To Procrastinate – Or Not? September 20, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, work-life balance, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, work-life balance, workforce
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In an article at FastCompany, Drake Baer talks with Frank Partnoy, author of Wait: The Art and Science of Delay, about the lengthy decision-making process. Partnoy believes delaying decision-making is not necessarily a bad thing. Yet, the business and social media world looks on delayed decision-making as a bad thing, but this often leaves little room for relaxed and well-thought out decisions. On the other hand, Kevin Purdy, also writing at FastCompany, cautions against procrastination and encourages people to get to work, because procrastination can have negative effects. He thus advises readers to clear away clutter and tackle heavy things first.
You can read the interview with Partnoy here, and Purdy’s article against procrastination here.
What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast September 20, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, work-life balance.Tags: personal productivity, work-life balance
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Laura Vanderkam writes about time management in the morning in an article at FastCompany. She provides a list of suggestions for handling chaotic mornings. These suggestions include tracking one’s time, and thinking through logistics, including mapping out a morning schedule to follow.
For the rest of Vanderkam’s suggestions, read her article here.
Death to PowerPoint! September 20, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity.Tags: personal productivity
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The 22 year-old PowerPoint program is now a universal aspect of businesses both large and small. While absolutely useful, for many, PowerPoint has gone from being an aid to a crutch. Rather than the speaker being the main point of a presentation, the speaker allows the PowerPoint presentation itself to take center stage, making for a boring and contemptible presentation.
Check out the Bloomberg Businessweek opinion here.
Train Your Brain to Focus March 29, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, work-life balance.Tags: personal productivity, work-life balance
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While popular media and friends marvel at those who can multitask, a Bloomberg Businessweek Harvard Business Review article asserts that multitasking means more mistakes and an inability to retain information among other issues. Focus is better. The article presents a ways that anyone can train their brains to focus. Negative emotional distress can be tamed with good sleep, meditation, and exercise, for example –and this leads the brain to strategize more efficiently.
Head on over to Harvard Business Review to read the article.
Employee Perks that Don’t Work March 29, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Attempting to motivate employees can sometimes go too far. There are employee perks that will not work, and sometimes have the opposite effect. For example, on average, only 28% of employees use a workplace gym. Work-at-home days often mean no work gets done at all.
To learn about more poorly designed perks and their remedies, head over to FastCompany.
Paul Akers Q&A On Incentives & Rewards for Kaizen March 29, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: kaizen, personal productivity, workforce
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Mark Graban hosts a reader question with respect to Paul Akers company FastCap using incentives or rewards to employees in exchange for their ideas. Mark reports that Paul does not use incentives because he wondered whether or not the money or the genuine commitment to improving the company mattered more.
Check out Mark’s post with Paul’s thoughts here.
If Your Company’s Culture Needs A Shot In The Arm, Do The Huddle February 27, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, personal productivity, workforce.Tags: culture, personal productivity, workforce
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A FastCompany article by Eric Ryan reveals that huddles can be a great way to motivate a company. A huddle is a company meeting that keeps everyone connected to the culture and the business. Things like objectives, sales wins, financial challenges, and personal success stories, births, birthdays, and other individual accomplishments are discussed and heralded. This builds trust, communication, and camaraderie between coworkers. Eric also offers some huddle tips, such as allowing a different person to lead the huddle each time.
Check out the rest of Eric’s suggestions here.
The Wikipedia Way of Motivating Your Employees February 27, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Wikipedia’s success comes largely from its “workforce” of unpaid volunteers who write and edit. Wikipedia can manage this because its mission of freedom of information is clear. For a successful workplace, Julie Moreland, writing at FastCompany, suggests that a clear sense of purpose and a fulfilling workplace environment are essential. This includes listening to the ideas and concerns of workers, making work itself a journey of discovery.
Head on over to read Julie’s article here.
If You’re an Average Worker, You’re Going Straight to the Bottom January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Marketing guru Seth Godin relates that we are experiencing the end of the Industrial Age, and with it goes the average worker. According to Godin, companies can always find average workers doing average work for cheaper rates. Mr. Godin insists that workers must make themselves stand out in order to be hired and to get paid more.
For the Business Insider article, and a link to Mr. Godin’s interview, head here.
If You’re an Average Worker, You’re Going Straight to the Bottom January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Marketing guru Seth Godin relates that we are experiencing the end of the Industrial Age, and with it goes the average worker. According to Godin, companies can always find average workers doing average work for cheaper rates. Mr. Godin insists that workers must make themselves stand out in order to be hired and to get paid more.
For the Business Insider article, and a link to Mr. Godin’s interview, head here.
Four Destructive Myths Most Companies Still Live By December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, strategy.Tags: personal productivity, strategy
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Tony Schwartz at Harvard Business Review has written an article about the myths that companies still cling to. He lists them and explains why they are myths. Among them is the idea that multitasking is a good, critical thing. Multitasking often involves what is called switching time. For example, instead of paying attention at a meeting, you might be checking your e-mail instead, thereby missing important information.
For Tony’s analysis of this, and the other three myths, head over here.
Four Destructive Myths Most Companies Still Live By December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, strategy.Tags: personal productivity, strategy
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Tony Schwartz at Harvard Business Review has written an article about the myths that companies still cling to. He lists them and explains why they are myths. Among them is the idea that multitasking is a good, critical thing. Multitasking often involves what is called switching time. For example, instead of paying attention at a meeting, you might be checking your e-mail instead, thereby missing important information.
