The Art of Managing Up

Managing up is the practice of building your relationship with your boss and consistently elevating the output you achieve together. It includes learning their preferences and desired outcomes, asking thoughtful questions to understand nuances, keeping them informed of progress, and elevating results.

Build trust they can count on you to deliver

• Manage expectations. Understand what outcome they’re looking for, when they expect to see results, and any requirements they have. Let them know when to expect what.
• Proactively update them on progress. Set up cadences to provide consistent visibility into status and review important milestones. Minimize the need to require their involvement while giving them an opportunity to shape the work that you do.
• Renegotiate when necessary. If plans change, communicate early to provide opportunities to adjust commitments. If you run into an issue they should be aware of, show up with a proposed solution that has been well-vetted by SME’s.  

Set the bar for high performance

• Communicate their way. Understand their preferences for communication methods and styles. Senior executives are busy; summaries that they can easily scan, with additional detail attached typically work best.
• Put yourself in their shoes. Understand their desired outcomes. Think through how they would approach it and what questions they would ask.
• Add a golden touch to everything you work on.  Always elevate the quality and value of the output. Make each item that you deliver simple for all who consume it.

Always increase value

• Actively seek feedback. Welcome their input and listen intently when they give it to you. Capture the critical points and follow up to ensure you solve for them.
• Use their time wisely. Minimize the need for urgent distractions. Use 1:1’s for strategic alignment.
• Take great care of everything assigned to you. Make it easier to work through you than to do it themselves. Identify how you can help them more and continue to pull work from them as much as possible.  

Those who have mastered the ability to manage up add incredible value to the work that their team delivers. When you focus on how you can provide the best service as well as increase value provided, you take a different level of ownership over the work that you do.  

Consciously Select Your Influences

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” – Jim Rohn

Whether we realize it or not, our beliefs have a great impact on directing and influencing our lives. Research shows that we subconsciously collect data from our experiences which forms into emotional memories. These emotions amplify in our brain to create feelings, which transform thoughts, and form beliefs to help us make sense of our experiences. Over time we identify patterns. These emotional memories create an unconscious lens through which we view our world.

We form beliefs around all types of things such as food, relationships, politics, religion, etc. Sometimes our beliefs can interfere with our ability to grow and learn. Through relationships with others we can see our beliefs from various angles, allowing us to re-examine and re-evaluate our opinions and feelings.

When we change our thoughts, we change the way we are affected by them, and can create more positive experiences. By being selective of what situations we put ourselves in, we can reduce unwanted emotions and thought patterns.

Whatever we focus our attention on and invest our energy into has a great impact on what we experience. The environment you surround yourself with can greatly alter the information that you consume, the attitude that you take, and the beliefs that you form.

Suggestions:

• Be selective of the people that you spend most of your time with. Increase the time you spend with those that inspire you to be your best self and lift you up. Decrease the time you spend around people that bring you down or reinforce negative behaviors.

• Be selective of what you focus on. Think about the outcome you want, the current "gap" between reality and your ideal goal, and how you can get there. Review progress often and refine your approach.  Striving for a goal is what Frankl believed was the greatest "meaning of life". :)  When you notice yourself focusing on worry or negativity, redirect your attention.

• Be selective of the information that you consume.  It can be very easy to believe what we hear, even when it's not true. The best of us can start to believe false information when we hear it repeatedly. We are living in a time when "fake news" is a common phrase and many people aren't even aware of it when they see it. Be critical about what you read and/or listen to. Find reliable sources that highly vet facts before they publish information. Unbiased is ideal. If you can stand it, be open to both sides. The best source I've found is: Ad Fontes Media Bias Chart. Let me know if you find a better one. 

References:

• Feeling is Believing - Psychology Today
• 5 Ways to Get Your Unwanted Emotions Under Control - Psychology Today
• Methodology behind checking media bias and level of factual reporting

Action Plans Accelerate Results

Collaboration is way more effective with a simple execution plan.  

Any time you have a team collaborating to achieve an outcome, an action plan is critical. It guides alignment on a unified approach and accelerates meaningful results. Depending on the size of the initiative, it can be a simple list or it can be a full blown project management system. One method does not “fit all”.  The best approach is the simplest tool for the scope of the work. 

