If we’ve met, you know I love to ‘chat’. I get paid to talk around the world, super cool! One of my favorite things to do is to chat to audiences and share strategies so they can have more impact in the world.
I believe it’s the little things we do that make the biggest impact.
So often, we are so busy talking that we don’t hear anything.
Do you ever have days like that? You are so connected, online, answering emails, attending meetings, checking social media and yet… you don’t feel like you are getting anything done?
No talking – My BFF is beautiful and brilliant. One of her recent blogs got my attention, to increase productivity schedule a no talking day. Yep, you read it right. It works! A day with no scheduled appointments, just focus on strategy – I loved it! I am scheduling one each month (more if I can). You can read about it here: Could you create a day of strategy once a quarter to get more done and feel like you are accomplishing bigger goals?
No meetings – as we approach one of the busiest times of the year can you quiet your calendar by canceling unnecessary meetings? If not, can you shorten them? Give people time back so they can get more done this holiday season.
No cell phones – could you take a 15-minute break from your phone? Can you focus on completing a task instead of checking every notification, bell or beep that you hear? I love to silence my cell phone; sometimes I even put it away, so I am not tempted to check it. I have a love/hate relationship with my phone. I love that it’s easy to stay connected in meaningful relationships; I hate that it distracts me from meaningful work sometimes.
This week spend time away from your cell phone, cancel a meeting and schedule a no-talking break… you will be so glad you did!
What do you need to say No to this week? Can you turn off your email for a while and get real work done, can you say no to meetings to give you and your team more time or can you say no to social media and focus on completion.
We’d love to hear your thoughts on what you said no to this week, share your ideas with us here on our blog.
If you want more ideas on how to increase your productivity – check out other blogs here and several eBooks you can share with your team.
Before I met my wife (back in 2004), I had no cell phone, no pager, not even a watch. Every weekend was spent without contact unless I was home to answer my landline. Often I would hike or go mountain biking and never did it cross my mind about how people would reach me. It’s a different world we live in now but back then my weekends seemed to last much longer and I loved it. When I met my future wife, she quickly bought me a watch and a cell phone. Haven’t been hiking or biking since.