Productivity Tip of the Day

Systemize Accountability

One way that you can ensure that you are productive is to be held accountable by someone else. The pressure and social anxiety that you might get from knowing someone is expecting you to get something done may drive you into action.

It is not my favorite way to get something done but it certainly can work.

You can do this in a gentle way, a more nurturing way and that is what I want to talk about today.

How can you ensure your accountability?

• I love standing meetings.
• Once a week,  you meet up with others and let them know what you want to accomplish for the week, you set your intentions.
• The next week you can follow up on how you did and report your next goals. Knowing that someone will want to hear about your progress can spur you into action.
• Instead of a standing meeting, you can have an accountability partner- someone to check in with on your progress. A lot of people have this for working out. When they get to the gym, they text their partner.
• You can also share your accountability with confidantes or mentors who can check in on your progress.

Communicate your goals and intentions with others to hold yourself accountable.

Prioritize and Pivot

If you have a to-do list on your phone and a to-do list on your computer and a project management software with your team, it can feel a little bit scattered if you're trying to keep up with all those lists.

You need to consolidate all of those lists into one place for yourself so you can see what is truly important and see everything in its place at a glance.

• This will help you persistently prioritize at any moment because what was important even two hours ago might not be important now.
• You need to complete the task with the most leverage for your success. Let's get to those tasks that matter right now instead of being stuck in busy work.
• The only way to get to the most important work is to put all your tasks together and then pivot toward what matters right now.
• I encourage you to consolidate all your lists so you can see everything in one place.
• You need to be able to prioritize all the time.
• Just because you made the plan doesn't mean you have to stick to the plan or execute it in the way you originally thought.

Track the Last Date Contacted

When we are keeping up with the relationships that matter most, you may not want to systemize and track the date you last contacted someone.

• Using a CRM may seem impersonal to building authentic relationships in your online communities and in-person networks.
• When we are building those relationships it will take a little more initiative and attention to keep those relationships growing, nurtured, and fulfilled.
• So easily we may forget about a relationship and let it slide to the wayside.
• All of a sudden that person is no longer a friend, but an acquaintance. It is no one's fault, but it happens.
• If it was a relationship that was very important to you, you might feel a bit guilty.
• Recognize that that fallout could have been prevented if you had a system to track the relationships that matter the most.
• When using a CRM, you don't have to track everyone's birthdays or pets or how many kids they have.
• I would like to encourage you to track the last date you contacted them in order to stay on top of that relationship.
• This way you can see when the distance has grown between now and the last date contacted. You can assess if you should reach out to them again.
• This doesn't have to be hard at all. I do this as part of my daily R.I.Z.E. (Reach Inbox Zero Everywhere). You can get fancy in your CRM and add automations about how often you'd like to contact this person.
• We don't want this to feel routine and cold, but it should help you manage each important relationship in your life to make sure it is nurtured.

If you track just one thing about the people that you contact, track the last date you contacted them.

We are wrapping up our series of tips on how to Write Click by Click Procedures.

If you feel that writing procedures are exhausting, you don't have to do this step. You can delegate this to a Virtual Assistant.

• You don't even need to have the procedures written beforehand.
• You can record a loom video of your procedure and have the Virtual Assistant go through the video and document the steps.
• Once they've documented the procedure, you can delegate it to them as they will already know what to do.
• This is a great way to start outsourcing, to start delegating, and take the work off of your plate.

Update As You Execute

I am going through a series of my Top Tips for executing procedures.

• Even if you know a procedure by heart or click by click, pull up that written procedure when you execute it.
• Skim it over and update as needed.
• This way small changes in the interface or anywhere else can be documented.
• You are automatically updating procedures with ease and without stress.
• This gives power to your team to update on the spot and avoids long review processes.

Document Click by Click Procedures

I am walking you through a series of my Top Tips for Writing Click by Click procedures and today is the meat of that tip.

Writing Click by Click Procedures requires you to write exhausting details on each step of your process. No detail is left off of the table when you are documenting these procedures so that anyone can follow them.

Get down to the nitty-gritty when writing these procedures. Include:

• Websites
• Log ins
• Screen shares
• Boxes to fill in
• People to contact
• What if scenarios

Getting very clear with the preciseness of this procedure will make sure that the outcome is successful.

Identify the Triggers

In this series, I am walking you through the Top Tips for Writing Click by Click procedures.

With anything we systemize, we need to know what starts the process. What happens first?

What is the Trigger that is going to instigate this process? Is it.....

• A time?
• A notification?
• Someone asking you to do something?

Once you know this, you can set up a procedure that is tied to this trigger and begin to systemize your workflow.

