to my computer at home. I talk to my computer at work. I do it as much as possible. So. Freaking. Cool! It must be hilarious to be around me while I am working. I’m just taaaaaalking away with no one around.
“Alright, but HOW MUCH faster is it? Why isn’t everyone doing it?”
Do you forget things in the morning sometimes? Forget to shave? Forget mascara or another piece of your makeup routine? Leave that important paper you needed? Forget your computer? Forget to take your pills? Ever stood at the front door racking your brain before you leave thinking, “What am I forgetting?”
After all of that, do you find you’re starting your day already feeling a little mentally drained?
I decided to implement in my morning routines some of the visual management tactics I use at work in LEAN Six Sigma, and combine them with the concept of a checklist, inspired by a book that was a productivity game changer for me, Checklist Manifesto.
So what changed?
I used to do this frequently. I used to be mentally tired even as I started my day. I thought it was lack of sleep, but it turns out, a simple adjustment changed all that.
1) Situations where you’re choosing your time vs. your money, such as:
2) Situations where you’re choosing to give your time, often in exchange for something, such as:
Give it a try, shoot me a note, and let me know what you think!
“Share your biggest time waster or time suck,” is the first activity we do in my workshop on the value of your time. “Social media” is the most common answer…by a landslide. Do you get that feeling too? Is it a struggle for you as well? If so, you’re not alone.
It’s time to get specific, how much time do you spend on social media? These days your phone will tell you. Do it right now.
Going paperless, might sound daunting, but it’s not as bad as you might think. It’s easily within your grasp, and you can even do it for free. I’ve been paperless for years, and have found some tactics that really work. I’ve had friends try this approach successfully too, so I wanted to share it with you in case you’re interested.
What’s the benefit to going paperless?
Here’s a few…
So many usernames and passwords to remember! Research by Digital Guardian found the average person in the US has more than 130 account with logins. For you and I, it might be significantly more than that. I just checked, and for me I have over 500. If you’re not already doing so, use a password manager app to save your mental bandwidth - it manages all of your account passwords and other confidential information. Also, you’ll be saving time with every login because the app can automatically fill in your username and password, no matter which device you’re on.
Lists can be your savior! Let’s talk about how. Ever been in these situations?
Your partner looks at you and says “Where shall we go out to eat tonight?” You look back at them, drawing a blank, just shrug your shoulders, “I don’t know, where do you want to go?”
You find out school is cancelled for the day, the kids run to you saying “Yay, no school today! What are we gonna do?!”
These lists are not actions-to-take as much as they’re ideas-to-remember.
This pandemic has caused the closure of businesses and events, resulting in people being forced to stop working or do it from home. Are you one of those affected? With all this time on your hands, what are you doing with it?
Did you just sit around? Watch a lot of shows? Or did you accomplish something you can be proud of? Don’t let this time be a waste! You have so many opportunities right now! It’s still your time, and you still get to choose how you spend it!
Commuting! It’s one of the most common examples people mention as something they “waste time” doing. The longer the commute, the higher the likelihood:
1) you won’t exercise as often or as intensely as you should,
2) you’ll grab quicker/unhealthier food instead of preparing something healthy or making smart choices, and
3) you won’t sleep as much as you should or need.
Eliminating your commute isn’t an option. How could you improve it? Make it more productive? Here are a bunch of ideas for you to consider:
Is this type of back and forth familiar to you?
“Hey can you meet next week?”
“Sure what time works good for you?”
“How about Wednesday afternoon?”
“No I’m busy then, what about Thursday?”
“No, I’ve got multiple events going on that day. Any other times work for you?”
And on and on….
This is such a waste of both party’s time sending all this back and forth, and waiting for the replies. Technology and software have eliminated the need for this, so now start using them and changing these habits to get your time back!
It's that conundrum: It's an email notifying you of something important, but it came in at the wrong time. You can’t do anything with it now, you need it later. Yep, you can do that. Examples like:
Your boss says they’ll take care of your issue by next Tuesday at the latest, you need to follow up Wednesday afternoon if you haven’t heard anything.
Your bill is due in 2 weeks, but you don’t get paid until next week, so you need to remember to get back to it once you have the money.
The aunt/uncle is going in for a medical procedure the end of next week, you want to be a good family member and send them a text or note the day before.
How on earth will you remember these at the right times? Do you have a system for remembering? Will it likely get lost in your inbox somewhere? Snooze the emails so they come back at the right time to remind you…
The habit of checking our email and refreshing over and over throughout the day is common to many who use email for work. When it dings, lights up, or pops up…it pulls your attention away. It may be for a split second just to read the notification, or you might end up clicking into it and taking care of it right then.
You need to stop checking your inbox constantly, rapid switching in and out of your email decreases your productivity.
You are the supreme ruler over your email inbox! You GOT this!
It happens to everyone, being swamped with a full inbox after a holiday trip, a busy day of back-to-back meetings and they pile up, or you ignored it for a week, and now it looks like a mountain of email. If you get emails a lot, this experience must be overwhelming.
If you want to clean out your email inbox and keep it under control, it starts with two concepts…
Did you know you could get alcohol delivered? People tend to spend hours running errands. When it comes to buying alcohol, for instance, it takes an average person about 20 minutes or more. Often times this goes up depending on travel time to the store, finding what you’re and the time you have to wait in a queue, if there’s any.
It’s a good thing that e-commerce has reached the alcohol industry, and it’s actually thriving. This industry is expected to grow more in the next few years. Have you ever had your alcohol delivered? What are you waiting for? Avoid these random trips to the store to satisfy your cravings, get your alcoholic beverages delivered!
The average American spends on average 10 – 15 hours per week on tasks like doing laundry, picking up the dry cleaning or grocery shopping. And of course, this in addition to their regular “40” hour a week career, and this is frequently even more! This is more than just about work/life balance; it’s about taking back your time!
Let’s just zero in on those grocery store trips, for example. How much do your grocery visits cost? Let’s put a number to it…
Ever been behind, and wish you could get “in the zone” to really crank up your productivity? With the right kind of music, you may see a huge difference!
With a work day requiring so much from us, it’s frustrating how often we get distracted. Even with the knowledge that we have a lot to accomplish, or the pressure of a deadline, the distractions continuously pull you away, keeping you from accomplishing what you want to during the day…
I’ll send you three of my favorite time hacks!
