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5 CEOs share their best productivity tips
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Keep your high-energy times open
Sallie Krawcheck, founder and CEO of Ellevest (a goal-based investing platform for women):
"I have spent a lot of time figuring out how I work best and when I’m most productive. I organize my day around that."
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Focus on the 5%
Bedros Keuilian, founder and CEO of Fit Body Boot Camp (group fitness training brand):
"Only 5% of the things I do are tasks that actually move the money needle, and those were the critical things that I needed to focus on 100% of the time. Everything else can be delegated to team members or subcontractors who have the skill sets and abilities to perform the job. This has been a game-changer for my business as we continue to have massive growth year after year."
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Eliminate interruptions
Dustin Moskovitz, CEO of Asana (productivity and project management platform):
"We practice “No Meeting Wednesdays” to ensure that everyone at the company gets a large block of time to focus on heads-down work without having to fit it in between meetings. This may be our most valuable cultural practice, and I encourage every company to consider adopting it. Additionally, we reflect frequently on whether our group activities are getting enough ROI to justify the interrupt and time expenditure. "128 SAVES
Define the goal
Andrew Lansing, president and CEO of Levy Restaurants (food service and hospitality brand):
"I have found that these three steps can overcome any productivity hurdle: First, the entire team should identify what the true goal is for a project, and make sure everyone involved is focused on that goal. Second, we determine if there is a true finite ending, even if we can’t yet see what it is. Finally, we identify the various challenges standing in the way of achieving that ending and force ourselves to ignore anything that doesn’t help us overcome those challenges."
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Get ideas out of your head
Carl Dorvil, founder and CEO of GEX Managementn (professional employer organization):
Writing out what we’re discussing creates a linear map we can follow. Once the thoughts inside me get to the outside, she then helps me identify who on our team can pull weight and in what direction. It’s helped me see that I’m not alone and that we have resources other than myself to execute tasks.
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Feeling less productive
Many people feel unable to find time in the day to do their most important work. Re...
Drains and Incompletions
- Drains are the tasks you have to do (commuting, personal admin, email correspondence, meetings, calls). These tasks drain your time and energy that you want to spend on priority work.
- Incompletions are the items on your to-do list that you have not yet completed. They are related to work and personal items (responding to a simple email, or it can be a dream you keep putting off).
Identify drains and incompletions
If you are spending your time, energy, and attention on tasks that don't support your overall goal or priorities, it's time to re-evaluate.
- Set aside 20 minutes on your calendar and minimize distractions.
- List all of your drains and incompletions. Write every last item you can think of, including the light bulb that needs replacing, and the conversation you need to have with a co-worker.
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Asynchronous communication
There are mainly two ways to communicate within a company: synchronous and asynchronous communication. While the second type has always been widely practiced, as face-to-face meetings or any other ...
Real-time communication drawbacks
While real-time communication inside of a team might lead to solving faster some issues, it also has various disadvantages.
For instance, having your colleagues come to ask you questions to which you feel pressured to answer on the spot leads to you being continuously interrupted, which results in being less productive and feeling stressed or even getting a burnout, as you try to do everything in proper time.
The asynchronous workplace
When the employees are provided with control as to when they are willing to communicate with their co-workers, there are many advantages that emerge.
For instance, having the freedom to decide exactly how your working day should look like leads to more satisfied employees as well as to better communication within the team. Further benefits vary from feeling less stressed due to better planning to greater transparency and more efficient work.
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Key Ideas
The Brain as a Snowy Hill
The snowy hill represents the brain, the people sledding are like the memories, and the trails left behind are the synapses in the brain.
Think of the brain as a hill covered in snow, ...
Memory Palace/The Method of Loci
- Choose a place that you know really well.
- Plan the route and pick specific locations in your route.
- Decide what you want to memorize
- Place an object or two, with a mental image, and place them in your memory palace. Exaggerate your images. For example, use nudity or crazy images forcing it to stick in your mind.
- Make the image into a mnemonic
Mnemonics
A memory device that helps you retain and retrieve information simply with the use of retrieval cues to encode information in the brain.
- List the words you want to remember.
- Write the initials of each word vertically.
- Create a sentence/phrase using the initials.