Category Archives: Administrative Support

Apr23

5 Things you can do in the Evening for more Productive Days

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5 Things you can do in the Evening for more Productive Days

Does this happen to you? You’re off to bed, pajamas on, face washed, teeth brushed, ready to get some much-needed shuteye. You’re thinking “well, today wasn’t so bad. I forgot a couple of things but I promise tomorrow I’ll do better!” The morning after, the 3rd alarm rings, signaling that you are now late because you hit the snooze button twice. You skip breakfast, grab some coffee at the store and head off to work looking decent but not really fabulous. Your day now spirals into a game of catch up. Then again, you’re off to bed promising to do better tomorrow.

Here’s the secret: good days start the night before. So if you want to have a productive day being less stressed and less frazzled, then you should prep the night before. Start creating your productive tomorrow, today.

Here are some tips to get you started:
1. Get your things ready to go – make a list of all the things you need for your day and get them ready during the evening before. Make cold brew coffee that’s ready to pour into your favorite coffee tumbler. Get your gym bag ready if you plan on squeezing in a workout the next day. Pack your office bag. Ladies have different bags for different outfits so invest in a bag organizer that you can just transfer. Pick your work clothes out so that you don’t have to waste time rummaging through your closet in the morning.

2. The 5-minute rule – no it’s not about food. The 5-minute rule is about giving yourself 5 minutes to pick up things and put them back where they belong. This goes for shirts, keys, wallets, bowls, cups, towels, and trash..and whole host of other things. A quick run through the house to tidy up makes it easier for tomorrow.

3. Check your schedule – quickly check what your agenda for tomorrow is. What are you doing? When are you doing it? Who are you with? Prepare accordingly.

4. To-Do list – make a prioritized to-do list. Extract your 3 top priorities (try to keep it at 3, otherwise you will feel overwhelmed) and put them at the very top of the list. Everything else can be moved around except for our top 3. Keep your list short and focused.

5. Decompress – at the end of the day, decompress. Try not to think about work, the news, other worries, or the state of affairs of the nation before you go to bed. Turn off your tech 3 hours before going to bed (or whatever is doable). Just turn it off already. The blue light from the screens disturbs your sleep patterns. Once you get off the screen, think about what you want to achieve for the next day to help you get into a productive mindset. You can also use that time to give thanks for all that you are grateful for.

How about you. What are your evening wind down rituals to help you get ready for a productive day? Share them with us in the comments. Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. The Help

Apr15

What does your self care routine look like?

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What does your self care routine look like?

If you’ve been following us on this blog, you know by now that the secret to being a productivity powerhouse is investing in self care. You can read about it here: What is the Secret to Becoming More Productive? It’s Not What You Think. In that article, I mention that self care is more than just going to the spa or doing a face mask. The reality is that, self care looks different for everybody. Your version of self care would definitely be a lot different from mine. Mine would involve a lot of food and pet kisses, but I digress…

I have a box in my closet that holds “self-care” things. I take it out whenever I need a breather or whenever I need to take my mind off things that worry most adults (bills, work, relationships, health, etc.) Inside this box is a collection of diverse miscellaneous knick knacks that help me decompress: a coloring book, some pens, a compass (for making mandalas), old CDs, copies of my favourite cartoons and comedy shows, a calligraphy set…you get the idea. I don’t take away items in that box, I only add. All of these items are things that help me nurture my personal well-being.

What items would help you celebrate ME time? Out of ideas? Here are a few to get you started.

Physical
A jar or tube of face scrub – buy one of those yummy smelling one. If you’re a dude, the ones with coffee are very popular, and gives you the added bonus of smelling nice. Exfoliation is one of the self care practices that gets forgotten if it isn’t automatically incorporated in your skin care routine.
Face masks – same thing for face masks. This practice only get remembered when you finally find the time to decompress or when you feel you need to relax. So might as well get those that have skin improving benefits.
A jump rope – if you’re into fitness, you might already have exercise equipment at home Having this in your self care box will remind you that exercise is also, if not, THE biggest self care ritual there is.

