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Distractions and the Open Office Environment

Posted on 02/16/2015 by ·
Distractions and the Open Office Environment By Laura Stack #productivity

Many workplaces today feature more open spaces and smaller, and often shared, workstations. These open floor plans have become “the new normal” in many organizations. Some people speak of them positively, citing the ability to collaborate with coworkers and the creative feeling they can inspire. However, I hear just as many complaints about the walk-in visitors, interruptions, and noise level negatively affecting workplace satisfaction, productivity, and speech privacy. According to research from UC Irvine, office workers are interrupted once every 11 minutes, and it can take up to 23 minutes to get back to what you were doing before you were interrupted. The brain isn't a marvel of infinite capacity; we are, after all, only human, with all the limitations that implies. One limitation … [Read more...]

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The Eternal Question: Is it Better to Beg Forgiveness, or Ask Permission?

Posted on 02/10/2015 by ·
The Eternal Question: Is it Better to Beg Forgiveness, or Ask Permission? by Laura Stack #productivity

You’ve probably heard Grace Hopper's famous axiom, "It's better to beg forgiveness than ask permission." As a child, my father used to tell me that all the time! As a pioneering computer scientist and one of the first female admirals in the U.S. Navy, "Amazing Grace" surely learned the value of begging forgiveness rather than asking permission during her long, storied career. Indeed, Hopper's Law seems to make a lot of sense in many real-world situations. But is it applicable to the workplace? The answer, as with so many other business questions, is, “It depends.” There are reasonable arguments for both sides of the equation, depending on the circumstances. For example, if you're an IT tech, you definitely want to ask permission before changing or upgrading the operating system of an … [Read more...]

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Written Work Commitments: Stroke of Genius, or Total Timewaster?

Posted on 02/03/2015 by ·

"People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine." -- Brian Tracy Most of us work in “at-will” jobs, meaning our companies can terminate us whenever they want, without warning; then again, we can leave whenever we want. Contractual obligations bind neither side. With the exception of high-level execs who insist on them to protect their interests, contracts aren't often seen in the workplace nowadays. But maybe they should be, in a looser, less-binding sense than traditionally used. As a leader, have you ever considered the concept of written work commitments for each of your team members, so you can evaluate how you’re all progressing every quarter? This isn't a traditional contract that would need to be … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Productivity · Tagged:

Too Valuable to Lose: 7 Ways to Be Indispensable at Work

Posted on 01/27/2015 by ·

"The most important thing for workers to understand is that you have to make yourself indispensable. You must make money for your employer or make his life easier, preferably both. Also, you have to learn as much as you can about your chosen endeavor." -- Bill O'Reilly, American TV commentator and author. I usually discourage my readers from trying to make themselves indispensable at work, because when you do that, you limit your opportunities for promotion. While you may have some advantage when it comes to getting raises, your supreme competence and usefulness to your superiors makes them unwilling to let you go. Perhaps at 45 it’s because I’m getting older, but I’m also becoming more of a realist due to business conditions these days. Job security remains a top priority for many of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Productivity ·

Subconscious Self-Sabotage: What It Is and How to Avoid It

Posted on 01/20/2015 by ·

"Those who say life is knocking them down and giving them a tough time are usually the first to beat themselves up. Be on your own side." -- Rasheed Ogunlaru, British life coach and speaker. Have you ever figuratively shot yourself in the foot, by doing something so stupid it compromised your job or career? Do you ever feel like you're really two people, one driven to achieve, while the other holds you back, like an anchor buried in rock? Do you sometimes think you don't really deserve what you've accomplished in life—you're really a fraud who's always faking it—and people just can't tell? If you can honestly say no, then you're one of those rare people so confident in yourself, in where you're going, and your way of doing things—that you never have to worry this topic of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Personal Productivity · Tagged: ,

Five Things Your Coworkers Wish You Knew

Posted on 01/06/2015 by ·
Five Things Your Coworkers Wish You Knew by Laura Stack #productivity

