Study hall in high school may or may not have been productive for you as a student, but you’re probably familiar with the concept. Everyone is supposed to show up with their work, perhaps nod hello to a friend while taking a seat, and then start working. By the end of the hour, everyone should […]
DIY CRM Keeping track of contacts made
A DIY CRM can be a helpful and affordable way of keeping track of contacts made. There are many options available for purchase, at many price points. Because most pre-made organizers and similar products don’t work so well for me, I tend to make my own. Others want a DIY CRM for other reasons. No […]
Decision Fatigue
Decision fatigue comes from having too many decisions to make, especially in a row. According to some experts, the average American makes 35,000 decisions a day. Nearly 300 of those are just on food! An editor has to make many decisions every hour (I often make thousands of corrections per hour, plus dozens of choices […]
Environment affects productivity
Environment affects productivity Environment affects productivity, plain and simple. Does it have complete control over how much we accomplish? Are we looking for something to blame for our lazy days? No. Can setting up the right situation and conceding that indeed environment affects productivity help us to get more done? Absolutely. How can we use […]
Goal SPA Units
Goal SPA units Goal SPA units are the smallest practical actionable units (or pieces) into which you can break a goal. Goal SPA Units come in very handy when you want to set and accomplish micro goals. What is a micro goal? A micro goal is a bite-sized, usually single-step goal. It can be part of […]
Writing habits, or what helps me be productive and might help you, too
I’m participating in Andi Cumbo-Floyd’s course, and here is my response to today’s email from her. If you have a chance to take any of her courses, please do! Also, please tell her I sent you. I won’t get anything out of it except for the fact that she’ll feel my love every time someone says […]
When it’s just you, how do you grow a business?
When it’s just you, there’s so much work that has to be done every day. How do you grow a business? Slowly. Carefully. Bravely. With calculated risks. With plenty of prayer. Surrounded by supportive people. Nearly everyone starts off being the only one in their business, wearing all the hats, doing all the work. There […]
Two-minute trick to getting started
A Tom Petty song said the waiting is the hardest part, but I’m going to posit here that getting started is the hardest part. If you’d like to trick your brain into being productive, here’s one way. You have your work set before you (determined ahead of time—another trick), and you tell yourself that you’re […]
Spark creativity when you have writer’s block
When you’re trying to write (and yes the emphasis is on the word “trying” here) but it’s just not working well, there are many different things you could do. Some of those things involve taking a break from writing and doing something else for a while, such as going for a walk. Painting—whether you have […]
Free time means you’re wealthy?
Being busy is the enemy of a good life, I once heard someone say. Being busy used to be idolized in America, and still is to an extent. It was equated with being important. The tide is turning, however. Now, having lots of extra time (to do what, I don’t know) is the status symbol […]
