• Self-driven guide around increasing personal productivity• Prepares employees at all levels with the resources to work smarter, not harder• Provides managers with an action based coaching guide to assist employees increase

their levels productivity

Personal Productivity with getAbstractWhat is getAbstract’s Personal Productivity Guide?

Featured Author: Jason Womack

Jason W. Womack, MEd, MA sees the world differently. He doesn’t deny there are 24 hours in the day, but he defies low expectations for what can be accomplished in that time. He won’t refute that life is busy, but he refuses to compromise when it comes to increasing productivity and maximizing time for the things that are most important. How does he do this? Jason shows that working longer hours doesn’t have to be your only choice to increase your productivity and performance. Jason focuses on creating ideas that matter and provides practical methods to maximize tools, systems, and processes to achieve quality work/life balance. getAbstract and Jason Womack have teamed up to provide you with the knowledge, tips, and steps, curated from getAbstract's most popular summaries on personal productivity. Everything you read here today is accessible through your getAbstract subscription. We encourage you to spend the time to read and develop your own plan that allows you to perform at your highest level or productivity.

Table of Contents

Step 1: Get Focused and Organized1. Learn: What factors determine a person’s level of productivity? 2. Practice: 9 steps to create your “Fearsome Focus”3. Learn: How can you effectively plan and manage your time?4. Practice: Understand where you are spending your time5. Practice: “18 Minute Plan” to maximize your efficiency

Step 2: Work Smarter; Not Harder6. Learn: Acknowledge the greater possibilities7. Practice: Identify your “Most Important Things” (MITs)8. Practice: Accomplish more; work smarter using “IDEA Elements”9. Learn: Importance of creating a routine

Step 3: Productivity Quick Wins10. Running Effective Meetings11. Writing and Sending Emails

Step 1: Get Focused and Organized

Learn: What factors determine a person’s level of productivity? Number one factor: FOCUS- the ability to focus on the task at hand enables you

to work productively. Focusing is a skill that can be learned and even mastered. To focus, you must

eliminate all distractions, make a plan and follow it, track your progress, and understand what “finished” is for each respective task and/or project.

Be self-aware. How do you “get in the zone?” When are you most focused? Motivation is needed to maintain high levels of focus. Be able to track your

progress through a task, reward yourself when you are complete, recognize your accomplishments.

For more information, please access source summary: The Power of an Hour

Practice: 9 steps to create your “Fearsome Focus”1. Decide what to focus on. What do you need to accomplish to reach your goals?2. Determine the plan of action you will take to accomplish the task. Be specific.3. List the tools you will need and make them available.4. Stay Focused. Do not let yourself get distracted. Get in the zone!5. Get started. Begin following the plan you outlined in step 2.6. Constantly check your progress.7. When distractions arise; take a moment to acknowledge them, get rid of them,

and go back to work8. Keep working until you are completely finished9. Congratulate yourself for completing the task and allow yourself to relax

For more information, please access source summary: The Power of an Hour

Learn: How can you effectively plan and manage your time? Understand what tasks are crucial to your success. Create a “not to do list” to avoid getting distracted while working on more

important itemso For example: surfing the internet and gossiping with coworkers

Prioritize your tasks by their impact on accomplishing your goals Break large tasks into smaller projects; include these in your to-do list Set realistic deadlines; prioritizing high-impact tasks Do not multitask; complete on task before moving to the next Create a dedicated area to create your lists; do not use your inbox as a task tracker

For more information, please access source summary: What to Do When There is too Much to Do

Practice: Understand where you are spending your timeTrack your work for a 2 day period. Set a reoccurring 60 minute timer. When the alarm sounds write down everything you did during that hour; be specific. At the end of day 2 compile the items into 3 separate lists1. Tasks you must do; contribute to completion project/ goals2. Items to delegate in the future; out of your expertise and/or job

responsibilities 3. Items you will stop doing (time traps; e.g. surfing the web, participating in

office gossip

For more information, please access source summary: What to Do When There is too Much to Do

When Task TimeBeginning of day Review your to-do list & determine what you will

accomplish today5 minutes

Throughout the day Top of each hour- are you on track? Where are you now and what do you need to do to accomplish today’s goals

1 minute x 8 times

End of day Reflect- how did the day go? What occurred and what did you learn?