Every time this trigger comes up, you will be ready and reminded to execute this procedure.

Use Roles, Not Names in Documentation

This is a series of my top tips for Writing Click by Click Procedures.

• When writing procedures always use ROLES and not names.
• You can use this for your personal life, your professional life or just what you are doing.
• While people might change what they do or turnover might happen, those roles won't change and your procedures will remain accurate.
• Even if you are doing all the roles yourself at the moment, you are setting yourself up for success by documenting these procedures using roles making it so much easier to delegate later down the road.

Make Procedures Team Accessible

This is a series of Systemized Task Tips for writing incredible Click by Click procedures to help you get more done in your life and also help you to delegate easier and more conveniently.

• By Team Accessible, I mean it is not just you and your teammate who has access but everyone on your team has access.
• So when someone is on vacation or doesn't have the bandwidth, someone else can step in and make sure the work gets done.
• It is so important to be prepared because you never know what will happen.
• Make it easy for others to step in and complete the task.
• This way every thing that needs to get done will get done.
• Share things on a cloud folder or a team database.
• Set your team up for success.

Let Go of FOMO

FOMO is the WORST fear for your productivity.

1. FOMO is the Fear Of Missing Out and can greatly affect your productivity.

2. On a Micro-level think of the Morning Routine...

• So many things you Could and Should do during this morning's time.
• There is a FOMO about what you Could include in this time.
• Determine what matters to your life during this time to move the needle.
• Intentional Time Blocking can help you plan for this time.
• I've read the 5 AM Club by Robin Sharma, while his plan is great, it doesn't work for me.

3. You don't have to follow the exact same path as successful people

• You can go on your own path and still be successful.
• Trust yourself and get to know what you need.
• Decide Your Intentions.

4. Tackle your Fears of Missing Out and Determine your Shoulds- what is important to you?

-You have the control you need over your life.

Use a Text Expander

A text expander is a tool that might already be in your computer if you have a Mac or you can install software in your PC.

1. Text expanders allow you to use different key strokes and have it return as something else such a link, an often used website or response, saving you time typing longer key strokes.

2. While you might think that you are only saving a few seconds, remember that those seconds add up.

3. I am constantly being asked to show my YouTube account or Twitter account and with just a few key strokes, I can pull those up.

4. I can populate entire emails this way, I do this when sending out Zoom recordings.

I hope you try text expanders, they are a great tool to be more productive.

Pin Important Browser Tabs

Instead of crowding your browser with numerous open tabs, pin the most important ones that you access more than once a day for easy reference.

Tabs you may want to pin include:

• OneTab
• Google Drive, Dropbox, or other cloud file storage
• CRM, if your client has one already
• Google Calendar
• Gmail
• Chat tool (Convo, Slack, etc.)
• Dashboard (on Notion, Trello, ClickUp, etc.)

I often pin 1K work that I am doing. If you are curious about 1K work and want to learn more, check out the Rad Read's 10K Institute. This is where I learned all about assigning value to my tasks.

For more productivity tips, check out Workflow Wonder and subscribe to this YouTube channel, Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ.

Install Nifty Browser Extensions

There are many nifty browser extensions you can use to add more ease into your workday.

I use Google Chrome but many of these extensions can be used with any browser.

One Tab

• Organize all your tabs into groups.

ColorPick Eyedropper

• Click anywhere to get the color hex code information.
• Useful for matching brand colors.

Loom

• Record your screen for easy sharing or presentation making.

Last Pass

• Keep all your passwords safe.
• Share your passwords securely.

Notion

• Create and capture notes, databases and tasks.

Tube Buddy

• Optimize and track your YouTube videos.

Google Drive

• Capture landing pages and useful web articles, save them directly to your drive.

Honey

• Saves you money by tracking and applying coupon codes.

Facebook Pixel Helper

• Tracks Facebook traffic for Facebook ads.

Tag Assistant Legacy

• Tracks Google traffic for your web pages.

Be Ready to Capture Your Screen

1. When you are working with others, you'll want to be able to share your screen. This is an essential skill for today's work environment.

I recommend using a Snagit or Loom extension.

2. Snagit is great tool for a capturing a screen shot or a longer scrolling section of a website.

It's also useful for capturing short videos. For example, when something isn't working you can take a quick video and send it to IT.

3. Loom is a fantastic video tool for showing what you're working on, explaining how to do something or sharing a presentation.

With a just a few clicks, you can record a video and immediately have a link to share in a chat or email.  People can comment right there on your video or react with an emoji. You can edit and trim the video as needed.

Manage your Tabs with One-Tab

Use One-Tab to help manage and organize all your browser tabs. It works great for Google Chrome as well as many other browsers.

