Lots of productivity training sessions or classes seem helpful at the time. But what's important is what actually sticks with you and helps you be more productive. That's why I was happy when Lindsay*, the executive assistant interviewed for last week's productivity...
How much time do you spend going back and forth with others via email to schedule meetings — and then, all too frequently, to reschedule them? Ross McCammon wrote a funny and useful column for the July issue of Entrepreneur magazine about how to reschedule more...
Managing email requires both the right tools and the right mindset. There's one deceptively simple idea about email that most people overlook. And because they do, they stay mired in email stress. Ready? Here it is: Email is real work that takes real time. I talked...
We all want to spend less time dealing with our inboxes. Hiver is a Gmail collaboration tool, and its founder, Niraj Ranjan Rout, shared with me some of his favorite email tips to boost productivity. I combined his tips with some of my own, below... Consider...
Update: 10/9/17: See the comments below. Users are reporting some difficulties. I occasionally have minor problems but as of now, I still recommend the product for non-critical, shopping and newsletter-type messages. [End update.] If you're looking for an email...
Are you in the habit of checking email outside of the office? If so, how does this habit affect your life? HBR.org asked its readers to weigh in on questions like these after one of my articles for the site, "Your Late-Night Emails Are Hurting Your Team," struck a...
Remember back when we thought email was going to be a breakthrough for effective communication at the office? Today, we're more likely to view email as a major annoyance and, worse, a distraction from the meaningful work we really should be doing. Writing for Huffpost...
“Conventional Wisdom” when it comes to vacations has two big problems: People skip vacation altogether with the rationalization that it would just mean working twice as hard before and after, so it’s not worth it. (43% of Americans don’t take all of their vacation...
I often hear from people who are confused about a good solution for managing their contacts. I tell them our conversation needs to begin with identifying the needs for the contacts, and I’ve found that for some people, a combination of tools is the right answer for...
The thoughts ping you at random: “I need to talk to Brenda about pushing back this deliverable…” An hour later: “I have to ask Joe about the pricing for the client proposal….” Twenty minutes after that: “I wonder if Luis has finished researching new project...
