Easy
Productivity
Monthly
tips
for getting more done at work without more work
"Our two greatest problems are gravity and paper
work. We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming."
— Werner von Braun (attr.)
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| June
2006 |
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| In This
Issue: |
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| Process
Improvement : |
How to Change Bad Habits
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| Quick Tip: |
Email
Management
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Here
are some recent posts from my blog, www.productivitygoal.com. I write new content there every day, so please
visit for still more productive tips in between ezine issues. I also write weekly posts for my other blog,
www.clairetompkins.com/blog.
How to Change Bad Habits
Recidivism.
This term is usually used in connection with career criminals, but you
could apply it anytime you fall back into bad habits. Why do
people relapse? Some reasons: the environment for doing it
the old way is still in place (i.e., hanging out with your criminal
friends), it’s easier than doing things the new way because it’s more
familiar (“crime’s the only life I know, buddy”) and the consequences
of doing things the old way aren’t relevant in the moment (capital
punishment is not a deterrent).
Okay, forget the criminals. If you
reverse all the above circumstances, what do you get?
Change the
Environment.
Create an environment that makes it
welcoming, even enticing, to do something a better way. Let’s
take email for example. How do you stop whipping through your
email box, glancing at each message and then going to the next without
doing anything about any of them?
Tip: Don’t read your email when you
first arrive unless you can devote time to it then. If you can’t,
set aside some other time to open it, read it, delete it, file it or
act on it. Those decisions have to be made eventually, and it’ll
be worse if you let them pile up. If you're slow at
decision-making, making a few at a time is far easier.
Out with the
Familiar.
Make the new way easier than the old way,
or at least as easy. When you think something is easy, it’s often
just because it’s become a habit. What seems like a confusing
series of steps to one person is easy to someone who’s been doing it
awhile.
Have you ever heard anyone say, “Oh, it’s
easy! You just A and B and then C. Then you D, E and F and
you’re done!” Yeah, right. If you decide to use email
folders, you have to choose names for them, decide when to look in them
and in what order and have a criteria for purging them. The set
up may take a little time, but once you're accustomed to using it, it
will seem easy and simple.
Give yourself
some negative reinforcement.
Don’t handle your email for a whole day (or
longer, depending on how much you get). Then, keep track of how
long it takes to process it when you do it all at once. I can
promise you it will take longer than you think.
It will take longer not only because there will be more quantity, but
you’ll have to make more decisions, have to backtrack to follow threads
that will affect your decisions and may have to revise action you’ve
already taken based on new information in the email. Decisions
that would have been almost instantaneous now take longer because you
have to get back up to speed on the situation.
Bonus Email Tips.
Create
Structure.
People at work get the email that falls
into some basic patterns. Use folders to route mail categories.
Then when you check that folder, you’ll be in the mindset of that topic.
Write a Cheat
Sheet.
Develop a cheat sheet of policies to
streamline decision making. The weekly news roundup email to the
whole company probably only needs to be skimmed.
If you forget your criteria, you may find
yourself reading and then remember halfway through that you already
have a policy for this type of email. Have your cheat sheet
handy; post it on your monitor so you won't forget to use it.
About
Me
If your company isn't ready for a workshop, I also offer
Brown Bag lunch talks that include tips and immediately useable
information on a variety of productivity related topics.
Call me today to schedule one at 510-238-8875.
You are welcome to forward this ezine to others,
or to reprint it, even in your own ezine. Just be sure to include my
bio paragraph below.
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Claire Tompkins specializes in simple, efficient systems
to help people be more productive, more easily. Before figuring out how
to do something better, ask why you're doing it at all. Contact her at
510-238-8875 and Claire AT
clairetompkins DOT com for more info and to sign up for her free
monthly productivity tips.
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I honor and protect your privacy. I will not rent, sell or
give away your name or email address.
Got any sticky issues? If you'd like me to
address a particular productivity problem in a future issue, feel free
to email me.
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Claire Tompkins
510-238-8875
claire AT clairetompkins DOT com
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