Once you have downloaded the extension, click on the blue funnel symbol to capture all the open tabs.

You can name, lock and reorganize each group of tabs as needed. This system works great when you need to continue a project or research from where you left off.

Set up Scheduling Software

Gone are the days of endless email chains back and forth trying to set up a meeting.

1. Use a scheduling software, such as Calendly, Acuity Scheduling and Schedule Once, to easily set up meetings with clients and colleagues.

2. The software can help set the length of the meeting as well as work across time zones.

3. If you are working with clients, scheduling software can help you collect money for coaching calls or appointments as part of the software.

4. Scheduling software can sync with your actual calendar to find times for meetings and make you more aware of your current commitments.

For more productivity tips, check out Workflow Wonder and subscribe to this YouTube channel, Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ.

Always store files in the cloud.

1. It's a no-brainer these days to always store files in the cloud to avoid losing those files.

2. Storing files in the cloud allows you to move seamlessly between devices without needing to download and transfer files.

3. There is a great variety of affordable cloud storage available. Try Dropbox, Google Drive or Box.

4. If you tried cloud storage a few years ago and didn't like, try it again. With new compatibility enhancements, these products are easier to use than ever before.

For more productivity tips, check out Workflow Wonder and subscribe to this YouTube channel, Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ.

Build a Dashboard

1. Dashboards allow you to see what you need to focus on while ignoring the rest. If it isn't on your dashboard, it must not be a priority. When using a Dashboard, everything you need for the day is at your fingertips.

Use a Password Manager

It is surprising that people still do not use a password manager, despite the hundreds of logins we use on a daily basis.

1. Using the same password for multiple accounts is a huge security risk.

2. Password managers allow you to use complicated passwords, minimizing your security risk, because you don't have to remember these complicated passwords.

You only need to remember the password for your password manager.

3. Password managers like LastPass allow you to share your log in with others without actually sharing your password.

This is great when working with others, especially freelancers, where you may only be working with them for a few hours or a few days.

Password managers allow you to revoke access to the password as soon as you're done working with someone to give yourself an extra level of security.

4. Password managers make you more productive as they save you time when logging in.

Be proactive and start using a password manager today!

For more productivity tips, check out Workflow Wonder and subscribe to this YouTube channel, Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ.

Set Browser Boundaries

Use different browser boundaries in your personal and professional life.

Do this by using different browsers such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox for each area of your life.

Google Chrome works great for browser boundaries (my personal favorite).

It allows you to sign in with different accounts (work email, personal email) and remembers your unique bookmarks, tabs, and settings for each.

By using browser boundaries, you won't cross contaminate passwords by mixing your personal and professional lives together. avoiding the unnecessary headaches this may cause.

Browser boundaries make it easy to eliminate distractions and focus on your work.

Onboarding Estimate = ~10 hours

You can offer this for free as part of your offer, or do it "on the clock."

Send your client Onboarding Progress Updates

1. I will typically login to "your office" (aka my browser for you) at least once a day, Monday through Friday, to at least check [INSERT CHAT TOOL]. Thus, you should expect a response time of 24 business hours to anything you say in the chat. If, however, you have a true emergency at any time, you may call or text my emergency line: [INSERT PERSONAL PHONE NUMBER]. No need to apologize if this does happen; it's understandable.

2. I typically invoice all my clients around the 23rd of the month for a monthly retainer that they pay ahead of time. I'm going to go ahead and do that for you as well so I can get you into my system, but since [MONTH] is a trial month, the due date will be the end of [MONTH], so you don't have to pay me right away.

3. All of this onboarding work and set-up is complimentary and allows me to be ready (and have complete peace of mind) to go on day 1 -- no dilly dally. The [INSERT #] hours will start on [DATE]. I'll request to schedule an "off the clock" meeting with you to discuss our trial at the end of my [INSERT #] hours of work.

4. You are welcome to meet with me on Zoom anytime. You can send me your scheduler to choose from, or just schedule on my calendar specifically for private clients: [SCHEDULER LINK]

If you want to chat before [DATE], I'll consider it an onboarding conversation off-the-clock. If you schedule something on or after [DATE], it will be considered on-the-clock.

5. Do you have any lingering questions for me before we get started?

Set your availability and get into the habits and routines of working at that time so it isn't a shock to your system when you do get a client and you can adjust as you need to know what you can guarantee or offer prospective clients.

Spend the time:

• Establishing an online presence
• Searching for opportunities
• Applying / proposing to opportunities — include video
• Engaging your network and asking for referrals
• Increasing your skills

Establish an online presence using a platform like:

• LinkedIn Profile
• Website
• Instagram (if social media marketing is something you offer)

Be clear on what you offer. And what you DON'T offer.  