Regardless of the tool, key components to include in the plan:

• Objective (why is this needed, how important is it)
• Goals and success metrics (what does winning look like)
• Defined scope to drive focus (what's in, what's out)
• Pilot (how can we achieve a quick win and accelerate learning)
• Key milestones with one clear owner (what are the big overarching critical pieces)
• Action items with clearly defined outcomes, due dates, and one owner (who does what by when)

Action Plan Best Practices:

• Design a team that has diverse perspectives, strong contributors, and is a manageable size (3-7 is optimal to enable speed and collaboration)
• Review the draft with your key stakeholders. Invite feedback and incorporate their ideas in to the plan.
• Load the document in a shared location that is easily accessible by all team members
• Establish standard status reporting processes and channels, including meeting cadences to drive progress and visibility across all impacted groups (working team, SteerCo, leadership updates, etc.)
• If an item is off track (red or yellow status), include the plan is to get it back to green
• Highlight progress of significant achievements and people that are making the difference 

Personal Habits for Daily Fulfillment

Daily practices to facilitate adding the most value each day.

 
Every day we have many opportunities, decisions,  and actions that lie ahead of us.  The way we react to life is completely within our control and can have a great affect on many people. These are methods to make the most out of each day.

Get Ready

• Check in:  Start your day by checking in with how you're feeling.  Be compassionate with yourself.  Clear out any negativity so that you come to the table ready to go. 
• Give thanks:  The best way to raise your vibe is to think about what you are grateful for and to focus on it for a few minutes.  Expressing gratitude is scientifically proven to make you feel happier and increase progress toward your goals.  
• Fill your cups:  Set yourself up well.  Have your coffee and/or fuel yourself in whatever way makes you feel best.  Do what it takes to have a good attitude as you step into your day.

Show Up

• Have an intentional presence:  Be open, present, and ready to engage with others.   Think about what you can do to add the most value today and focus on that first.
• Sharpen your tools:  Do your homework and research multiple angles about whatever topic you're working on or thinking about.  Make sure you set yourself up with all the tools needed to perform your best, that they're polished up, and that they are within reach.
• Fully participate:  With each interaction, do your best to completely focus on the current topic and figure out how you can improve the outcome.  Ask yourself the question, "What can I do to positively impact the current situation as much as possible right now?"  Speak up and share ideas.  Be open to learn and be inspired.

Follow Up

• Collaborate and elevate:  There are many people invested in the same things as you.  Connect with them, align efforts, and collaborate together to elevate your plans and achieve the optimal outcome together.
• Monitor progress:  Visibility into key metrics is critical to ensure you take the optimal approach.  Awareness of progress is a huge motivator for continued growth.  Set up systems so that key information is captured, developed, and well organized.  Everyone needs to easily see that progress is being made consistently and give feedback on how to improve the approach.   
• Keep it moving forward:  Have a weekly habit of reviewing progress on your priorities and planning actions to keep them advancing.  Block out regular time to dedicate toward taking steps forward each week for your top priorities.  

What works best for you?

Who Do You Surround Yourself With?

Each person that we come in contact with makes an impact on us.  The level of impact depends on how we feel about them and what they are representing to us.  We may feel a strong positive attraction, a strong negative rejection, or anything inbetween.  Either way, it's facinating to think about how a simple interaction has the opportunity to leave an impression on us that lasts a lifetime.  

The people we spend the most time with have a great deal of influence on us. We become like those we surround ourselves with.  Make a quick list of the five people you typically spend the most time with.  This can include podcasts, books, and TV shows that you frequently tune into.  What type of mindset do they have?  What are their most common attitudes?  Do they pull you up and inspire you to grow?  Do they bring you down and hold you back?  What feelings do they trigger in you?

Rather than hanging out with people who are nearby or you've known forever, think about consciously selecting your influences and what impact that may have on you.  If you aren't spending time with at least one person who serves as a role model for you and inspires you to grow, change that today.  Do some research, subscribe to a podcast, or read a book.  Bring more of that energy into your weekly schedule.  This small shift can change your life significantly.  

Refresh Your Home Office

With many of us working from home more than ever, it's a great time to make sure you love your home office.  

When you find your work space fun and refreshing, it draws you in and elevates your output.  Setting yourself up with a great set of tools dramatically increases efficiency, creativity, and fun. 

1.       Optimize Your Space.

1.1.    Design your space based on use.  Make sure that the items you use most often are accessible with a quick reach.   

1.2.    Clean up the clutter.  File items that you hardly use/access out of sight. 

1.3.    Add inspiration.  Add colors that you love as well as artwork that motivates you.

2.       Fill Up Your Supplies.  

2.1.    Keep the essentials in stock.  Make sure you have everything you need while in your element.  

2.2.    Get creative with items that elevate your personal game.  For example, if you’re a writer, have a great set of journals, decorative notecards, and lots of your favorite pens handy.