For Tony’s analysis of this, and the other three myths, head over here.
Cash Incentives Not Always King When Motivating Employees December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Incentives other than cash can expand an employee’s imagination, according to a report from the Incentive Research Foundation and the Incentive Federation. Travel, entertainment, and merchandise are becoming increasingly employed to incentivize workers. This helps companies slash costs and motivates employees.
See the EHS Today Magazine write up about the study here.
Cash Incentives Not Always King When Motivating Employees December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Incentives other than cash can expand an employee’s imagination, according to a report from the Incentive Research Foundation and the Incentive Federation. Travel, entertainment, and merchandise are becoming increasingly employed to incentivize workers. This helps companies slash costs and motivates employees.
See the EHS Today Magazine write up about the study here.
You Are a Monument Machine December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity.Tags: lean, personal productivity
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The newsletter from Time Back Management (available to be viewed as a PDF) talks about how changing between tasks can create unproductive downtime. In order to avoid unproductive downtime, shut out interruptions like e-mail alerts. Close doors. Find somewhere quiet to work. In an analogous way, we can personally experience the same problems as machines, which experience costly “changeover time” to switch between tasks.
Head here for the site and a link to the newsletter.
You Are a Monument Machine December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity.Tags: lean, personal productivity
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The newsletter from Time Back Management (available to be viewed as a PDF) talks about how changing between tasks can create unproductive downtime. In order to avoid unproductive downtime, shut out interruptions like e-mail alerts. Close doors. Find somewhere quiet to work. In an analogous way, we can personally experience the same problems as machines, which experience costly “changeover time” to switch between tasks.
Head here for the site and a link to the newsletter.
The Personal Kanban: Not Just “Vocabulary Engineering” December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity, Pull Systems.Tags: lean, personal productivity, Pull Systems
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Writing on Time Back Management, Jim respectfully disagrees with Michael Baudin, a lean expert, who posted his view that personal kanban is “vocabulary engineering”. Jim says that work in progress – especially modern work – needs visualization to avoid overload. While he agrees with some of the weaknesses using kanban at a personal level, Jim’s personal experience leads him to conclude that the benefits outweigh the problems and that kanban methods can get results when applied at a personal level.
Read Jim’s arguments here.
The Personal Kanban: Not Just “Vocabulary Engineering” December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity, Pull Systems.Tags: lean, personal productivity, Pull Systems
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Writing on Time Back Management, Jim respectfully disagrees with Michael Baudin, a lean expert, who posted his view that personal kanban is “vocabulary engineering”. Jim says that work in progress – especially modern work – needs visualization to avoid overload. While he agrees with some of the weaknesses using kanban at a personal level, Jim’s personal experience leads him to conclude that the benefits outweigh the problems and that kanban methods can get results when applied at a personal level.
Read Jim’s arguments here.
Building Manager Standard Work December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity, Standard Work.Tags: 5S, lean, personal productivity, standard work
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Jamie Flinchbaugh, writing for IndustryWeek, explains how standardization creates more free time that can be used effectively. He provides a number of helpful suggestions for doing this, including using 5S to handle time, and not spending time standardizing what is obvious or routine.
Read Jamie’s article and his thoughts here.
Building Manager Standard Work December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in lean, personal productivity, Standard Work.Tags: 5S, lean, personal productivity, standard work
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Jamie Flinchbaugh, writing for IndustryWeek, explains how standardization creates more free time that can be used effectively. He provides a number of helpful suggestions for doing this, including using 5S to handle time, and not spending time standardizing what is obvious or routine.
Read Jamie’s article and his thoughts here.
3 Proven Strategies to Keep the Internet from Killing Your Productivity December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Aaron Shapiro, blogging at FastCompany, reveals three ways to stop the internet from destroying your productivity. These include turning off instant messaging and only checking e-mail a few times a day. He also advises scheduling time for using social media, like Twitter and Facebook.
For Aaron’s expanded thoughts and ideas, check out his post here.
3 Proven Strategies to Keep the Internet from Killing Your Productivity December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, workforce
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Aaron Shapiro, blogging at FastCompany, reveals three ways to stop the internet from destroying your productivity. These include turning off instant messaging and only checking e-mail a few times a day. He also advises scheduling time for using social media, like Twitter and Facebook.
For Aaron’s expanded thoughts and ideas, check out his post here.
Helping Your Employees Find Their Flow December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, strategy, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, strategy, workforce
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Managers can help employees find their flow, or the ability to become fully immersed in any activity being undertaken. Among those ways are focusing on long-term and short-term goals, as well as challenging workers instead of giving them routine work that requires little oversight from management.
Head here for the article.
Helping Your Employees Find Their Flow December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, strategy, workforce.Tags: personal productivity, strategy, workforce
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Managers can help employees find their flow, or the ability to become fully immersed in any activity being undertaken. Among those ways are focusing on long-term and short-term goals, as well as challenging workers instead of giving them routine work that requires little oversight from management.
Head here for the article.
The Creative Brain on Exercise December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in personal productivity, work-life balance.Tags: personal productivity, work-life balance
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Exercise can free the creative mind, whether you are an artist, writer, or CEO. Haruki Murakami, famed Japanese novelist, is quoted in a FastCompany article where he talks about schedules of writing which involve exercise and running. Exercise helps handle anxiety, and relieving intense stress. Making time to exercise gives us more and better-usable time to work.
For the FastCompany analysis of exercise and work, head over here.