Mental
Drawing or coloring materials – doing something creative is one of the self care rituals that not only improves your mental clarity, but also improves your cognitive functions by exercising your mental muscles. And it isn’t even hard, back breaking work.
Puzzle books – These are probably one of the best ways to improve your cognitive skills over all. Puzzles help exercise your logical faculties, without you having to feel pressured, tired, or burned out (very unlike solving problems at work).

Emotional
Pet treats or toys – these are things that will remind you to play with your pets or just go out for a walk with them.
Books – keep hardcover copies of the ones that resonate most with you, all the rest you can keep as e-books (or not, but if you’re doing Marie Kondo…)

Spiritual
Candles – light a beautiful beeswax candle in a scent you like and send out light and healing to yourself or those who need it.
Crystals and shells – if you’re into that sort of thing.

So here’s a question, if you were to put together a self-care box, what would be inside? Share them with us in the comments. Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. The Help

Apr2

Note Taking: A Skill that could Get you Ahead of the Pack

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Note Taking: A Skill that could Get you Ahead of the Pack

In last week’s article, This is why you spend so much time looking for missing things, I mentioned an interesting study that shows why taking down notes by pen and paper is far superior for memory retention than using laptops. The premise is that, the act of writing down information helps people remember the information better.

People assume that note taking comes naturally and that we all write down the important stuff when we take down notes. But not all notes are created equal. Ever had a moment in an exam where you try to shuffle through your memory for an answer but then give up and say “this wasn’t in my notes!” Those moment come up a lot of times. It doesn’t matter if you’re in junior high, uni, grad school, or even at work – “this wasn’t in my notes” moments come up often and to embarrassing results.

No one teaches note taking when you’re suppose to learn the skill. When you start school, no one expects you to take notes. They hand out books for that. When you move up to college or grad school, teachers assume you already have the skill of note taking down pat. No one expects you to copy what’s written on the board or to transcribe the lecture word for word. They hand out syllabi for that. When you’re already working, bosses and colleagues assume that the sales presentation is available in digital form somewhere, so no one is expected to take notes. They hand out presentation deck for that.

So what use is note taking anyway?
Easy. Notes help you retain information more quickly. Let’s go back to that sales presentation example. If you were in that meeting and you know that the information is readily available as a slide deck, how much of it do you really retain. If we both were completely honest, I’d say none! Ever wonder why? Because you weren’t paying attention the first time.

Note taking forces you to pay attention and sift through the noise to capture only the important things – things that are relevant to you. This is a skill that come in handy and could set you apart from the rest, career wise. If you are able to wade through the clutter and retain important information, you’d be an asset to your team and a very valuable resource for your boss.

What makes it good?
There’s no need to write down everything. You should focus on two things, capturing what is new to you and what is relevant. Pay more attention to things like dates, names, main points, and definitions. It would be best if you can summarize meetings or write down your own questions. This will allow for maximum info retention. Practise this every time you’re in a meeting. Write down your own summary or your own questions. It will exercise your memory and you’ll come across as someone who is interested and invested.

Note taking seems simple but is actually a great career skill to have. What other seemingly mundane skills do you think are good career skills to have? Share them with us! Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. The Help

Mar18

Why you should hold company meetings around meals

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Why you should hold company meetings around meals

Mandatory work meetings are annoying for everyone involved – the organizer, the presenter, and the attendees. Nobody wants to sit through an hour long meeting that should’ve been just a very well written email. In fact, meetings are the biggest time wasters in an office setting. A few years back, emails were the biggest time wasters at work. Sending and replying to emails takes the top spot of biggest time waster at 57%. But if you factor in the amount of time spent on preparing for, attending, and extending the meetings, that takes up a much larger chunk of time compared to reading, writing, and replying to emails.

Don’t get me wrong, meetings are an important part of work life if done correctly. However, some meetings are unnecessary, too long, or too inclusive. Seeing that the average employee attends 62 meetings in a month, with half of those being considered as time wasted by surveyed employees – that would translate to a lot of wasted time…and apparently, money. Unproductive meetings cost US big businesses $37 Billion.