"There's no "I" in team." -- Classic American teamwork slogan. "No, but there's a 'me' if you move a few letters around." -- Sarcastic response. When was the last time you worked completely alone, with no one to help you? Unless you're an impoverished artist starving in a garret somewhere, the answer's probably "never." No matter what our career tracks or work disciplines, nearly all of us depend on other people to help and back us up. Even people who work far afield, like explorers and archaeologists, tend to work in groups or depend on a support team back home. Those of us who work in white-collar jobs rarely work alone. Even if you telecommute, you still belong to a team. As such, you and your coworkers will inevitably experience friction, whether you serve as team leader or … [Read more...]

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Boosting Willpower: Getting a Handle on Your Compulsive Behavior

Posted on 12/16/2014 by ·
Boosting Willpower - Resisting the 3 o clock dance party by Laura Stack #productivity

"Willpower is the key to success. Successful people strive, no matter what they feel, by applying their will to overcome apathy, doubt, or fear." -- Dan Millman, American author. Did you know that you have a limited supply of willpower—and that when you use it up, it's gone until you replenish it? That's the conclusion of Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D. in "The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What We Can Do to Get More of It" and Roy F. Baumeister in "Willpower: Rediscovering The Greatest Human Strength,” who have studied the issue. Believe it or not, even something as simple as deciding between a pumpkin spice latte and a Frappuccino, or what you want for lunch, can use up part of your day's limited supply of willpower. Interestingly, your willpower also … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Personal Productivity · Tagged: , ,

It All Comes Tumbling Down: How Much Is Too Much?

Posted on 12/09/2014 by ·
It All Comes Tumbling Down by Laura Stack #Productivity

"A man's gotta know his limitations." -- Clint Eastwood as "Dirty Harry" Callahan, Magnum Force. Have you ever watched someone juggle chainsaws? I have—my speaker friends The Passing Zone do it several times a week. Scary right? I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes, would you? But in fact, you already have been, at least in a sense, if you're in a position of any authority at work. The difference is that this crazy duo juggles dangerous objects for fun, as you may have seen on America’s Got Talent. You might have a job with one big responsibility (a single chainsaw), such as a bodyguard (protect someone), lifeguard (keep people from drowning), grocery store bagger (pack up groceries), or personal assistant (make someone’s life easier), but they're uncommon—especially in the business … [Read more...]

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Get Right To It: Open the Seal of Hesitation!

Posted on 11/25/2014 by ·
Get Right To It: Open the Seal of Hesitation! by Laura Stack

"He who hesitates is lost." -- Old saying, common to many cultures. We've all been there, perched on the edge of a project, ready to dive in...but for some reason, we just can't. We're not psychologically ready. It's not always about procrastination or perfectionism, the dreaded Ps that often undermine Productivity...though often they contribute to the hesitation. Part of it may be fear of the future or of failure; some may be uncertainty about whether it's the best path. Whatever the cause, the end result is that we stand frozen on the edge of a precipice, like a newbie skydiver hesitating at the hatch of the airplane. And like one of those skydivers, we may have to be pushed to get us out the door. But hey, as long as you've packed your chute right and keep your wits about you, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Personal Productivity · Tagged: , , ,

Get Your Neurons in Gear: How to Think Faster

Posted on 11/18/2014 by ·

"Think fast!" — American saying, usually accompanied by something thrown at the recipient Did you know that smart people actually think faster than “regular” people do? That's the conclusion of a 2009 twin study at UCLA that scanned specific parts of the brain using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). The smarter the person, the faster the mental speed. For me, this begs the question: does being smart make you think faster, or does thinking faster make you smarter? The jury's still out on that, but I suspect a bit of both. Intelligence does run in families, but plenty of people without profound mental gifts have proven they can learn to think faster. Everyone wants to think faster, right? We may not end up rivaling Hawking or Einstein in terms of sheer brainpower, but we can certainly … [Read more...]

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