How to Be More Productive at Work

Hey everyone!

Whether you work in an office building, outside, at home or somewhere in between, being your most productive self at work can be a challenge. For many of us, we spend the standard 40 hours [if not more] per week working, but not getting nearly enough done. 

Being more productive at work reduces stress, helps you stay more organized and improves your attitude. 

Who doesn't want a little more of that?

The idea of getting more done at work without stress or long hours sounds appealing; but how do you get there? Here are a few things you can do now to help you be more productive.

Curate Your Space. 

This is my #1 suggestion to immediately spruce up your desk or area, and make it more comfortable to be in for the whole day. Enhance your workspace with reminders of things you love, personalized accessories, or bring the outside in with plants and greenery (some studies show that more green-like space in the workplace boosts cognition by 26%.¹). Surrounding yourself with familiar things creates an extension of your home, family, and friends. 

Pack Healthy Snacks. 

The 3:00 afternoon slump is SO real and, in many cases, occurs more than once throughout the day. You already know that food gives you a boost of energy but healthy foods will keep you fuller, longer. Also, retrieving your snack from the kitchen will require you to get your body moving. Fueling and moving your body will help keep you more alert. 

Download Helpful Apps.

You may need a little help from technology to stay productive. There is no shame in my game, I use a variety of apps to collaborate with my team (i.e., Slack), help me stay on top of meetings, track my projects (i.e., ToDoist), and sketch out ideas (i.e., Evernote or Bamboo Paper). 

Take Your Lunch Break.

One of the biggest lessons I've learned this past summer is to take an actual legit lunch break. This hour belongs to me—and you—and I have forced myself to eat lunch away from my desk, go downstairs to the gym, or do important errands. I used to work through lunch or eat at my desk but that never works. You think you're getting more work done but what you're actually accomplishing is burnout. 

Eliminate Distractions. 

Gossip at the water cooler, chatty Cathy from accounting, social media notifications are all there pulling our attention and focus and threatening our productivity. Who hasn't gone down the rabbit hole every now and then? Distractions cause us to lose track of time and then work doubly hard to recover and pick up where we left off. Move to a focus room or wear headphones, if permitted. I usually wear headphones as a signal that I am unavailable for shooting the breeze. At the same time, listening to my favorite playlist or audiobook, not only helps me focus on the task(s) at hand, but makes the day go faster.


1. Frobes.com, https://www.forbes.com/sites/adigaskell/2017/02/15/a-green-office-equals-a-productive-office/#6458db397ca5

How to Stand Out from the Crowd

The State of Black Girls Networking Event

 

Nowadays, it seems like we are living in a society of people doing and wearing whatever—and being whomever—they want. Despite this group of brave people “doing them”, there is a larger number of people who are under pressure to adopt a predetermined set of social norms to be accepted.

Don’t go against the grain. Go with the flow. Don’t rock the boat. These are just a few phrases I can hear in my head right now.

Have you ever felt like that in life?

Has anyone ever said those words to you?

At the risk of sounding like a high school valedictorian, I say, that your particular presence on this earth cannot be duplicated or replaced. Each one of us is uniquely created and has specific gifts and talents to bring to the table. Your voice matters and it is needed. *drops mic and descends proverbial soapbox*

But, what can you do to stand apart from the crowd of conformity? I’ve put together a “Be” list of behaviors to help you show up and stand out; it looks like making the “Be” list isn’t such a bad thing. See what I did there? lol

BE CONFIDENT [COMMUNICATE YOUR STRENGTHS].

How many of you knew this would be number one? Being confident is vital to helping you stand out because you set the tone of the interaction or situation before anyone else. When you walk into a room, your confidence tells people I’m resourceful, I’m funny, or I’m smart. But how do you do that exactly? Walk [or sit] upright, lift your head, make eye contact with others, initiate greetings or introductions. These behaviors prove that you’re not afraid to be seen and your excited to share who you are with others.

BE SELF-AWARE [EMBRACE YOUR INDIVIDUALITY].

I love this one because the best thing about being you is that you’re the only one! Even identical twins who mirror features can turn out to be totally different people. Don’t be so willing to dumb yourself down or give away your individuality to fit in. Embrace who you are. Not in pretense, but with a self-awareness that identifies your strengths, your weakness, your quirks, and says I’m different because…and own it!

BE POSITIVE.