2.3.    Whistle while you work.  Nurture yourself with goodies that get you in a great mode such as a fancy tool, a cup of tea, packs of gum, your favorite playlist, a scented candle, etc.

3.       Build Your Best Routine.

3.1.    Start fresh.  Just like we all need a daily shower, a daily dose of inspiration helps get us moving and feeling great. 

3.2.    Timebox your priorities.  Set aside regular periods of time for advancing key activities based on your goals.

3.3.    Carve out renewal periods.  Find those activities that refill your cup and be sure to prioritize them in your schedule as often as you need to perform your best.

My 40's Wish List

When I turned 30, I spent that entire year in a deep analysis of my life.  I was excited about my age and determined to make the most of it.  I came up with a specific set of outcomes I wanted to achieve in that decade.  10 years later as I reflected back, I realized that I achieved every single one of them.  

Turning 40 didn't set me into such a deep state of analysis.  I was more at ease with it, yet not so excited.  Sitting here now turning 41 today, I feel that sense of excitement about the life I will create.  I'm having fun coming up with my next decade wish list.  

• Love - My husband and I get closer, our relationship even stronger, and we make each other feel adored daily.
• Parenthood - My children are empowered to reach for their dreams and feel supported in achieving them.  They are encouraged to soak up the goodness of life.
• Abundance - I continue to experience the absolute abundance I achieved in my 30's and expand even further.  This time, I feel freedom and empowered by it, rather than controlled and limited by it.  
• Wellbeing - I feel well, full of energy, and inspired daily.  If not, I get there first.
• Relationships - I build thoughtful, caring friendships with those around me.  I have dear, great friends who feel my thoughtfulness and support deeply.  
• Education - I finish my Bachelor's, or at least am well on my way to doing so.  I always continue learning and sharing what I learn.  
• Impact - I provide tools and services that empower others to make progress.  I share progress and inspiration with others.

One of the biggest lessons I've learned so far is that focusing on what I want (rather than constantly thinking about what I don't want) is not only a better experience, it's powerful.  Here's to my best decade yet!

Love, Dani

Love Wish List

A woman that I look up to a lot, not only because of her sweet and loving personality, but also because of her success in love, marriage, children, and her career, recommended I write a love wish list.  She said it was what she did just before she found her husband.  They have been married for over 30 years, have three amazing children, and are a great team together.  

I took her advice and had fun creating this exact Love Wish List on July 20th, 2011.  I started dating my husband 10 days later.  No joke.  It's a fun exercise.  Give it a shot!

My Love Wish List (Qualities of My Ideal Partner):

• Loyal
• Loving
• Great with AJ
• Laughs at life
• Affectionate
• Intelligent
• Funny
• Open Minded
• Confident
• Sexy
• Handsome
• Attractive to Me :)
• Caring 
• Inventive 
• Family-Oriented and Focused
• Motivated
• Dedicated
• Handy
• Friendly
• Provider and Guardian
• Sweet
• Masculine
• Strong
• Steady
• Spiritual
• Honest
• Responsible
• In Service to Others/Charity Work
• Successful
• Wants a Kid or 2
• Enjoys a Close Partnership with Me
• Gets Along Great with My Family
• Stays Connected with Me Throughout the Day
• Great Communicator
• Patient
• Happy
• Witty
• Pampers Me
• Romantic
• Treats Me Like a Lady
• Thoughtful
• Ready for Me
• Available
• Local
• Shares Everything with Me (Willingly, No Secrets)
• Hard-Worker
• Goal-Oriented
• Adventurous
• Spontaneous
• Takes Me Out - Eat, Fun, Trips...
• Buys Me Jewelry
• Mature
• Fun to Be Around
• Understanding
• Adores me
• Silly
• Cuddly
• Independent
• Honors My Boundaries
• Makes Things Happen
• Eager to Learn
• Committed to Our Relationship and Family

Meditation

The past year I have dealt with anxiety more than ever before.  As a young child remember feeling anxious before school, but it wasn't something that I often dealt with.  Then, in my late 30's, it became something I struggled with daily.  I'd find myself regularly feeling that sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach.  In moments where I felt at peace, I'd notice my mind wander toward thoughts that would trigger worry.

I understood the concept that I should focus on what I want, not what I don't want.  I battled with myself to stop worrying and "out think" the worry.  However, I'd continuously find myself struggling - to the point it was deeply affecting my well-being and impacting my relationships.  I started to feel desparate for change.

One day while scrolling through Instragram, I felt the urge to check out workshops by one of my favorite authors.  Although she's usually conducting workshops around the world, she had one in San Diego within a couple weeks. I took immediate action and went by myself to her workshop.  Within an hour I felt a great sense of connection and deep inspiration.  The strongest message she had to convey that day was the importance of meditation.  She reiterated how much it impacted her daily life and that she could not recommend it enough.

