Productivity Cafe

Quick Move to Reduce Mail from Financial Firms

The guys who are sending you most of the credit card, loan, and insurance offers are getting your name from: Experian, Equifax, TransUnions & Innovis. These keep an eye on your financial activities in legal ways – they're the guys who write your credit report. They also rent your contact information to marketers who pack your mailbox with offers. You, however, have a one-stop way to halt the inflow.

Go to OptOutPresecreen.com and opt out of receiving this junk mail. This is the home page and the big blue button at the bottom of the page takes you to the opt-out action page. I recommend you do the permanent opt-out step. Warning: this requires you to print a form an get it into the mail – if you do this option do not stop, do not get distracted, and do stay on track until the envelope is addressed, stamped and in the mail. I don't get why it has to be via the mail when there is already an electronic process except the likelihood  that the form will never get in the mail and you will continue to get unrequested offers. I suspect there is a reason the 5-year opt-out form is online and the permanent is mail –in. That reason is that you're less likely to complete the process with multiple steps of the paper process. Don't let that happen to you!

Do this opt-out now and enjoy the freedom from handling the junk mail – and you'll save a tree per year!

 

Productivity & the Grave

Are you going to leave your family with a headache when you die? It's hard enough having to deal with the heartache related you dying so you've got to save them the other aches by getting your estate in order.  (Come on now, we're all going to die, let's face the fact bravely and be known for our courage and taking action). Disclosure: I have had my trust since 1997 and a will since a couple of years out of college so you are hearing from someone who does as she advises).

Part of being productive is following systems and having things in place. Nothing could be more applicable to estate planning (what happens to your stuff and money when you pass on) than systems and having things in place. This mostly helps others and really that's what most productivity solutions offer; a method for making your contribution.

In American society few families talk about money, or debt, or preparing for the future. Consequently, Americans have a shockingly high bankruptcy rate, enormous debt (credit card debt most horrifyingly), and angst surrounding money.  Money stress is #1 on most lists of stressors. If you want to hear horror stories that result from not managing things before you're in the grave, talk to your banker who has helped countless people try to straighten things out for those surviving family or friends who left no will or trust. You do have a local banker, don't you!?

Ok, so let's start with Step 1 – Collection. Before you do or say anything you've got to figure out what you have and where it is. Make a simple list in a notebook or on a spreadsheet, be guided by an estate organizer binder, or go high tech to use software like Quicken to get your records together. Here are things that need to be on that list for starters:

• House – where the deed is, where the mortgage document is filed
• Employer – who your boss & HR contact is
• Savings – how much is where
• Investments – what type are they? Where are they held?
• Secret money – whatever it is you're hiding, list it (the list is just for you)
• Heirloom pieces – what they are, where they are
• Valuable things – what they are, where they are
• Relevant contacts – financial institution contacts such as your banker, your broker, your fund manager, accountant, bookkeeper, insurance agent, lawyer with phone numbers!
• Insurance policies – purchased from whom, value, policy location
• Power of attorney, advanced healthcare directive, Living Will – where they are
• Will & trust – do you have them, where they are
• Funeral pre-arrangements if you have them
• List your immediate family members – spouse, partner, living elders, kids, grandkids, siblings.
• When did you serve in the Military?

Disclaimer: these are suggestions from a productivity perspective – consult with licensed professionals on the details and advice to rely on.

The next steps and upcoming posts are:

Step 2  – the conversation. It is paramount that you talk about your stuff with those you love and who will benefit from what you've accumulated. Click here for the Conversation - Part 1 Click here for the Conversation - Part 2  

Step 3 – The Resources (books, professionals) Where to learn more & who can help you.

Step 4  – Your Records – what paperwork you should have

Step 5  – Organization – where to store your records and how to keep them current

 

 

 

When an Employee Leaves – A Green Step Employers Should Seriously Consider

A former employee may receive hundreds of pieces of bulk mail for up to 5 years after leaving your company. This costs you and your organization whether you pay for a mail room, an employee to handle mail or recycling of the pieces received. A timely service is established to stop bulk mail being sent to your company. EcoLogical Mail Coalition works with marketing companies to curtail the flow of marketing mail for your former employees.

It's easy for you – you register your company and the names of former employees. Once. In less than 5 minutes. Then EcoLogical Mail goes to work and the flow of mail dwindles until it stops.

The cost… FREE! Click on FAQ in the bottom right of their home page to read how they can offer this service to you for zero dollars.

If you use EcoLogical Mail services the benefits are:

• You save time, and time is money, handling mail that is probably useless
• You save trees – better than recycling is preventing waste from starting
• You save frustration – don't you get enough mail as it is?
• You have an immediate ROI – invest a few minutes and start saving on the spot
• It's the easiest cost-reduction program you can start this year
• You join a long list of ecologically minded companies so you're in good company

Note: use this service when employees transfer to a new location or job as well as leave the company.

Speed Up Outlook Email Addressing for Corporate Users

If you work in a large corporate environment the corporate address book is enormous – thousands and perhaps tens of thousands contacts are listed in that address book. Thus, when you're searching for a particular name to dial from your blackberry, for example, the search can take so long it's frustrating. To shorten your search time, re-enter frequently used contact names into your Personal Contact List. Then, tell Outlook to search the address lists in the order of your Personal Contact List then the Corporate Contact List.

To assign which address book to use first follow these steps:

1. On the Outlook tool bar click on Tools.

6 Tips for Arriving On Time

Those of you who usually arrive late know who you are… the people you're inconveniencing also know who you are. So we'll save the point counterpoint discussion regarding being late for another article and offer ways to get your attractive face, magnetic personality, and vital intelligence to places on time.

