259 Tips to Save Time and Increase Personal Productivity

    FLETCHER, NC, September 19, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Businesses have responded to today's economic conditions by cutting staffing, decreasing resources, and slashing budgets. No one knows the limit these measures will reach. But motivational speaker Ellen McNeill, known as America's Productivity Coach, has some "no cost" ideas to help. In fact, she has over 200 of them. McNeill has authored two handy booklets for workers and business owners--"132 Time Management Tips" and "127 Personal Productivity Tips".

Says McNeill, "There's no denying that people need to be more effective and get more done in less time. I wanted a way to share some tips I have compiled and learned over the years. My tips booklets are designed for today's busy professionals that just don't have the time to read entire books on time management and productivity. They want the bottom line. My tips booklets offer that. They have what I call 'mini-strategies' in bite size pieces. This makes it easy for someone to pick and choose something to try based on their situation. My recommendation is 'try it and apply it' and watch what happens."

McNeill's booklets are reasonably priced at $7.95 for the hard copy version of a booklet and $4.95 for a PDF download. Visit www.AmericasProductivityCoach.com and click on the Products link to download a booklet.

Bulk discounts are available for managers and business owners to give to each of their employees to help increase company productivity."

Here's a sneak peek from McNeill's "132 Time Management Tips" booklet:

10. Use the O.A.T.S. formula when allocating your personal and professional time. Set your Objectives, determine the Activities or tasks necessary to meet them, estimate the Time it will take for each activity or task and then Schedule the activity or task in your planner or on your calendar.

35. Be aware of your tendency towards perfectionism. Distinguish between tasks and activities that require your absolute best efforts and those where "good" is good enough. An example of this would be ensuring that figures on a spreadsheet are correct versus an e-mail that you rewrite three times. The goal is to make progress and move forward as quickly as possible.

103. Check your e-mail inbox on a pre-determined schedule. No one says you have to check e-mail as soon as it comes in. Turn off e-mail notification so curiosity doesn't get the better of you. Start by scheduling a set amount of time in the morning and the afternoon to check your inbox. Add extra time to the schedule if your work depends primarily on e-mail communications or if you find that morning and afternoon checks aren't enough.

111. Don't let drop-in visitors take control of your time. When someone says "Do you have a minute?" say "I'm in the middle of a project. Is it important that we have to discuss it now? Can I get back to you later?" If it's that important the visitor will say so and you can handle it then or set a time on your calendar or in your planner to talk.

Ellen McNeill is a speaker and author known as "America's Productivity Coach". She specializes in helping business professionals save time and increase personal productivity using "no cost", practical tips and ideas.

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