Books mentioned in the book:

 

Links shared in the book:

1. Know your goals & priorities

For more about goal setting, see Brian Tracy’s and Wanderlust Worker’s articles.

2. Know your key result areas at work (why you were hired)

These are your Key Result Areas (KRAs).

4. Apply the 80/20 rule

Pareto’s principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, says that 20% of our efforts result in 80% of our production.

 

8. Do what you enjoy and are talented at

Check out To Be Successful, Do What You Do Best.

 

9. Create a time map

For more information check out this article on Lifehacker or the book Time Management From the Inside Out.

 

10. Plan your month

Read more about planning.

 

11. Plan your week

Read more about planning.

 

12. Plan your day

Read more about planning.

 

13. Calendar your list

Check out Millionaires Don’t Use To-Do Lists (They Use This Instead).

 

14. Schedule blocks of uninterrupted time

Check out Time Blocking — The Secret Weapon For Better Focus and  Get What Matters Done by Scheduling Time Blocks.

 

18. Delegate tasks

Learn more about delegating tasks.

 

24. Use the ABCDE method for your task list

Brian Tracy recommends using the ABCDE Method to manage your task list.

 

26. Group, bulk, & batch similar tasks

Check out How Batch Processing Made Me 10 Times More Productive.

 

27. Focus on one task at a time

Check out 12 Reasons to Stop Multitasking Now!

 

28. Focus on one task until it’s complete

Check out A Case for Singletasking: The One-Task-At-a-Time Method.

 

29. Use the “Courtright Method”

In his podcast, Ken Courtright shared his method of managing his tasks.

 

30. “Don’t get good, get done”

Ken Courtright says this statement frequently in his podcasts.

 

32. Procrastinate on the right tasks

Check out Why Procrastination Doesn’t Need A Cure–And Might Even Make You More Productive.

 

33. Set self-imposed deadlines

Parkinson’s law says that work expands to fill the time allowed it.

 

35. Stop idle-chat visitors

Here are some other strategies to get the idle-chat visitors to move on.

 

37. Stop or schedule “got a minute” meetings

Check out Time Management And Got A Minute Thieves.

 

38. Have set email and phone time

Check out Get More Done by Checking Your Email Only Twice a Day.

 

39. Turn off notifications

Check out Why You Should Turn OFF Your Notifications.

 

40. Use blocking apps

Some apps include:

 

41. Plan for interruptions

Check out Plan for Interruptions to Minimize Their Impact.

 

43. Listen to music

Studies have shown that music can help lift our mood, which increases our productivity. It can also help block out distractions in a noisy environment.

…check out this article on Help Scout.  You may also find these articles on Psychology Today and The New York Times interesting.

 

45. Follow the “touch it once” rule

Check out Simplify Your Life with the Touch-It-Once Rule.

 

50. Theme your days

This is how Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter, themes his days.

 

51. Start your work hours by working

Check out What Successful People Do With The First Hour Of Their Work Day.

 

52. Be organized

Check out 10 Great Reasons You Should Be Organized.

 

55. Surround yourself with productive people

Spend time with people who are productive.

 

57. Use the Pomodoro Technique

With the Pomodoro Technique, you work in focused sprints with breaks in-between.

 

59. Learn to say “no”

Check out How People Pleasers Can Learn to Say “No” More Often.

 

61. Set buffer days

Listen to or read Ken Courtright’s insight on buffer days.

 

64. Use Pocket to read it later

Instead of interrupting the task you are working on, use an app like Pocket to save it for later.

 

65. Create a “stop doing” list

Jim Collins, author of Good to Great (among other books), suggests creating a stop doing list.

 

66. Always be learning and growing

A survey from 2003 said that 1/3 of high school graduates and 42% of college graduates did not read another book after graduating.

Have you ever heard of Peter’s Principle?

Remember, the average CEO reads at least 1 book a week.

 

67. Know (and fix) your bottlenecks and constraints

Find out whatever it is and fix it. For more information about the theory of constraints, see Eliyahu Goldratt’s book The Goal.

 

68. Be a selective reader

To learn more about how to be an effective and selective reader, check out Triple Your Reading Speed or 10 Days to Faster Reading.

 

72. Automate what you can

Is there a way you can implement Zapier?

Learn how to do macros or actions in Word, Excel, and Photoshop.

 

73. Avoid toxic, negative, and energy draining people

Reads Lifehack’s 10 reasons why you should avoid negative people.

 

74. Develop a sense of urgency

Brian Tracy in Eat That Frog! suggests that you develop a sense of urgency in your work.

 

75. Carry a notebook with you (or use an app)

Keep a notebook with you to record tasks, ideas, and other notes as they come to you.

 

76. Use the Getting Things Done methodology

To learn more, read a detailed summary of the Getting Things Done methodology or buy the book.

 

79. Use the salami method (just do one small piece)

Brian Tracy in Eat That Frog! suggests using the salami method.

 

83. Avoid having unneeded meetings

In fact, Mark Cuban says he doesn’t do meetings unless he is picking up a check.

 

85. Have a “no meeting” day

See what other companies are already doing this.

 

92. Have standing meetings

The Journal of Applied Psychology reported that “sit-down meetings were 34% longer than stand-up meetings, but they produced no better decisions than stand-up meetings”.

 

93. Have daily huddles (even with your family)

Ken Courtright says that in their meetings each person mentions what they are working on…

 

95. Control and organize your email

For more information about inbox zero, read Entrepreneur’s article here.

 

96. Keep emails short and sweet

In fact, if it’s long, there is a good chance it won’t even be read.

 

98. Use acronyms and instructions in the subject line

Here are some other acronyms you can use.

 

99. Don’t CC or BC unless necessary

Here are some other suggestions related to this topic.

 

100. Unsubscribe from newsletters you don’t read

You can also use a service like Unroll.me.

 

101. Exercise in the morning

One great way to have a boost in productivity is to exercise in the morning (or, if you can’t, just exercise sometime regularly).

To learn more about the benefits of exercise, check out this article.

 

102. Get enough sleep and rest

Most people need between 7-9 hours of sleep.

It can be tempting to work long on a project, but that’s not effective. We make more mistakes and are less productive.

In fact, working late and skipping sleep can harm the brain.

 

103. Eat healthy

Check out these articles by Harvard Health Publishing and Everyday Health.

 

104. Know your energy peaks and lows

For more information, check out The Ideal Work Schedule, as Determined by Circadian Rhythms.

 

105. Know your energy boosters

Read 5 Simple Mental Exercises That Will Boost Your Brainpower and  28 Science-Backed Ways to Boost Energy Instantly for more ideas.

 

106. Take one day off per week

Ken Courtright in his podcast says that we don’t rest from our work, we work from our rest.

 

107. Know what tasks drain you

Check out 6 Steps to Identifying Activities That Drain Your Energy.

 

108. Get accountability

Check out An accountability partner might be the key to building a successful business — here’s how to find one.

 

109. Score and reward yourself

Jerry Seinfeld had a system that helped him write jokes every day.

 

112. Track your time

A couple of sites that can help you do this include RescueTime and toggl.

 

113. Make it habit

You can also use apps like Habatica or HabitBull or LifeRPG to help you along the way.

To explore more about forming habits, check out

 

114. Use positive self-talk

Check out The Power of Positive Self-Talk, 7 Steps to Positive Self Talk, and Make Your Self-Talk Work for You for more information about self-talk.

 

115. Act as if..

Act as if you are already great at managing your time, and the rest will start to follow.

 

116. Use time management apps

Here is a non-exhaustive list to get you started: