Eliminate Spam Email and Junk Mail
How much time do you spend dealing with spam email and junk mail? Both at work and at home, information we don’t want or need seems to be creeping into our lives.
The temptation is to just delete the email or glance at the paper mail and then throw it in the trash. What you don’t think about is how much time you could save in the long run if you don’t have to handle the information or paper in the first place.
What is the value of clearing clutter from your email inbox, so you can actually find the important information? What is the value of clearing the clutter from your mind and not having to handle or make decisions about unsolicited paper, magazines, etc.?
The next time you encounter email you don’t want, take the extra minute to unsubscribe from the mailing list. If needed, send a personal email to politely ask to be removed from an email list.
For unwanted catalogs and mail, check out the website www.catalogchoice.org. There you can submit all of your unsubscribe requests in one place. It may take a month or two to be removed.
Finally, think about your social networking options. Change your account settings to receive only what you really need.
Implement these ideas to clear your inbox and your mind and become positively productive!
Focusing on the unimportant
When you find yourself focusing on low-value, unimportant activities … and you know full well you have much more important things to do … ask yourself this question:
What am I avoiding and why?
If you are going to stick your head in the sand and avoid important things anyhow, you might as well use the time to “look beneath the surface of things” and try to determine what is really going on. Don’t look for complex answers. Look for easy answers such as: I am unclear about what I am supposed to be doing or, I am not sure how to get started.
You don’t usually have to get too far beneath the surface of things to find the source of your avoidance.
Written by Chris Crouch, developer of the GO System.
Read Faster for Results
Do you have stacks of documents to read every day? If you are like most people, you spend hours a day reading printed and electronic documents. Use these tips to rev up your reading speed to get through that pile faster without harming comprehension.
- Stop reading word-by-word. Instead, read entire phrases or clauses as single units of information.
- Pay attention when you read to avoid re-reading. You can retain focus by running a pen or your finger across and down the page.
- Keep distractions to a minimum. Do not multi-task, avoid auditory distractions and stop daydreaming when reading.
- Focus on the most important information. Read headlines, subheads, photo captions and the first sentence or two of paragraphs. If a document is well written, the topic sentence (the major point of each paragraph) will appear early in the paragraph. Once you get the major point of the paragraph, you usually do not need to read the entire thing.
It is not appropriate to read everything quickly. Slow down as appropriate. Take your time when reading legal documents, when editing or proofreading, or if you need to analyze or summarize the material. Check out the book “The Power to Read Your Best” by Bobbi DePorter for some great tips!
Juggling Managers
Handling multiple managers is not a problem; it is an opportunity to develop your collaboration and interpersonal skills. An important key to supporting more than one manager is to understand how your skills can complement each of their skills. Your goal is to develop an individual relationship with each manager. What skills do you need to work for multiple managers? You need to:
- Understand the goals of your department and how each manager contributes to those goals. Meet with each manager to better understand where each fits into the big picture and discuss how you can better support each.
- Create a master calendar that shows deadlines for tasks by manager. A master calendar can help you get and stay organized. Make sure everyone has access to the master calendar, so each knows your priorities.
- Keep lines of communication open between you and each manager. Also encourage communication between the managers themselves.
- Be flexible and assertive about priorities and deadlines. When there is a conflict, speak up and negotiate to ensure the most important tasks for the department are completed.
Understand Styles for Better Motivation
Understand Styles for Better Motivation
Do you often wonder what makes people tick? Why some people are achievers and others need to be prodded into action? Understanding motivation styles can help you communicate in a way that gets others—and yourself—in action!
- Larks vs. Owls.
“Larks”—mornings—people naturally arise early in the morning and usually are full of energy. They are at their best until early afternoon, when their energy starts to fade. Make sure to schedule important meetings and creative activities early in the day.
“Owls”—night—people are slow starters. They do not reach their maximum until mid-morning and are at their peaks mid-day. Afternoon is their best time for important meetings, decisions and creativity.