So how do you get your employees interested in attending meetings without having them feel that it is just a whole lot of wasted time? You introduce food! This is a great way to turn boring meetings into an activity that employees actually look forward to, again.

Healthy food for a huge productivity boost
It is a know fact that eating healthy foods boost productivity. Scheduling your meetings around a nutritious and well balanced meal would boost overall productivity around the office. It doesn’t have to be around lunch. A quick snack with a healthy salad or sandwiches, or even an excellent cup of coffee, instead of doughnuts or cake, would be ideal.

The team that eats together, works well together
Think of all the dinners spent around the family table, or the meals spent with friends, or the dinner spent connecting with a date – whatever the circumstance is – one thing holds true. Food connects people. Enjoying a meal with teammates and coworkers offers the opportunity to get to know each other better. I fosters a great atmosphere and encourages food feelings. Meetings with food helps foster a more positive workplace.

Food shows appreciation
Food is a great motivator. If meeting attendance is low, the promise of GOOD food will always drive attendance up. Not only does food serve to entice attendance, it also serves as a token of appreciation for a job well done. People want to know that they are valued for what they bring to the company They will appreciate the idea that their employer is willing to invest in them, too.

As mentioned earlier, team meetings don’t have to be centered around a full on buffet lunch. It could be small coffee breaks with artisanal bread and spreads. It could be sales reports with a healthy salad bar. It could be a daily huddle with berry smoothies. If it could boost productivity and camaraderie, isn’t it worth a try? Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. The Help

Mar11

Are you anywhere near accomplishing your goals?

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Are you anywhere near accomplishing your goals?

The first quarter of the year is almost over – a few more days and it’s on to Q2. I’m sure we’ve all made goals that are “NOT new year’s resolutions” at the beginning of the year. I know that you also promised yourself that you won’t be making those, just goals and guidelines to how you want the rest of your year to go.

But time goes by so quickly. Just one supermoon and one mercury retrograde ago, it was the beginning of the year. Now, a quarter has gone by. It’s time we re-evaluate where we are with the goals we set for ourselves at the beginning of the year.

How close are you to checking off, or even starting on your personal goals? Maybe some of you made quick work out of them. Maybe some of you have crossed off a few and have added more. Maybe some of you have yet to start. Here’s a guideline for your guidelines, to help you accomplish those big dreams.

Make it SMARTER:
You all know that SMART goals mean:
● S – specific
● M – measurable
● A – achievable
● R – relevant
● T – time bound

Let’s just add:
● E – evaluative
● R – revisable
Evaluative means you can consider and reconsider your goals. Revisable means they are flexible enough to re-strategize but firm enough to hold you to them.

Write them down:
Remember those beautiful notebooks you got from the brick and mortar bookshop? Use them! We retain more information if we write them down. Also, it gives me great satisfaction to cross things off of lists. Imagine if it were a bg goal you crossed off your list, how happy would you be?

Break it down:
I can’t stress this enough. Break your goals down into more manageable steps and concrete action plans. Otherwise, if you assign a goal as vague as…lose weight – then you’re done if you lose a pound and won’t try anymore. So maybe you can say, my goals is to lose 10 lbs. Then you go on to break it down into “lose a pound per week”. From there you can create a plan of action per week to help you lose that 1 pound.

Hold yourself accountable:
Some people like to broadcast their plans so that other people can check in with them and help get them back on track. For example, you can get a workout buddy. Some people work on their goals silently and surprise others with results. Whichever side of the track you’re on – have a mechanism for holding yourself accountable.

Develop systems, habits, and strategies:
I am an advocate of using technology to make goal setting and goal achieving easier. Use trackers, productivity apps, calendars, notepads, or any system that will make it easier for you to reach your goals.

Reward yourself:
Have cake. Eat it too. Celebrate your wins!

Got any tips for us on reaching your goals? Hare them with us in the comments. Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. The Help