Positive people are infectious, they are inspiring, they draw others near them, and they can flip the script—turning negatives into…well...positives. Being positive can help lift others out of depression and difficult situations, and can help you stand out as a beacon of light. No one wants to be around negative people, except other negative people! If you are overly critical, only see the bad in situations and people, or can’t smile you might stand out, but not in a good way.

BE PREPARED TO STAND OUT.

Possibly one of the worst things you can do is go into any situation unprepared—literally or metaphorically. Standing out means putting yourself out there to be noticed, vulnerable, judged and, yes, criticized. Be prepared that not everyone will buy what you sell. Some may be jealous, some may be indifferent, and some may not understand you at all. But even if you experience rejection, don’t internalize it. Don’t turn mutinous and put yourself down by discounting all the things we just agreed will make you stand out.

Finally, BE READY for what happens next. Now that you have everyone’s attention, what are you prepared to do with the opportunity?

Consistency Is Key

Do you struggle with setting goals and carrying them through to the end? If you missed my previous post, click here to read my perspective on limited goal-setting. Consistency is the next figure in the equation for reaching your goals. In my head the diagram looks something like this:

Effective Goal Setting + Consistency = Positive Goal Achievement

I tend to get hung up on the beautiful finished product that first popped into my head. For example, I want to create a t-shirt line and the first thing that pops into my head—as an artist—is, of course, the design. I think, “that would make a dope t-shirt” and “I know people would buy this.” From there, I think about all the steps and actions that need to take place in order to make this happen. I start a little bit of them all, get overwhelmed, and then stop completely. By not following through to realize the initial idea, I become disappointed, frustrated and often, angry with myself for underperforming.

GET MY goal-setting worksheet for FREE AND CREATE AN ACTION PLAN FOR CONSISTENCY.

The definition¹ of consistency is:

1. Marked by harmony, regularity, or steady continuity: free from variation or contradiction
2. Marked by agreement
3. Showing steady conformity to character, profession, belief, or custom

Thinking about this definition, I have created three strategies to help me be more consistent in my life and with my goals. I hope they may do the same for you.

Consistency is free from variation or contradiction. 

In other words, “stay the course” as my mom would say. Focusing on one—maybe two—goals at a time minimizes the risk of distraction or deviation from the plan. By veering off course, you contradict the confidence and faith you put in yourself to accomplish. Proverbs 4:25-27 sums up this concept by instructing that we turn not to the right hand nor to the left, but to look straight ahead.

Consistency is marked by agreement. 

Look at your action plan as a binding contract you make with yourself but also as a guide to measure if you are in compliance with the steps necessary to make this thing happen! Measures like:

• Is your attitude consistent with the type of person who would do what you are doing? 
• Is your expertise consistent with the kind of trust you’re seeking from customers?
• Do your results consistently reflect positive outcomes?

The agreement is really about checks and balances. Are you being true to the process and yourself? Do any amendments need to be made?

Consistency is a steady conformity to character or belief. 

This is a big one for me—being the same person no matter what! Life—and all of it curveballs—will happen but remain true to who you are and keep your “why” close. Conform to your character or belief by contouring what you do with why you do it. Remembering why you started in the first place, keeps you connected to your vision and mission.


¹ Source: Mirriam-Webster Dictionary

5 Tips to Save Time in the Morning

5 Tips to Save Time in the Morning

Hello everyone!

Are you like me, throwing things together in the morning and praying to make it out the door in time for your morning commute? Well, I for one got tired of lurching out of bed and scrambling around the house only to walk into work with the “sorry I’m late” face. I decided I HAD to do something different if I wanted a different result. So, I thought about all the things I do before walking out the door in the morning and what tactics I could apply to help me accomplish them. Here are five tips to help save time in the morning:

1 | PREPARE MEALS THE NIGHT BEFORE 

My biggest time sucker in the morning is making my lunch and breakfast and I can spend up to 20 minutes prepping food! Assuming I did my job on Sunday and meal prepped (ha!), packing my lunch and breakfast the night before is a breeze. In addition, I like to make my snacks beforehand. Slicing and portioning out veggies for hummus dip, spooning out yogurt with blueberries and honey, and blending up a protein shake. I pile everything into my lunch bag and put the whole bag in the fridge. 

2 | PACK YOUR BAGS.

