Ask Ellen – Busting Myths About Productivity and Organization

12 Responses to “Ask Ellen – Busting Myths About Productivity and Organization”

1. Beth Adams on February 5th, 2009 4:17 pm

   Ellen … THANK YOU for saying that we need not maintain a ‘picture perfectly organized work/home/whatever area’ … in order to maintain a productive and organized work space.

2. Beth Adams on February 5th, 2009 4:20 pm

   Another AWESOME point you made !!!!

   The task of “organizing” is like washing the dishes and the clothes … it’s an ongoing, never-ending task … that we work at all the time.

   If we don’t REQUIRE perfectionism from ourselves … we can attain a much greater level of ‘success’ any any task … including “organization”

3. Tiffanie on February 5th, 2009 4:35 pm

   Thanks for bringing up the “Paperwork management” question. I’m on the teleconn call right now and will have to leave soon. I have a love-hate relationship with paper. I WANT to be electronic but I end up printing a lot of emails and other stuff. Then I have TOO much paper. UGH.

   Good point, I hardly EVER access the paper again after I file it!

   PS I’m over 40;-)

4. Amy on February 5th, 2009 4:37 pm

   I’ve heard of Tiger (a file system) have you heard of that one

5. Stacey Langknecht on February 5th, 2009 4:46 pm

   I love Ellen’s suggestion to choose one goal for organizing, like having a clear desk at the end of the day, then moving on to your next goal after you’ve mastered that….she makes me feel like I can achieve this!

6. Jen on February 5th, 2009 4:46 pm

   I love the diet analogy! If I’m dieting and “slip” I wouldn’t just give up completely…. I’d try to do better tomorrow. I look at organizing the same way. If things get a little chaotic when I’m working on a project today, I can get back on track tomorrow.
   I also love when Ellen reminds us that whatever system works best for you is the BEST system!

7. Colleen on February 5th, 2009 4:48 pm

   When I asked my husband to look at something on my computer and he couldn’t find a spot to sit on the couch that I have in my office. I have things for Mardi Gras, gifts to be sent to my grandchildren for Easter, stuff to go to Goodwill, etc. It seems that just as I get it under control, another piece of my life gets into my office. I am going to try the small bite of the elephant each week.

8. Michelle on February 5th, 2009 4:50 pm

   Ellen-
   Thank you so much for all the tips you offered on the teleconference. I have a lot of new things to try. Do you have any suggestions for file management on your computer hard drive?
   Thanks!
   Michelle

9. Beth Adams on February 5th, 2009 4:55 pm

   If you don’t learn SOMETHING new everyday … you’ve just wasted a HUGE opportunity …

   What an awesome tip: EOM in the subject line …

   I’m gonna send this to all my teammates ASAP !

   THANK YOU !!!

10. Candis Akins on February 5th, 2009 5:14 pm

    Ellen – thank you for your great tips. I wanted to mention that using the is helpful too because of people receiving messages on their Blackberries and PDAs … helpful because they don’t have to open the email message to know what you want to say.

    I liked your paper filing strategy – I’m over 40 and tend to save too much too!

    Thanks again for a great seminar!!

11. Candis Akins on February 5th, 2009 5:15 pm

    using the EOM is helpful … somehow it was deleted from my previous message!

12. Michelle Cullison on February 7th, 2009 3:02 pm

    I hadn’t heard of EOM. In case there are others who haven’t used EOM, this blog post explains it well. http://lifehacker.com/5028808/how-eom-makes-your-email-more-efficient

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