Archive for the ‘04 Get Productive’ Category

Get Productive…By Overcoming Fear!

Posted on: July 11th, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Get Productive...Have you accomplished your objectives in the first half of 2013?

If not, is fear holding you back?

Here’s a personal short story about overcoming fear.

At Christmas I received a gift certificate for bungee jumping. I said to my sons, “I don’t know what’s on my bucket list, but I know that bungee jumping isn’t.” Several weeks ago when we were altogether, we set a date for the five of us to go to Quebec. About noon on Sunday, June 30 I conquered my biggest fear. I have never been more scared in my life. But I did it! I took the 200 foot jump!!  OK, it took three countdowns before I actually jumped, but the important thing is that I didn’t let my fear get the better of me.

If I can do it, you can too! I’m almost positive that most of the items on your list aren’t as scary as bungee jumping. So don’t waste any more time procrastinating. As the Nike slogan says, “Just do it”!

“Nothing binds you except your thoughts; nothing limits you except your fear; and nothing controls you except your beliefs.”
– Marianne Williamson, The Law of Divine Compensation



Does YOUR business have a “Bucket List?”

Posted on: June 18th, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Get Productive...Do you have a Bucket List?

For those of you who don’t know, a bucket list is “a list of things to do before you die.” It comes from the term “kicked the bucket.”

I recently thought if you can have a bucket list for your personal life, why not have a list for your business too!  Think about what you want your business to look like one year from now, 5 years from now and 10 years from now.  Don’t forget to include your “if I only had time” ideas.

As those lazy days of summer approach, take some time to create your Business Bucket List.



Time Choices…from Canada’s Leading Time Manager.

Posted on: April 30th, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

CHOICES FOR USING THE TIME IN YOUR LIFE

by Harold Taylor

There are only so many ways that you can use time. Here are the common ones. You will be more effective the further down the list you go.

1. WASTING TIME is giving up some of your time and getting nothing substantial in return.

2. LOSING TIME is being unaware of the passage of time by engaging in activity while the mind is absent.

3. SPENDING TIME is acquiring a completed task or activity in exchange for an equivalent amount of time.

4. BUYING TIME is paying someone else to do things that you would otherwise have to do yourself.

5. INVESTING TIME is gaining more in terms of enjoyment, productivity or purpose than you give up in terms of time.”

Harold Taylor is the leading Canadian time management expert.



March is Fraud Prevention Month

Posted on: April 1st, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

“Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.”
                                     – Earl Nightingale

Did you know that March is Fraud Prevention month?

Even if you’re not a Royal Bank customer, their RBC Advice Centre offers some tips to protect yourself from credit card fraud and identity theft, as well as how to avoid business fraud.

Check your bank’s website for additional tips.



How Do YOU Define Success?

Posted on: February 15th, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Have you been as productive as you hoped in January? In case you missed our last issue, claim your copy of Brian Tracy’s Eat That Frog. Jumpstart your productivity now! 

 

“If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.”

                                                    – Jim Rohn, American Businessman (1930-2009)

How do you define SUCCESS?

Check out The Success Indicator Poster by MaryEllen Tribby.

Is there some small change you can make to become even more successful in 2013?



The Coffee Bean Technique

Posted on: January 17th, 2013 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

THE COFFEE BEAN TECHNIQUE
   (Author Unknown)

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how growing her business was so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.

Twenty minutes later she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ‘Tell me what you see.’

‘Carrots, eggs, and coffee,’ the daughter replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.

Then the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, ‘What does it mean, mother?’

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently.

The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak and limp.

The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.

The ground coffee beans were unique. They changed the water, the very circumstance that brought the adversity.

When the water gets hot, the coffee bean releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when you face challenges, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? Do you choose to handle adversity like a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; but they make the most of everything.

The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can’t go forward in life until you let go of your past failures.

Do you have an effective strategy for handling business and life challenges – for being the coffee bean?



Committing Your Dreams to Paper…and Beyond!

Posted on: December 20th, 2012 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

“Try a thing you haven’t done three times. Once, to get over the fear of doing it. Twice, to learn how to do it. And a third time, to figure out whether you like it or not.”
   –  Virgil Garnett Thomson

Is there one improvement—even a small one–to help your business run more efficiently or effectively? If you have an Oprah Aha! moment (“a moment of sudden realization, inspiration, insight, recognition, or comprehension”), make note of it, so you can take action in the New Year. Once you commit your brilliant idea to paper, your brain will begin to percolate some next steps.

When you see friends, don’t be afraid to verbalize your ideas or share your hopes and dreams. Your holiday cocktail conversations will be more stimulating! Good friends will support you and tell you that you’re not crazy. They may even hold you accountable, but don’t let that scare you. It will keep you moving forward and help you take the next step–whether it’s big or small.

So start thinking about what you need or want to accomplish in 2013!

DON’T FORGET!

