This is one of those times that it will be worth printing and posting these ideas so that you have the questions as ready reminders:

1. Is what I am doing right now the best use of my time? If you are in business, then you better make sure this is a question you are asking yourself throughout your day. You need to make sure you know what the “best” use of your time is or this question is of no value. If you’re not sure, hire a coach to help you figure it out.

2. Is part of my day – everyday – spent working through my strengths? If it’s not, you are not only not very productive but ultimately, you’re not going to be very happy.

3. Do I gain satisfaction from what I do? It’s your life. Why would you work at a job that doesn’t provide satisfaction?

4. Am I appreciated for the work that I do? If you do great work and you aren’t getting appreciated, it’s time to take a look at why you aren’t. Maybe your colleagues and boss need a little encouragement to make sure people feel appreciated. Or, maybe you work in a toxic environment and it’s time to get out.

5. Is at least 80% of my time spent with people who are positive (vs. negative)? You can change your percentage even higher (I do), but at least, get to 80% if you’re below that now. You may have to add more positive people or remove the negative ones to get to this percentage, but do so, regardless.

6. Have I expressed my gratitude today? My suggestion would be to express it out loud to individuals and internally to yourself and out there…to the Universe.

7. Am I drinking enough water? Note: If you are thirsty, the answer is no. Recently, I heard that we all need to drink 1/2 ounce for each pound of our body weight. So, that’s a starting point for you…(and me).

8. Who is my ideal client (and am I working with that person)? I know, this is two questions – and they are essential questions to ask and answer.

9. Am I paid commensurate with the value I provide? Talk to your boss, get a different job, or if you work for yourself, see what changes you need to make so that they answer is a resounding YES!

10. If my house were paid off, every loan I owed were paid, I owed no money on credit cards, and I had health insurance guaranteed for life, would I still keep doing what I’m doing?

Answer these truthfully today and everyday. Make any changes that seem to be warranted. It really is YOUR life.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5321006

What happens when your calendar is just crammed? Should you quit using a calendar? Should you just pitch the calendar?

No, of course not. You have to figure out how to make more room so you can get your projects done. The way that you make more room is by eliminating part of what is already there. You can do that by implementing one or more of the following:

1. You can move some tasks, projects, appointments that are scheduled for the next week, month, or longer into the future. You have to decide what period of time is overly-crammed and start taking a good hard look at what you can move to the future.

2. You can assess that some of what you thought needed to be on your schedule (or in your to-do list) really doesn’t need to be there. You make that assessment by realizing that some of what is currently there is not as important as other tasks and projects that you want to accomplish.   Note: Just because you eliminate something doesn’t mean that it is not important at all, it just means that it is less important – now – than what you need/want to be doing instead.

3. You can minimize your involvement on some projects or other commitments that you want to keep. You are not dropping the commitment altogether, but you are shrinking it. If you put your mind to it, I have faith that you can find something to minimize but still not eliminate it completely.

4. You can figure out if someone else can take over all or part of some aspect of what you need to do. Regardless of whether you are trying to clear out some of your personal or professional commitments, consider delegating out at least a portion of one or more of those scheduled items.

5. You can ask for some help. If you have children and someone else lives in your house, ask that person for some extra help for the few weeks or months. If you have some friends who “get it,” do some trade-off time with them. You take the “crew” one Saturday and your friend takes the crew the next week. If you have projects at work that could be shared, see about figuring that out, with the idea that you are lessening your involvement and the time commitment.   Note: You aren’t shirking your duties. You are committed to accomplishing goals that are important to you either personally, professionally or BOTH.

So, take a good look at your crammed calendar and apply one or all of these 5 tips. Make some space so you can be more productive on what is most important.

The Change of Season…

Summer vacation is over, the kids are back to school and the holiday rush has not yet begun. Beware of premature advertising and don’t let retail marketing rush you through this beautiful time of year. Take a few quiet moments and contemplate the wonder of the cycle of life.

