Do you believe it when the automated call router says, “Please listen carefully as our menu has changed,” in their friendly operator voice? I find myself drifting into a low attention state. And that is not productive.

Those of you recording those bland messages, try a more productive greeting. Here are some ideas:

1. Get right to the menu… “For customer service, press 1. . .”
2. Initiate with listener benefit.. “Listen carefully so you get the right assistance as quickly as possible… For technical support, press 1″

Please step back from your standard operating procedure for answering the phone and be sure it is up-to-date and relevant to your callers.

October 24 is Take Back Your Time Day. Take Back Your Time Day is a movement toward social change. The sponsors offer ideas so passionate and ground-breakting  that it made even me take a step back and second look. That’s a good thing. Sometime we have to step way out of our comfort zone to actually move to even a slightly new perspective. Take a look at some of their posters to shake up your thinking about time, free time, and non-work time.

What will you be doing with your time this weekend?

This initiative is promoted by The Simplicity Forum.

What is “The Bling Thing”?  Simply this – “bling” refers to that little sound that most e-mail programs make when a new message is received.  And “the bling thing” is the almost comical and highly predictable response many professionals have when they hear that “little bling sound” – they immediately drop what they are doing, give up their focus, and check their new e-mail message.

A recent study found that 25% of office professionals are checking their e-mail 20 or more times per day. That frequency can be one of the biggest productivity destroyers for a business professional.

A recent study at the University of London’s Institute of Psychiatry found those constantly checking e-mail were suffering tangible 10-point hits to their short-term I.Q.!  That’s like missing an entire night’s sleep. (Source:  Yoga Journal, ABC News)  If you feel like you are in a fog and are having a hard time focusing, perhaps it is because you are checking your e-mail too much.

I recommend you turn off sound notifications for new e-mails received.  Second, if that little Microsoft Virtual Assistant figure pops up to let you know a new message came in, right click on that little guy and select, “Do not notify me in this situation.”  Third, go into your e-mail’s Options tab, go into Mail Setup, and click on Send/Receive.  Then, change your “Auto Send/Receive” settings to something more than 5 or 10 minutes (try 90 minutes for a huge productivity gain) –

Try it for a while and comment here with how it goes.  Good luck taming that “Bling Thing”!

Guest post by: Randy Dean a popular speaker and trainer on time and e-mail management. http://www.randalldean.com

Drake was a little irritated with my suggestions to help him claim some time for personal activities. He resisted my ideas by justifying why he does what he does – even though what he does wastes a meaningful amount of time. “I’m a smart guy,” he says.
My reply, “All of my clients are smart – and in many cases brilliant. And, they’re not experts at productivity and neither are you.” This was a little like an athlete expecting to be world-class at golf, billiards, and hockey. Impossible.
You or Drake being great at one thing doesn’t mean you will be great at another. Since you’re reading this blog on productivity I will project that you’re not advice adverse. Nonetheless I want to urge you to stop for a few minutes and examine what tips & suggestions you’ve tossed out or read right over because it doesn’t fit you. Take a second look. Try one thing before you write it off. Try another. Be open.

Some of the folks that backtrack and reconsider suggestions previous rejected have said things like
• Wow, that was easy.
• I waited long enough to try this. It’s so useful I’m glad I didn’t wait longer.
• Hey, I’m getting good at this. I’m going after your job soon!
For you smart people out there – leverage productivity coaching and implement then practice. You’ll soon have another hour per day for yourself!