Productivity Blog Archive
How to Set Boundaries at Work
To support necessary downtime, recharge, and stay engaged, it’s essential to set boundaries at work around your time, your attention, and your personal life. Before COVID began to spread in the U.S., two-thirds of American workers reported feeling burned out at work....
5 Tips To Avoid Distractions When Working from Home
For many knowledge workers, the new normal of working from home still doesn’t feel normal at all. Maybe you're heading back to the office, or maybe you're hoping to continue working from home indefinitely. Regardless of where you're working, I’ve got some road-tested...
Why Time Management Training Is Holding Back Your Team
This post was updated May 17, 2020 Every leader knows one of the most challenging aspects of your role is managing and developing your people—identifying the gaps in their skills, and helping them to fill those gaps. Building and growing a team of capable and...
Attention Management Strategies for Business: Meditation
If you’ve read any of my books, you know that I believe meditation is one of several useful attention management strategies in the pursuit of productivity improvement. Meditation increases your ability to recognize what’s on your mind, and what “brain state” you’re...
Tips for Leading Remote Teams, with Kevin Eikenberry
Transitioning to remote work is a gift to some and a nightmare to others. Some people might hope to continue with at least part-time telecommuting after the COVID-19 pandemic is over, and others can’t wait to get back to the office. Either way, remote work is where we...
Being Productive in Challenging Times
In many ways, this is a scary time. Being a speaker and trainer, thankfully some of my work has gone virtual. But much of it has been canceled or “postponed until further notice.” I know you’re facing your own challenges, and so I thought I’d share some ways I’m...
Help Your Team With Email Management Strategies
Email management can be a daunting task. Lots of systems, tools, and games promise to help your team get a handle on email. But there’s really a simple truth about managing email that most people overlook. And if you don’t acknowledge it, no email tip, trick, game, or...
You Get Interrupted Every 3 Minutes. Here’s How to Cope.
I recently sat down with Steve Harper, a fellow entrepreneur and speaker, to discuss attention management and my newest book. You can listen to the podcast or read excerpts from the transcript below. On the Path to Productivity... SH: I know you’re...
Three Ways to Overcome Distraction and Unleash Your Genius
If you want to “unleash your genius” at work, first get a handle on the extent of your distraction. Ask yourself these questions: Are you constantly interrupted at work? Do you ever feel like you’re starting to make some real progress, only for someone to drop in with...
Why Weekend Work Emails Are Bad for Your Family
Do you typically read and respond to work emails on the weekend? You probably already realize that these after-hours communications add to your own stress. But you may not be aware just how much those emails affect the rest of your family, too. A 2018 study out of...