There is a time to be born and a time to die

A time to plant and a time to harvest

A time to kill and a time to heal

A time to break down and a time to build up

A time to weep and a time to laugh

A time to mourn and a time to dance

A time to embrace and a time to refrain

A time to find and a time to lose

A time to keep and a time to throw away

A time to tear and a time to mend

A time to keep silent and a time to talk

A time to love and a time to hate

A time of war and a time of peace

                   Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

This month spend time in your garden to clean out annuals that have passed their time of bloom. Refresh the appearance with a colorful variety of fall plantings. Enjoy the vibrant display of autumn colors. Here in New England we are lucky to be able to experience the changing of seasons.

Wherever you live, slow down and take a long walk. This is the time to be at peace.

Time. Do you really need more or do you need to enjoy what you have? Time is not something to spend or something to waste. It is an investment. We are all interested in investing wisely to reap the highest rate of return, the highest reward. Choose to invest in life’s joyful moments.

Time is simply an accumulation of minutes, an accumulation that is can be positive or negative – interest earned or interest paid. Choose to use the majority of your time on those things that are most important in your life and the rest will fall into place naturally.

Simplify… Let go of the clutter and enjoy the change of the season.

If you find that interruptions are causing you significant loss of productivity, then it is time that you made some changes. Wishing that the interruptions would stop won’t do you any good. Fuming about them won’t do you any good. Complaining about them won’t do any good. So, I guess that means you’ll need to make some changes. Here are five (plus a bonus) that will make a difference right away.

1. If your interruptions come from people walking by, then either close your door, or if you are in a high traffic area, figure out if there is some way to indicate that you are not to be disturbed or find a different place to work – at least part of the time.

2. If your interruptions are because you are essentially inviting people into your work space because you have candy on your desk…well, what can I say? Get the candy off your desk and begin to make it known that you heard that candy on someone’s desk increases the number of times they are interrupted by 80% and reduces their productivity by 2 or more hours a day. Note: I actually just made that up, but you can say you heard this statistic…because you just did. And while I may have just invented that statistic, based on my experience working with people all over North America, I would say it is not far off.

3. Stand up when people come into your workspace. Conversations that are held standing up are much shorter than those that are held sitting down. And interestingly, if you need to get off the telephone, standing up helps that happen, as well.

4. Tell people the truth. If you are busy, tell them you are busy. Physically hold up your hand when someone starts coming into your workspace and say, “Hang on. I am right in the middle of something. Could I get back to you later today?”

5. Check to see if you are co-dependent in some way. If you love being the go-to person, then you are encouraging interruptions and you will need to begin to help others take responsibility.

Bonus idea: Although this next idea is one that is used in elementary schools, I love it for adults, too. “Three before me” is a phrase that teachers of young children say. The idea is that children are to ask three other people before they come to their teachers with a question. You could install that notion with the people in your life, too. Please check with “three before me,” and then, and only then, come to me if you have not been able to find a suitable response.

The point of this article is not to argue about whether there is a double standard for women and whether that is right or not.

I don’t know why, but truly, if we attend to the following 5 areas of how we “look,” it does allow us to be more productive as we do our work. I will say a little something about each one.

1. Hair – Ladies, the truth is that our hair is one of the areas of our outer self where we can spend a LOT of time. Whatever you can do to make your hair easier and faster to deal with – and where you still feel like you are looking good – then do it.

2. Jewelry – Simple jewelry works best for you. If you know that you want to be ready for whatever happens throughout a given day, at least get some earrings in (if you have pierced ears) and a simple ring on one of your hands. You can always add more later but jewelry is part of what makes you like you are paying attention to yourself (in the good way).

3. Makeup – Generally speaking, they don’t make makeup for men (although plenty of them could use some!) Heavy makeup is certainly not needed, but most of us feel better when we have at least a little bit on – maybe a skin tint foundation, a bit of lipstick, and a dab of blush. I don’t know what it is for you, but see if tending to this helps you feel more “ready” for the day.