5 minutes

Total= 18 minutes

Practice: “18 Minute Plan” to maximize your efficiencyKeep yourself on track throughout the day. Stay focused on getting the right things done

For more information, please access source summary: 18 Minutes

Step 2: Work Smarter; Not HarderLearn: Acknowledge the greater possibilities

Work smarter- use all the available time in your schedule, identify your top priority tasks, pare your task list and maintain focus

Identify your “Most Important Things” (MITs)•Think bigger- believe in yourself and what you can accomplish. Spend time with supportive people to, expand your social network, and eliminate distractions

Track your resources•Make more- more money, time, opportunities, memories or anything- create a continuous cycle of improvement

For more information, please access source summary: Your Best Just Got Better

Practice: Identify your “Most Important Things” (MITs)1. Identify your MITs on a daily basis. 2. Track. Write them down and review your list sporadically throughout the day as a reminder

of what you set to accomplish. 3. Reflect. At the end of the day review your list and reflect on whether or not you

accomplished your MIT

Practice: Accomplish more; work smarter using “IDEA Elements”4. “Identify a very specific area”- Decide what in your life or work you want to fix.5. “Develop strategies”-Determine what steps to take and what methods to use to achieve

your targeted improvements6. “Experiment”- Try Different Approaches to “generate bursts of momentum.”7. “Assess the value the effort has created”- What have you accomplished and was it

worthwhile?

For more information, please access source summary: Your Best Just Got Better

Step 3: Productivity Quick Wins

Eliminate common time traps and quickly increase your personal productivity by putting these quick wins in practice. Quick Win: Running Effective MeetingsBefore the meeting: Decide if a meeting is truly necessary.

Consider cancelling your meeting if: there is no meeting objective, key stakeholders are unavailable, the information can effectively be shared in an alternative manner i.e. email or newsletter

Have an objective for the meeting and provide a detailed agenda Providing the agenda beforehand allows for participants to prepare appropriately

Mix up items on your agenda to keep the meeting moving; long and short items, intense and lighthearted items, etc. Only invite the people who are needed for the meeting. Small meetings with key stakeholders are most efficient

Decide who will facilitate the meeting; a facilitator can be different than the manager Allow for enough time to cover the items on your agenda

For more information, please access source summary: Talk Lean, The Manager’s Guide to Effective Meetings, and How to Manage Meetings

During the meeting: “Talk Lean”- be concise and to the point in a polite way Follow your agenda; leaving room for productive discussion Be aware of nonverbal communication to gage participants reactions to specific

items/discussions during the meeting After the meeting: End the meeting on time Recap important follow up items and next steps. Including a brief tentative

agenda for the next meeting Provide meeting notes/ recap

For more information, please access source summary: Talk Lean, The Manager’s Guide to Effective Meetings, and How to Manage Meetings

Quick Win: Writing and Sending EmailsEnsure that the email recipient comprehends your message by applying the following tips.

Subject lines:

First chance to catch or lose the recipients attention Should be short and concise and relevant to the emails content

Email Body:

Remove fluff, guff, geek and weasel from your messageo Fluff- “overblown verbiage, clichés, unsupported, “facts” and vague language.”o Guff- “uses multisyllabic words, technical jargon, passive construction, long sentences and even

longer paragraphs.”o Geek-“writing too technical…”o Weasel- “writing endlessly qualifies statements with vague words such as, “may,” “might,” “could,”

“like,” “virtually,” and “possibly.”” Identify action items for the recipient and organize them accordingly. Summarize action items/ next

steps in one common location in the email

Email Signature:

Ensure easy follow up; Sign your emails with your name and contact information (minimum phone number)

For more information, please access source summary: The Language of Success and The New Rules of Business Writing.

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