224 Shares Here's what we've developed a keen sense of what helps keep us productive throughout the day. This article shows you how to work from home and stay ultra-productive.
83 Shares Nick Thacker explains why he writes using a minimal text editor, and offers up some good reasons why you should too.
137 Shares I have a saying I like to use on my blog: “We’re all writers.” Usually I’m referring to anyone who creates–artists, musicians, programmers, and, yes, writers. In this case, however, I’m actually telling you that you should consider writing. Like pencil-and-paper or computer-and-word-processor writing. Now, understand that I do have a slight bias: I run a writing website (see my bio), have written a few books, and teach others how to write. But the truth is, I wouldn’t have considered myself “a writer” a year ago. Sure, I was working on my first novel,... More »
268 Shares “21 days for a habit to sink in…” “Habits must have positive reinforcement…” “You must go ‘cold turkey’ for a real habit to sink in…” Have you ever heard these myths about habits? They may not be necessarily wrong, but they are incomplete. Habits tend to be like fleeting, mystical “pots of gold” for us humans–we want them, and reach for them, but they’re often just out of our grasp. They promise a better life, filled with more success, more productivity, and better results in every arena. But they’re hard to set. ... More »
224 Shares I’ve been an avid user of Evernote for quite some time–heck, I even used it exclusively to plan my book! As I got back into blogging regularly, I realized I needed to also get back into planning, scheduling, and organizing my posts and my thoughts. Evernote, it turns out, was a perfect solution. If you’re like most people in the world, “blogging” is a second- or third-priority item, after your 9-5 job. While many people want to blog, maintaining a steady schedule and still finding the time to write can be challenging. Basically, Evernote... More »
210 Shares I know, I know–you’re already running a business, writing a book, raising children, and trying to have a life. I get it. But you’re here, which means that you’re into things like productivity, getting things done, and creating space in your life for the good things. But it’s probably not enough. Most likely, you’re able to maintain your 200+ emails-per-day workload, multiple projects at a time, and still have enough sanity to get home in time for dinner. So why am I advocating adding another thing to your daily task list? Why am I telling... More »
290 Shares We’re all busy people. Some people, though, are busier than we’d ever imagine, yet are somehow are able to stay on top of things so well they seem to go about their life in a lackadaisical manner, while we struggle to produce good work and maintain a household. What’s their secret? Why do they seem to have everything figured out; always unstressed and ready to go? Leverage. Sure, tactics like maintaining “to-do” lists (or “done” lists), setting goals, and decreasing the amount and time of meetings can all help. But really, these... More »
119 Shares With a bold headline like that, you might think it would be easy to “cop out” and give you a ridiculous strategy that would be stupid to try. Instead, I’m going to give you a strategy will do three things to your writing: It will make it part of the top 1% of the best writing online It will make people sit up and listen to you It will generate more action than any other writing you’ve done What’s this fancy new secret, you ask? Here it is: write everything at least three times. I... More »
176 Shares If you’re like me, you can’t spend every waking moment of every day writing, editing, polishing, Tweeting, and enjoying the fruits of your hard labor. You have a life. For me, that looks like a steady 9-5 job, during which I work on other stuff–my blog, writing, and life must take a back seat if I want to take home a paycheck. So how can you maintain both? Losing sanity, to me, is not acceptable–I don’t want to pull my hair out trying to get everything done at once. And I really don’t want to... More »
145 Shares In continuing with the great posts on food, I thought I’d include a few kitchen hacks I’ve come across. I’ll be the first to admit: I’m no chef. I love to cook; to whip up something new or different–but the way it tastes is, unfortunately, not always what I intend. That said, I have found a few ways to make some of the most common foods my wife and I eat actually taste good. While you won’t be able to use these techniques for everything, you can start right now, in your own kitchen!... More »
239 Shares Before you read the title and get angry, touting the same ol’ “I’m too busy!” argument, hear me out: You can save time, energy, and get way more done by taking naps. I know you’re in denial, but it’s true. I’ve used these techniques myself in the midst of a full-time marketing job, a part-time church job, trying to write a book, run two websites, and get married–and sometimes napping was the only way I would have been able to stay as productive as I was. But take it from actual research: Jurgen Aschoff was a... More »