4. Accessories – Just as I mentioned that jewelry is one aspect of accessories that we want to pay attention to, so are all the other accessories we might use. Use accessories that are “easy” for you. For example, the scarf that must be positioned “just right” is too much fuss for me so I have learned never to try that. Maybe I’m not in fashion, but I don’t want to be fussing with my scarf when I’m trying to do a workshop.

5. Clothing that is not ‘shot’ – I’m all for getting our money’s worth from our clothes, but at some point, your clothing, especially that clothing you wear when others see you – at work, at community events, etc. – needs to be the clothing that is still looking good. You feel better and look better. If the neckline on a sweater is sprung, if the hem of your pantleg is dragging, or if the cuffs of a blouse or jacket look ragged, then you are undermining your ability to be taken seriously. Again…not arguing whether this is right or wrong, but it is the truth.

You want to be productive. There are ways to simplify your ability to be “ready” for the day. For women, part of being ready for the day is looking presentable so we can get on with all that we need to do.

Whether you think it is right or wrong is irrelevant in this case. The truth is that our productivity, i.e., our ability to do our work easier, faster, and with more effectiveness is partially dependent on whether we attend to the following five areas:

1. Stand up straight (posture) – You may have had to walk around your house with a book on top of your head or your mother may have constantly reminded you, “stand up straight!” and so you already know this one. But, take a look in the mirror as you pass one (or a shop window) and do you see someone standing tall or slouching? Pull yourself up as if you had a string on the top of your head. You look better (and thinner, if that is something you wish you were). People will pay more attention than if you slouch.

2. Shoes – As far as productivity, I could write a whole article just about shoes, but here’s what I will say in this brief comment. If the shoes hurt your feet, get rid of them. No one is productive when her feet hurt. Get good shoes that make your feet feel good and ditch the other ones. You decide whether you need to tend to this in your personal or professional wardrobe – and get going on that today if it’s been problem in the past. And, just because they are comfortable doesn’t mean they have to be ugly!

3. Eye contact – Generally speaking (for those of you who are reading this), making eye contact is one of the ways that we need to “look the part.” Have a professional mentor or a wise and loving friend (who is strong and assertive) tell you what your eye contact conveys. If you appear afraid to look into others’ eyes or you are forever glancing away, looking up, or doing any of the other less-than-strong and productive eye contact behaviors, then start learning strong and assertive ways of making eye contact with others. You can practice this and you will get better.

4. Personal space – What does your personal space look like? When someone walks into your office or gets in your car, does it “look the part” for what you want to convey? If not, what changes do you need to make? Guess what? The changes you may need to make (cleaning the clutter out of your car) will also make you feel much better and be more productive, which is the idea!

5. Accoutrements (briefcase, pen, etc.) – Do you have a massive tote that you are forever rooting around in? Not a great way to look the part. Get a decent briefcase, purse, pen, planner, and/or whatever other accoutrements you need that help you display your feminine gracefulness and productivity – and help you support your feminine gracefulness and productivity.

Every single one of these is something you can make improvements to starting today!

Note: If you are like most women, you will be stunned by the sheer number of containers you have amassed.

1. Get out every single bottle, tube, or jar of lotion that you have. Look in your vanity, your purse, under the sink, in your linen closet, in your suitcase if you travel frequently, and in your kitchen. Just line up everything you found on a dining room or kitchen table. You will need somewhere with a lot of room to get these all spread out.

2. If you see bottles with little dabs in them, throw them away (recycle them). When all you have is a little bit of lotion in the bottom of a bottle, you’ve got bottles lying on their sides, turned upside down, leaning up against other bottles – and it’s all just a mess of clutter. Getting rid of all the containers with little bits in them likely to reduce the quantity of containers by 10 – 30% at least.

3. If you have multiple samples from hotels, give them to a women’s shelter (or to a local high school where due to the young people’s home situation they need to shower at school) so that they can be put to good use. You don’t need them. If you travel a great deal (which is how you got so many tiny containers) then the next hotel you check into will also give you more. Never fear.

