More productivity-superstar Stories
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I’ve been using a smartphone for around four years now, and I have a confession to make: I’m fairly sure that during that time, my cellphone usage has, if anything, become far less productive. But with apps, email and Internet access, how could that possibly be? Read more »

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If your primary goal at conferences is to learn, then note-taking is essential. But how can you focus on note taking when you have other things on your mind such as networking and the other sessions you have to attend? Read more »

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Whether it’s establishing new rules or using employee monitoring software, businesses are always looking for new ways to get more “productive time” from their employees. Some companies ban access to Facebook or grab random screenshots of employee workstations. But do any of these measures actually work? Read more »

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Eyestrain and ocular fatigue used to be associated with the computer screens themselves, but the root of the problem is actually incorrect screen settings and poor reading habits. To improve our online reading experience, we only need to have the proper screen settings, tools and habits. Read more »

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We all have our own ways of organizing our tasks and other activities. But what’s a great productivity system without the tools to implement them? The good news is that many of the more popular productivity systems have inspired developers to create accompanying tools. Read more »

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Among all the productivity tips we’ve discussed here at WWD in the past, there seems to be one element needed to make any of them really work: Passion. I’m not talking about fleeting bursts of motivation, nor the satisfaction of crossing off a to-do item. Read more »

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It’s typhoon season again in the Philippines, and just this week I was left with no electricity and no running water for a little over 24 hours. But the ordeal isn’t over. I will be experiencing several power outages within the next few months. While it’s […] Read more »

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Almost everyone I know listens to music while working. When I ask them why, the reasons are varied. Some say it’s to perk themselves up as they start their workday or to drown background noise. Others claim that listening to music helps them work better. Read more »

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Self-handicapping is finding excuses and obstacles that explain why we’re not responsible for our mistakes, failures, or poor performance. Most of us start experiencing it as students, but the habit also tends to stay with us even when we turn into capable professionals. Read more »

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Sleep happens to be one of the most important things that we do each day. How we sleep affects our memory, learning ability, mood, and health. Too little sleep can have negative effects that will last us throughout the day and interfere with our work. Read more »

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I am not the same worker I was last year. Too many things have happened in both my personal and professional lives that the strategies I had in the past are no longer working for me. But how do you know when things need to change? Read more »

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For the past month, I’ve been working with a “work buddy”. She helps me stay on track with projects, keeps me focused when I’m not feeling motivated and gives me professional advice. She has become my go-to person for almost every concern I have with work. Read more »

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We all have different habits and personalities; for some of us, the usual productivity tips don’t seem to work. It’s entirely possible that doing the opposite of the conventional advice might help actually you to work better. Here are some counterintuitive techniques you can start with: Read more »

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When we work alone, away from the constant prying eyes of colleagues and supervisors, we tend to lose our competitive edge. I’ve noticed this in myself, too. I haven’t exactly been slacking off or taking my work for granted, but I feel like something’s missing. Read more »

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Here’s my dream web app: the inspiration generator. Click a button and you instantly feel inspired, a dozen new ideas come falling in your lap. You suddenly know how to start your project, or solve that problem that’s been bothering you for days. Read more »

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Most of us web workers have a relationship with caffeine. Whether we use tea or coffee as creative fuel, or use coffee shops as our offices, caffeine has become an essential part of our professional lives. But how exactly does caffeine affect us? Read more »

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In my experience, there are two types of things you can use to improve your productivity. There are blockers — things that eliminate distractions from the work you have to do. Then there are aids, which are the things that encourage us to work better. Read more »

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I don’t know about you, but I have always liked a good challenge. Doing something that stretches the bounds of my competency puts me on the edge and freaks me out a bit — just enough to force me to grow and expand my possibilities. Read more »

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Late last year, I moved from my outside office and into my home office full-time. After almost twenty years, I went from taking a twenty-minute commute to a big, fancy building to walking down the stairs and into my well-appointed back room office. Read more »

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I am besieged by the age-old problem of both not having enough time to do what I want with Twitter and getting lost in its maze of messages. For some productivity enlightenment on this topic, I turned to the founder of The Blog Squad, Denise Wakeman. Read more »

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The most productive people I know are the ones who recognize that true productivity is not measured by the amount of stuff they get done, but by getting done the things that have the most meaning to them and doing them in a satisfying way. Read more »

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Now that spring is in full swing, it’s time to take on that honored tradition of spring cleaning. Yes, that means opening your desk drawers, confronting your supply closet and cleaning out your pencil cup. Read more »

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Are you tired, worn out, overworked? Apparently, so many of us are that a major U.S./Canadian initiative called Take Back Your Time has been formed to challenge the epidemic of overwork, over-scheduling and time famine that now threatens our health and relationships. Read more »

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On Tuesday, I left my desk and made the short, yet scenic, drive from Marin County into San Francisco. I went into the city to meet a client — an editor I’d been working with mostly via email for the past six months. Read more »

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Sleepless nights, it seems, are becoming a regular gig. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, about 60 million Americans suffer from insomnia each year. And that sleeplessness can have a devastating impact on our productivity. Read more »

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Years ago, I worked with a woman who scared me silly. What I found the most frightening was the way she would cheat, control, charm and cajole to get what she wanted, and she had to be the center of attention at all times as well. Read more »

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I have encountered executives who were balls of fire mid-morning, but turned into stone by 4 p.m.; I’ve coached creative types who rocked the house in the early a.m. but were slackers at lunchtime; and I’ve seen consultants whose best work got done after dinner. Read more »

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I will never forget the vice president pulling me aside and saying, “We need to talk.” As I listened to his concerns, I kept raising my objections and saying, “But that’s not us, that is some other company with a similar name.” Read more »

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Every December, I sit down to write my business plan for the upcoming year. Invariably, however, the lure of pumpkin pie and the continuous playing of Christmas music take me off track. I find that I’m just too distracted to seriously focus on the business planning at hand. Read more »

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“If I had a gun, I’d shoot myself,” I scribble on the note I pass to my friend Chester. “If I had a gun, I’d shoot them,” he scribbles back. It is, without doubt, one of the single worst presentations I have ever had to sit through Read more »

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Constant interruptions can kill your concentration and put a crimp in your productivity. And according to recent research, you are probably suffering the tyranny of interruptions much more often than you realize. Read more »

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At first glance, my office looks like a neat and tidy den of well-organized supplies, electronic equipment and an in-control inbox. So much so that visitors to my work area often blurt out an astonished, “Does your office always look like this, or did you clean […] Read more »

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