Create a Master User Manual with all your personal, professional, VA, and entrepreneur preferences and then cater it to your client — like a resume.

Let's take a look at my own user manual for some examples on what you can include.

Learn the fundamental philosophy and foundation of effective workflows, time and task management, and systemizing FROM SCRATCH, so that you can walk away with understanding of what works and how it works.

Then, when you go to use fancy tools like Asana, Trello, ClickUp, BaseCamp, etc. with their fancy automations and dashboards, etc., you KNOW how to engage and what the most important elements are.

This knowledge is going to be what makes you super flexible and invaluable to your clients because it won't matter what tool you use. New tools are coming out everyday, and they're amazing, and they have fancy AI or complex algorithms built in.

Before we get into the bots that send us agendas, dashboards that show us everything at a glance, how to use GANTT charts and task dependabilities, we need to understand the basic building blocks so no matter what new tool shows up, we can adapt and properly engage with it without wasting our time or our clients' time.

It's easy to get lost in learning / PLAYING with a new tool where you get a false sense that you're being productive form the neat organization of information.

But the real value is in the ENGAGEMENT and ACTION that you take to deliver results.

That is what will make you a super assistant, not just "making things pretty."

Why do we make life seem so hard?

Why do something over and over and over again when we live in a world with such amazing technology and automation capabilities?

I'm not talking about crazy futuristic AI technology.

I'm talking about the basics: lists, procedures, templates, and simple macros.

Have you ever scrambled to pack for a trip? No packing list... just walking about your home, grabbing what you think you'll need?

How did that feel? Did it feel easy, or did you get overwhelmed at any point? 

Now, have you ever packed for a trip with a plan? Maybe there was a clear itinerary or even a packing list.

How did that feel? Easier, maybe?

Here's a news flash: It's okay to do things the easy way.

It's not cheating to follow a checklist, or use a template, or have a computer do the work for you.

Lists can be easy reference, procedures can help you do the same thing over again without missing any details, and templates can save you SO MUCH TIME! 

Don't reinvent the wheel.

And, for goodness sake, use text expanders as much as possible. You don't need to type out your bio, your address, or that ridiculously long URL every time. 

There are free and paid text expanders for your device... find one and use it! When you type a few keystrokes, you can pull out full sentences or even paragraphs. It's amazing!

Sometimes you'll feel unproductive simply because your workload seems hard... so find ways to make it easy.

It's okay. You're allowed. An easy life is way more fun.

Learning how to proactively systemize so that you can truly FLOW with your work is a key element of The Ultimate Productivity Workflow. 

It's so important to take ownership over your workload so you can make magic happen with your productivity.

But, owning your workload isn't enough these days, is it?

We often work with other people.

And their workload affects your workflow.

You could be humming along on a project, then hit a roadblock where you have to wait for someone else.

Isn't that annoying?

It feels like you don't have any control over it, right?

You can't control someone else's productivity.

...or can you?!

At the very least, you can fiercely follow-up.

You probably don't love following up, but it's absolutely crucial to your workflow.

And you're doing everyone a favor.

When you follow-up, you're obviously helping yourself so that your workflow doesn't get interrupted.

But, you're also helping the other person. They may need a reminder. They may not have The Ultimate Productivity Workflow to guide them along in their workload. (You can always invite them to learn about it though! 😉*)*

Pretending that other people will have their shit together is a joke.

It's a hope and a prayer... and often, a disappointment.

You're going to need a system in place to make sure you don't get screwed over by someone else's lack of productivity.

Take control of your goals by fiercely following up on your team, your clients, your boss, and even your family.

This is just one key part of The Ultimate Productivity Workflow and you can learn about the whole process.

Give yourself the gift of productivity, by learning all about how to manage your workload.

Today is my 32nd birthday! Yay! 🎉

To celebrate, here are 32 tips.

Marian Knopp hosted the Season 3 finale episode of Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ LIVE on YouTube.  

Learn more about how and why you should be in charge of your life in today's episode. 

Learn how and why turning off notifications is so key to productivity. 

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Turn off nudges

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use a transcript generator

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Provide context when delegating tasks

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use recurrences in your calendar

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Layer time blocks as needed

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Store files on the cloud

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use a screen capture tool

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use OneTab for quick access bookmarks

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Be aware of busy/free time

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use due dates

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Anticipate what you will need to get done

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Use read later apps

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Filter to the archive

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Pin your ASAP Inboxes

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Limit your calendar to 15-minute increments

Productivity Tip of the DayⓇ: Create checklists for routine reviews