I subscribe to a number of magazines and newspapers. Here are some of the strategies I use to get the most out of them while keeping the time commitment to a reasonable level. Skim - I'm not looking to fully read every article. Much of the time, the first few paragraphs and a quick glance over any charts will tell me what I need to know. TOC - The table of contents is another useful item for skimming. I usually prefer to skim the actual articles as well, but the TOC gives you a good feel for what might be interesting. Cut - I have a handy little paper cutter that slides down the page right next to the bound edge. I cut out any articles that look like they might be worth more … [Read more...] about Getting the Most Out of Magazines
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Safety Tips
Safety is something we don't usually think about ahead of time, and hindsight isn't usually very effective in this area. Here are eight things you should consider when thinking about basic safety practices. Fire Extinguisher - Fire extinguishers are specially designed to put out the types of fires you might have in your house without causing the fire to spread. Throwing water on an electrical or grease fire may make things worse. Keeping an extinguisher handy helps ensure that you'll have something effective to use if it is needed. First Aid Kit - This is particularly important to have in your car. Our first aid kit contains a variety of bandages, disinfectants and pain … [Read more...] about Safety Tips
Personal Productivity from Management Theory
This is the introduction to a four-part series that will explore three management theories and how they relate to personal productivity. This may seem odd, but if management is the art of accomplishing work through other people, then personal productivity can be seen as being effective at managing yourself. By examining the methods of motivating others, we can become more skilled in motivating ourselves. Here are the three theorists we are going to look at: Abraham Maslow - Hierarchy of Human Needs Douglas McGregor - Theory X and Theory Y William Ouchi - Theory Z (Cultural Management) Most people will be familiar with Maslow's theories. McGregor is less well known. Most of … [Read more...] about Personal Productivity from Management Theory
Take the Time to Play
I have a theory. Since I will probably never have the resources to try to prove it, the next best thing is to share it with readers and see what type of feedback I get. My theory is this: There is a direct relationship between your maximum creative output and the amount and quality of time you spend doing non-work activities. The idea is that you will never reach your full potential for efficiency and productivity without significant investments in non-work, fun activities. If all your time is spent working, you will accomplish less than if you leave some time to relax and pursue recreational activities. I think this only holds true for creative-type work. If you are simply … [Read more...] about Take the Time to Play
Global Perspective
As we interact more and more with people from other countries, it is becoming increasingly important to have global perspective. This isn't something US citizens are particularly good at. If you watch the news, you are more likely to see a story on Britney Spears' dog groomer than information about educational issues in Africa. Part of this is because the US is large and only connected to two other countries. Most of it is because Americans don't particularly care what is going on elsewhere. Here are some simple things you can do that will help you see the world from perspectives other than your own. Put $250 into Kiva - Kiva is a service that lets you loan money to people in … [Read more...] about Global Perspective
Check List for Email
I am amazed at how many people are using email that is broken. Yes they get their messages, but they have to jump through all kinds of hoops to make things work right. Worse, many people have setups that are actively exposing their passwords to anyone who cares to look. Here is a checklist of essential items for an email provider. How does your solution rate? Webmail and Mail Client Synchronized Ability to Send from any Connection No Plain Text Passwords Secure Connection Backups Adequate Storage Size Anti-Spam Anti-Virus Aliases Mobile Connections Strict Terms of Service Now lets look at each of these items in a little more detail, because some of them aren't … [Read more...] about Check List for Email
Setting Goals
I attended a very small school where most coursework was done at your own pace. To make sure you could graduate on time, the yearly work was broken down into 4 quarters of 9 weeks each. The quarters were broken down into weeks and what you needed to accomplish each week was divided into each day. Each student had a "goal card" in front of their work area showing their planned progress for the next day. There was also another chart that showed their quarterly and yearly progress. As I sat at my desk, directly in front of me was all the information about my goals. I could see a chart of my progress for the year, for the week, and for the day. There was no escaping the focus on … [Read more...] about Setting Goals
Iron Chef – A Productivity Fable
Tortoise and Hare were both known for their culinary expertise and were invited to a face-off in the Iron Chef. Soon after the competition began, it was clear that the Hare was significantly ahead of the Tortoise. The audience was amazed at the speed with which Hare mixed ingredients, poured them into another container and tossed the mixing bowl aside to move on to the next step in preparation. Tortoise, on the other hand, seemed to be well behind. It wasn't that he was going slower than Hare, but the audience agonizingly watched as he carefully cleaned each bowl, pan and utensil and put them back in their place after use. Tortoise was making progress, but was well behind the Hare in … [Read more...] about Iron Chef – A Productivity Fable
Perception of Authority
Back in the 60s, there were some experiments done to see how likely people were to obey an authority figure, even if they were doing something they felt was wrong. The results were scary. Most people would continue to administer lethal electric shocks to another human if someone in a lab coat told them they had to. In the book Influence: Science and Practice (5th Edition) the author talks about the different ways we perceive someone as being an authority. This perception causes you to obey them more than would be expected. The book lists three things that cause people to identify someone as an authority: Impressive Title Their Clothes Driving an Expensive Car On one … [Read more...] about Perception of Authority
Adobe Buzzword
Though most computer users are familiar with and use Microsoft Word or a similar product, there are alternatives that many are not aware of. Finding trustworthy software that does not inhibit your productivity can be a challenge. However, the developers at Adobe have come up with an online word processing program that functions much like Word does and has the benefit of being free. As this application is a web based program, it does require an internet connection for the user to access and work on his or her documents. This has a definite up-side, though. Collaborative work For those that write with co-authors or need things to be proof read, Buzzword provides the unique service … [Read more...] about Adobe Buzzword