First you need to firmly embrace what on time means. On time is to say you're in position and ready to contribute on the appointed clock time. Meetings that begin at 9:30 have you in place and done chatting by 9:25-28. Think of your commitments as European trains that leave so precisely on time that you could set your clock by them. Picture a meeting starting without you giving you that pit in the stomach feeling of you standing on the platform while the train pulls away. In other words, missing the train and beginning of meetings is not negotiable. You have to be there when it starts.

Practice exit strategies so you leave previous meetings or events far enough in advance to get where you have to go next early. Exit strategies include telling your co-workers when you must leave at the beginning of the meeting so they work to that deadline at the end of the meeting. It includes the whole set of interruption interceptions covered elsewhere here. Exit strategies include respectful lines that allow you to leave such as, "Thanks for the update, I have another meeting in 10 minutes and it's 8 minutes away so I have got to wrap this up now and get on my way. I look forward to our next conversation."

Ignore your email when you're passing your desk between meetings. Chances are you will want to write a quick reply, leave a brief voicemail response, or note a reminder on your action list. This attention to the email master (you're the slave) is a frequent obstacle to people getting places on time.

Do not set your watch ahead. Some people put their watch 10 minutes ahead as a way to fool themselves to being on time. In reality you know that you have built the '10 minute cushion' into your watch time and you consistently accommodate that reality. There is the additional complication of knowing what your watch says compared to those in public places or your counterpart's. Get real – set your watch on the time your computer has.

Use alarms in your calendar. Whether you're a PC or MAC user your calendar has an alarm function. When you set a meeting, include an alarm reminding you to get on your way to the meeting on time. If you work on a campus where you might have to go to another building, calculate travel, parking, and walking time when you schedule the meeting, add 5 minutes, and have your alarm ring that far in advance. Maria works on a campus and sometime she walks to the next building, 4 minutes away. Other times she has to get in the car and drive over a busy highway and sit through 6 stoplights to get to another building. She must plan 10 minute departure for the close building and 20 minutes for the distant building. Doing the planning in advance to set the alarm ensures she is free to work right up to departure time and she does the calculation once.

For you who are usually latecomers, visualize the possible surprise and probable appreciative recognition you'll receive for arriving on time (or 5 minutes early).

Plan a Progressive Dinner ~ Friday @ 5:00

A progressive dinner is a great reason to get your friends together and have some fun. It takes just 3 couples to get things started and could grow include your neighborhood, work buddies, or other subset of the people that you know.  The most basic progressive dinner starts at your house with appetizers and beverages. The next step is to one of your friend's homes for the main course. The final move is to the third friend's home for dessert and coffee.  It's easy and fun.

Enhancements you could make to this progressive dinner basic format are:

• Plan it farther in advance than this weekend or just be spontaneous and relaxed
• Include game playing at one of the stops – or make one stop a game stop unto itself (you'll probably want nibbles there) Twister would be a great way to make some room for the next course.
• Write the directions from one house to the next cryptically so the drivers/walkers have an adventure like a treasure hunt getting from place to place
• Cater the main course and relieve the host of cooking
• Have a theme for the dinner such as Southwestern Fare, Apple as an ingredient in every course, or Jamie Oliver recipes
• Add other courses: salad, soup, kid's favs

Other tips for a success progressive dinner:

• If you can involved people whose house you can walk between, all the better for convenience

 

 

A Neglected Key to High Energy

Energy is what gives us the fuel to create great results. Energy allows us to keep going when deadlines approach. Energy is what promotes us to have a magnetic attitude and gather great support from others. Conversely lacking energy causes us to move like we have lead shoes on. Fatigue dilutes undeniable personality traits to un-noticed uniformity. Exhaustion causes us to make mistakes, perform below par, and fail to impress.

What causes you to have low energy, lack of verve, and gripping fatigue?

Is it the frantic schedule at work with meetings back to back?
The mountainous pile of work?
The demands of the family?
The lack of sleep?

There are a few things that lead to a lack of energy and the neglected source for this article is a good night's sleep! Sure there are many reasons why you're not getting 7-7½  hours of sleep every night. You have to get up early to get the kids fed and out the door on time. You have to do laundry sometime. You must check your email one last time before going to bed. Or do you? John Stuart is worth staying up for – or is he?

Gathering Your Reference Items in Your Outlook Calendar

To bring together disparate contents for an appointment in one place you can insert items from other places in Outlook. This will allow you to have all relevant information in one place, gathered as you go. And, you'll avoid using the unwieldy search and find functions.

For example, you have a trip to Chicago scheduled on your calendar because that meeting was set a month ago. During the 30 days prior to your trip you receive an email about the flight details, a second email with the agenda for the meeting, and a third giving you biographies of the VIPs in the meeting. You can place all these relevant items in the appointment notes block as you see below.

Using Insert item will save you loads of time searching and organizing things in your Outlook calendar and email. Try it now while the idea is fresh.

 

Take these steps to insert the items:

Revise Until You Get It Right – Or Good Enough

Do you wish you had more hours in a day? At the end of the day do you look back and wonder why you were working so much but don't have much to show for it?

Give yourself one point if you typically do each of the following:

• Read and edit emails 3-4 times before hitting send
• Write an email, put it in the drafts folder, come back to it later to polish it, then send the email
• Compose a letter on your computer to 'get it right' then write it by hand on note paper
• Ask someone to read your reports before submitting them
• Ask more than 2 people, "What do you think?" when compiling an agenda for a meeting

If you scored three points or more, and even if you scored two points, you might be revising your work to make the highest quality output with an excessive investment of time and energy. There is a pretty clear line between getting things good enough and polished beyond usefulness. But, we don't often see it when we're the ones putting too much into creating our output. You might not consider yourself a perfectionist yet others receiving your work might.

Step back from your work and examine how much time you're investing in creating your output and see if the return on investment is very high. If it's not