I am fortunate to have access to a gym at my job and I prefer to work out on my lunch hour. An unorganized morning can go like this: me scouring the drawers for leggings, searching for the sports bra that matches them only to realize it’s in the dryer in the basement, and then trying to find my other “other” headphones. Ugh! I completely eliminated this step by packing my bag the night before AND placing it by the door so all I have to do is grab and go!

Maybe for you, it’s packing the kids bookbags or loading up your laptop case with important papers, folders and, oh yeah, the actual laptop. Whatever your “bag” is, pack it up at night and put it by the exit.

3 | PLAN YOUR OUTFIT. 

Now, this next tip is kind of a hard one for us ladies, but it will save you time in the morning, I promise!! Women typically select our outfits based on our mood for that day (yes, men this is a real thing!); so how can you decide on an outfit before you know how you’re going to feel? I found that the number of times I chose an outfit the night before and then completely changed my mind in the morning was very rare. By giving myself the framework to follow, I customarily stuck with my original choices even if I swapped a scarf or sweater here or there. Now, on the occasions I wanted to “throw the whole outfit away”, I was glad I had done tips one and two so I could afford little more time to figure it all out. Now, sometimes nothing works, and you find yourself down the rabbit hole 20 minutes later surrounded by a room full of dismissed ideas…but that is another post for another day! LOL.

4 | TURN OFF THE TECH.

What is the first thing you do in the morning? Maybe you meditate (namaste), pray, make a cup of coffee or start yelling at kids; but I think we all do one other thing before ALL
OF THAT. Reach for the phone. Guilty as charged! I mean guilty, guilty. It usually goes something like this for me: I grab my phone and check my first stop—Instagram, then any texts I missed, emails…ooo that one from Swell’s new product line that makes me feel like I also want to go hiking through some Himalayan-like locale beautifully toting its new tumbler. Before I know it, I’m on Expedia comparing flights to Nepal, and then on to Target to find a sarong for said fictional trip and…ooo vacuum cleaners are 50% off…see where I’m going with this?! But this is how my brain works if I fall into the tech trap of letting one thought lead to the next and to the next. Let yourself have 5-10 minutes to answer the emails and texts that need immediate attention and then shut it down! The same goes for watching tv! You can always listen to the news on the car radio.

5 | GO TO BED ON TIME!

This sounds the most straightforward, but it can be the hardest to do. By the time you get home, get dinner, get the kids ready for bed, try to watch a show or two, nurture husband/wife or friendships, pack your lunch and gym bags, pick clothes, brush teeth, and attempt your nighttime skincare where does the time go? Well, sometimes you just have to make yourself do it! Bedtimes are individual but isn’t there a rule about eight hours or something? LOL. I am a chronic pusher of the snooze button, but when I’m in bed—and not on my phone—by 9:30pm, it’s actually easier to get up when my alarm goes off.

How you start the day often determines how the rest of your day will go. So why not start on a high note? What are some ways you save time in the morning? Drop a comment below.

Time Saving at the Gym

Hi everyone!

I’m back in the gym after two and a half weeks! I can tell you that aside from being extremely sore, I have a new tool to help me stay organized and motivated. Yes, I just referred to my new gym bag as a tool and, yes, I said it keeps me motivated!

I’ve been on the hunt for a gym bag that is compact enough to carry to-and-from work while offering ample storage. This bag has interior and exterior compartments for your phone, travel-size toiletries and sweaty garments you might want to keep tucked away. The size is perfect, being large enough to fit all my stuff but small enough to stow in narrow lockers—I can use the drawstring to cinch the bag closed and keep everything secure. The material and straps are thick and durable. Since I’m pretty rough on my stuff, the black color will be very forgiving and keep it looking as good as possible, for as long as possible.

You may be asking, how is this a tool? For one thing, the compartments keep everything organized and sorted. My biggest time sucker at the gym is the locker room, I can waste up to 20 minutes pre-and-post workout. Now having the ability to reach into my bag and put my hands directly on what I need has reduced my changing time by 10 minutes. That’s almost an hour in time savings during a typical work week!

Mid-day workouts have been proven to keep me consistent so squeezing every exercise minute out of an hour is important to me. I stay motivated knowing I can spend more time exercising.

Make it a regular practice to research tools that will aid you in your goals. Whether it’s downloading an app that reminds you to drink water every hour (yes, I have that!) or setting up a “keep the change” feature with your bank that rounds purchases up to the next dollar and deposits the difference into your savings account (yes, I have that too!). 

What tools do you use to stay organized? What could you be doing more efficiently in your daily/weekly routine?