If you use a paper planner or family calendar, remember to pick up a new one for 2013. Mark down new appointments now, so they’re not forgotten.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST!

It’s OK to say NO to a request–especially during the holidays–if you’re already too busy. And DON”T FEEL GUILTY



Eat That Frog Part 3

Posted on: November 13th, 2012 by Cathy Mendler No Comments


Have you heard the expression “Eat That Frog” before? It’s the phrase that Brian Tracy uses “as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day.”

Many of us procrastinate when it comes to getting started on tasks we don’t really want to do. I’d like to share some information from EAT THAT FROG! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time (ISBN 978-1-57675-422-1)–one of my favourite productivity books.

In our September and October issues, I shared the first 14 ways on Brian’s list. Here are the last seven!

15. Maximize your personal power: Identify your periods of highest mental…energy each day, and structure your most important and demanding tasks around these times. Get lots of rest so you can perform at your best.

16. Motivate yourself into action: Be your own cheerleader. Look for the good in every situation. Focus on the solution rather than the problem. Always be optimistic and constructive.

17. Get out of the technological time sinks: Use technology to improve the quality of your communications, but do not allow yourself to become a slave to it. Learn to occasionally turn things off and leave them off.

18. Slice and dice the task: Break large, complex tasks down into bite-sized pieces, and then do just one small part of the task to get started.
Create large chunks of time: Organize your days around large blocks of time where you can concentrate for extended periods on your most important tasks.

19. Develop a sense of urgency: Make a habit of moving fast on your key tasks. Become known as a person who does things quickly and well.

20. Single handle every task: Set clear priorities, start immediately on your most important task, and then work without stopping until the task is 100 percent complete. This is the real key to high performance and maximum personal productivity.”

I hope you have found a few of Brian’s 21 ways useful to help you stop procrastinating and get more things done faster!

Take action and EAT THAT FROG!



Eat That Frog–Part 2

Posted on: October 16th, 2012 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Have you heard the expression “Eat That Frog” before? It’s the phrase that Brian Tracy uses “as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day.”

Many of us procrastinate when it comes getting started on tasks we don’t really want to do.

I’d like to share some information from EAT THAT FROG! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time (ISBN 978-1-57675-422-1)–one of my favourite productivity books.

In our September issue, I shared the first seven ways on Brian’s list. Here are the next seven!

8.  “The Law of Three: Identify the three things you do in your work that account for 90 percent of your contribution, and focus on getting them done before anything else. You will then have more time for your family and personal life.

9. Prepare thoroughly before you begin: Have everything you need at hand before you start. Assemble all the papers, information, tools, work materials, and numbers you might require so that you can get started and keep going.

10. Take it one oil [drum] at a time: You can accomplish the biggest and most complicated project if you just complete it one step at a time.

11. Upgrade your key skills: The more knowledgeable and skilled you become at your key tasks, the faster you start them and the sooner you get them done.

12. Leverage your [particular] talents: Determine exactly what it is that you are very good at doing, or could be very good at, and throw your whole heart into doing those specific things very, very well.

13. Identify your key constraints: Determine the bottlenecks or [obstacles], internal or external, that set the speed at which you achieve your most important goals, and focus on alleviating them.

14.  Put the pressure on yourself: Imagine that you have to leave town for a month, and work as if you had to get all your major tasks completed before you left.”
Stay tuned to the next edition for the last seven ways to stop procrastinating and get more things done faster!

Take action and EAT THAT FROG!



Eat That Frog Part 1

Posted on: September 25th, 2012 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Have you heard the expression “Eat That Frog” before? It’s the phrase that Brian Tracy uses “as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day.”

Many of us procrastinate when it comes getting started on tasks we don’t really want to do. I’d like to share some information from EAT THAT FROG! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time (ISBN 978-1-57675-422-1)–one of my favourite productivity books.

Here are Brian’s first 7 ways to stop procrastinating and get more things done faster.

1. “Set the table: Decide exactly what you want. Clarity is essential. Write out your … objectives before you begin.

2. Plan every day in advance: Think on paper. Every minute [spent planning can reduce your actual time spent on action by five or ten minutes].

3. Apply the 80/20 Rule to everything: Twenty percent of your activities will account for 80 percent of your results. Always concentrate your efforts on that top 20 percent.

4. Consider the consequences: Your most important tasks and priorities are those that can have the most serious consequences, positive or negative, on your life or work. Focus on these above all else.

5. Practice creative procrastination: Since you can’t do everything, you must learn to deliberately put off those tasks that are of low value so that you have enough time to do the few things that really count.

6. Use the ABCDE Method continually: Before you begin work on a list of tasks, take a few moments to organize them by value and priority so you can be sure of working on your most important activities.

7. Focus on key result areas: Identify and determine those results that you absolutely, positively have to get to do your [work] well, and work on them all day long.”

Stay tuned to the next edition for more tips!

Take action and EAT THAT FROG!