One day in 1918, in his quest to increase the efficiency of his team and discover better ways to get things done, Schwab (Charles M. Schwab, then the richest man in the world) arranged a meeting with a highly-respected productivity consultant named Ivy Lee. Lee was a successful businessman in his own right and is widely remembered as a pioneer in the field of public relations. As the story goes, Schwab brought Lee into his office and said, “Show me a way to get more things done.”
“Give me 15 minutes with each of your executives,” Lee replied.
“How much will it cost me,” Schwab asked.
“Nothing,” Lee said. “Unless it works. After three months, you can send me a check for whatever you feel it’s worth to you.”
The Ivy Lee Method
During his 15 minutes with each executive, Ivy Lee explained his simple daily routine for achieving peak productivity:
At the end of each workday, write down the six most important things you need to accomplish tomorrow. Do not write down more than six tasks.
Prioritize those six items in order of their true importance.
When you arrive tomorrow, concentrate only on the first task. Work until the first task is finished before moving on to the second task.
Approach the rest of your list in the same fashion. At the end of the day, move any unfinished items to a new list of six tasks for the following day.
Repeat this process every working day.
The strategy sounded simple, but Schwab and his executive team at Bethlehem Steel gave it a try. After three months, Schwab was so delighted with the progress his company had made that he called Lee into his office and wrote him a check for $25,000 (equivalent to now $400,000).
Timebox
Teamcal Ai V 1.6 — Timeboxing is here!
Now you can define goals in your calendar and have an uninterrupted focus time by Timeboxing. You can also define goals for your team and assign percentage weight weekly. Also on the TeamcalAI V.1.6
Check the TEDx video — An ER doctor on triaging your “Crazy Busy” life.
How do doctors in the emergency room stay calm and focused amidst the chaos? Drawing on years of experience, ER doctor Darria Long shares a straightforward framework to help you take back control and feel less overwhelmed when life starts to get “crazy busy.” View here, how you can be your best self even in the crazy hours.
Teamcal Ai — 5 steps WFH
When It Seems They Do Not Exist Anymore?
The never-ending struggle to find the perfect balance between professional and personal life seems to be getting crucial for mental and physical well-being. Here are 5 steps that would help to win this fight.
Accept the situation — it is high time to do it
Build a perfect work spot. And work only there!
Suit up!
Fake commute
Set your available working hours and protect them at all costs
Learn more in our article of the month
Future of Work
The work-from-home boom will lift productivity in the U.S. economy by 5%, mostly because of savings in commuting time, according to the new study. The findings suggest the rapid adoption of new technology amid the pandemic will offer lasting economic gains, helping to boost sluggish productivity that has long weighed on global. Check it out on the Bloomberg 70% of employees wish to continue some form of remote work, according to Gartner’s recent survey. Benefits and negatives of remote work in the article.
On a lighter note
Pro-tip for couples suddenly working from home together: Get yourselves an imaginary coworker to blame things on. In our apartment, Cheryl keeps leaving her dirty water cups all over the place and we really don’t know what to do about her. @mollytolsky
And I told a joke over a Zoom meeting… it wasn’t even remotely funny.
Get in touch
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On a lighter note