4. Open lotions that look old and take a sniff. If they smell rancid or “off” in any way, toss them. Yuck!

5. If you have numerous partially-full bottles (which means more than a “dab”), combine them and then toss the empty bottles (see #2 above).

6. If you have lotions that you just don’t like the smell of – for whatever reason – give them away if they’ve never been opened or put them in your recycle bins. Life is too short to wear lotion that isn’t a treat to your olfactory sense!

I’m a big fan of lotions, powders, creams and other nice feminine items. I recently did exactly what I have written about here and it was an immense release and relief. Try it and see what happens for you, too.

And for scores of weekly Top Ten Productivity Tips for Women like these, you’re invited to join others around the globe who subscribe (free) to one of the Top Ten Productivity Tips series

Let’s tell the truth. If we are make-up wearing women, our make-up situation can get pretty scary (and I’m not talking about our faces!) I am referring to the mess in our purses, our bathroom drawers, our traveling make-up bag, and any other place that we keep make-up. I think you know what I’m talking about.

[MEMc] I don’t think anything eliminates that fear.  Sometimes the unknown is less scary than the known, however.  It’s why women finally leave abusive relationships, for example.  Sometimes it’s a personality style that loves the risk of the unknown and so then, fear or not, they run with it. 

Why does it seem more ‘practical ‘ to stay in a no growth /advancement position than to try something else?

[MEMc] Because we’re all afraid.  We also don’t see our potential and we don’t recognize what is possible in us.  As women, in particular, we have not been taught or encouraged to go for it…but have been taught to be ‘thankful’ for any small crumb from the big table.  That’s true in any industry but particularly in a male-dominated one like yours. 

When it is obvious that where you are at is all for show and has no substance; there is talk of integrity, growth and educational support, but actions negate the words, why is it hard to leave?

[MEMc] Fear.  Worry.  The hope that maybe something will get better (even when we know it won’t).  The nagging little voice that tells us we aren’t worthy of anything more.  The thought that we can ‘stick it out.’

Why are there so many people that don’t know how to apply what they say they have learned to what they do?

[MEMc] There’s a chasm between head knowledge and implementation.  There are also a lot of people who don’t know what they don’t know but scarier are the ones who THINK they know and they don’t know s__t.  It’s the disconnect that makes it impossible to be around people like this.

Health Insurance? I have to stay in Hell because it has health insurance? 

[MEMc] WAYYYYYY too many people are doing this.  I hear it from people nearly every day.  And they are miserable and admit that the only reason they are staying in their job is for the health insurance.  What kind of f- up situation is this?  I get, however, that we need health insurance and that we worry what will happen if we aren’t covered any longer – or can’t get our previous conditions covered.  Unfortunately, many are finding that even with their health insurance, they are getting denied for stuff.  And then they find that they stayed in an untenable position and still get kicked to the curb insurance-wise.  I don’t have an answer for you on this one…there are no guarantees even in your current situation.  And since the public option still seems to be a ways away….I don’t know what the best answer is.  It is not an unreasonable concern, and I understand that. 

Heavy stuff for a Wednesday, I know, but I’m ready to make a break for the unknown and need a good plan.

[MEMc] Bless you…and I wish I really had ‘answers’ – but I can at least listen/read and try to be encouraging.  You are not alone in this struggle.  So many of us are…and so many women with whom I interact daily.  

You are talented and smart and are clearly a survivor given your life experiences.  You can make it whatever you decide to do.  I believe that. 

As I mentioned above, this is a question that was sent in recently during the Life of E’s Email Extravaganza – if you’d like to be part of our group (and we would love for you to join!), view information on the Life of E’s here.

 It’s a must-read for all women, not just women in academia.  Order it today (and then get your friends to read it, too).  Wish I’d had it to read 25 years ago.  Let’s just say it would have paid for me to buy thousands and thousands of copies.