- Toward vs. Away From.
“Toward” people like goals. They want to visualize the result of their efforts. The more richly the goal is described, the more motivating it is.
“Away-from” people are motivated by consequences of acting or not acting. They need to understand what would be lost by not acting. For example, a “toward” person goes to the dentist because they want healthy teeth; an “away-from” person goes to the dentist to avoid cavities and gum disease.
- Internal vs. External.
“Internal” people are motivated by doing a good job. They usually are self-starters and prefer hands-off managers.
“External” people need positive reinforcement that they are on the right track in order to stay motivated. They want feedback and encouragement in order to keep going.
- Self vs. Other.
“Self” people are motivated through personal achievement and recognition. They want to be rewarded and acknowledged for a job well done.
“Other” people are motivated by the team. They do not want to disappoint others and want to share rewards and recognition.
Understanding what moves people is a key skill that will help you get better results. Also, don’t forget about you – schedule your day around your best times and be positively productive!
Make the Most of the Phone
Most people know you from your voice on the phone. While a phone conversation is a much warmer type of communication than email, make sure your phone “style” says what you want it to say.
- Make sure your voice sounds friendly by smiling when you answer the phone.
- Speak clearly and pronounce every word precisely.
- Speak slower than you would if you were meeting in person. It takes most people longer to process what they hear over the phone since they do not have your facial expressions and gestures to enhance understanding.
- Use courteous and respectful language. No one has ever complained that someone was “too polite”!
- Answer the phone with a greeting such as, “Good morning, XYZ Company, Carol Barnes speaking. How may I help you?”
Make sure your voice mail message reflects you, your business and is working for you.
- Keep your voice mail greeting brief and update it, as necessary, so people know when you will return calls. For example, “You’ve reached Carol Barnes at XYZ Company. It’s August 22. I’m in meetings this morning and will return your call after 1 p.m. today. Please leave a detailed message and a number where I can reach you.”
- Ask that the caller leave a detailed message. That way when you return the call you are fully prepared and the call is productive. This will also help eliminate the need for additional calls.
- Do not record “cutesy” voice mail statements or greetings that sound unprofessional.
Voicemail can be a very productive tool if you use it wisely.
The Art of Giving Feedback
How you give feedback can make or break workplace relationships. You can use feedback to reinforce positive behaviors or correct negative ones. The goal is to give more positive feedback which will help people improve, develop and grow. Here are tips for giving effective feedback:
- Never give feedback when you are angry or upset.
- Be courteous and diplomatic. Remember, most employees want to improve, but may need help understanding how.
- Provide specific, meaningful statements and evaluations that encourage the employee to make positive changes.
- Present your points in a calm, clear, rational way.
- Use words that directly relate to behavior, not personalities.
- Paint a bigger picture by describing the effect of the employee’s work or behavior on you and your unit.
- Avoid making judgmental statements and never exaggerate.
- Ask the person’s opinion about how and where he/she thinks improvements can be made.
By giving feedback in a positive and constructive manner, you will help others understand their strengths and weaknesses, influence behavior and improve performance by increasing confidence and competence.
Look Before You Decide
We spend much of our day solving problems and making decisions. Often, we do this by reacting to a situation when we’re on deadline, stressed and short for time. This is often where people struggle. They react to what they think the problem is. Instead, try to understand if there is a problem in the first place! Change your approach and become more proactive by answering the following questions:
- What makes you think there is a problem? Describe what you think the problem is.
- Where is it happening? Is it isolated to certain people or areas? Is it pervasive?
- When is it happening? Does it seem to arise at intervals or at certain times?
- With whom is it happening? Does the problem arise from a conflict between personalities? Work styles? Does it seem to center around one person or department?
- Why is it happening? What might be the contributing factors to this problem? The environment? Lack of training or preparedness? Differences among team members?
Describe the problem using a gap analysis. Describe what is happening, then describe what you want to happen. The difference is the gap that needs to be addressed with a plan to get from where you are now to where you want to go.