I had always been resistant toward meditation although I had read about the benefits: stress reduction, self-awareness, brain function improvement, reduction of memory loss, and even improved brain structure.  Well, ever since that workshop, for the past 8 months, I've been meditating most days.  I usually meditate for just for 10 minutes first thing in the morning (but for as little as 3 minutes if that's all I have that day).

I quickly found that I enjoy the meditation sessions.  Each time I notice that I feel better afterwards.  Within just a few sessions, I started noticing that the time I spent worrying and the physical impact of it was reducing.  I felt an overall stronger grounding that made me feel more calm and peaceful in general.

It was very interesting to see how busy my mind was at first - to directly observe my desire to constantly analyze everything.  Now I have more awareness and control and I am more effective with my thinking.  I typically use Headspace's guided meditations.  They have a free set you can try which helped me build strong habits.  More recently I've been meditating without the guidance and enjoying that - but at first I found that difficult to do.

With the recent COVID-19 changes, my habits have been in flux and I've noticed some of that anxiety coming back.  Making sure to prioritize the daily meditation is the single most impactful habit I have.

Wishing you peace and harmony.



Reference:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meditation-mind-body-spirit_n_5291361

Dealing with Extreme Difficulty

Over the past year, I faced some of the most difficult challenges of my life.  I felt like I was losing it, like I could hardly keep my head above water, and I found myself struggling with anxiety.  I was in a spiral that I didn't know how to get out of.  This struggle impacted my daily well-being and my relationships. Although I knew that my thinking made a huge impact on what I was experiencing, I found it very challenging to shift my thoughts to being more positive.

A few key behavior changes helped me shift the pattern:

1. Communicating where I was at with those closest with me.  I tend to keep things inside and try to solve them myself.  As I opened up and shared what was going on, the support and advice that I got helped me feel more confident about myself, see past my perspective, and navigate to new solutions that I hadn't considered before.  
2. Focusing on the solution rather than the challenges.  I found that during this period, I tended to focus too much on how things were at that moment and what was wrong.  This limited my ability to create the change that was needed.  By directing more of my energy toward possibility and innovative approaches, I was able to get past the hurdles that stopped me in the past.
3. Prioritizing my well-being.  I tried many different methods to find something that made me feel more peaceful each day.  The one that really made an impact was meditating.  I am now meditating every week day for 10 minutes as part of my morning routine.  This helps to calm my mind and start my day from a more grounded place.  

I can't say that my life is perfect now, but I am feeling a huge sense of ease and peace with my days.  I am once again excited for what's to come rather than fearing it.  I can more easily focus on what I'm thankful for (there is so much) and how I want to impact others with the time I have.  That's my favorite place to play in.

Thanks to everyone who supported me and was understanding during the past year.  Love you!

Dancing with Change

Change is constant, whether we like it or not.  If we don't know how to to deal with change, it can slow us down, feel very difficult, become very expensive, and cause a lot of waste.

Our ability to manage change well directly influences our speed of growth, daily experience, success in achieving goals, and ability to make a valuable impact.

Here are keys to improve your ability to manage change.

Create a Change Map
True clarity on what specifically needs to change is critical.  We can achieve this by:

• Having a high level of awareness of current position
• Creating a clear vision of desired outcome (with a thoughtful, elevated outcome)
• Mapping a path from one point to the other
• Assertively chasing that path every day, being the force to make it happen
• Being flexible and adapting the path, as needed, to reach the outcome

By mapping this journey of growth, we paint a picture of the specific shift that needs to happen.  Priorities become clear and noise is eliminated.


Refresh Habits
Our daily habits are essential to driving important change.  People who consistently bring effort, energy, and attitude excel regardless of factors outside of their control.  Encouraged daily habits:

• Engaging in a mindset routine every morning feels motivating 
• Obsessing with being better than yesterday
• Living each day as if it's the only one
• Seeking to be coached and learning from disappointments
• Speaking words that are rooted in love and honoring them

When we demonstrate our ability to thrive with change, we encourage others to do the same.  This synergy is powerful momentum.


Influence Progress
Collaboration that leverages various perspectives while creating ownership at the same time is a great way to elevate results.  We have an opportunity to not only seize opportunities for change, but to lead others to do the same.

• For changes that are big - a clear, agreed upon action plan with a small, specialized group who is highly motivated is a great way to drive fast progress in a fun way.  Be sure to set a cadence of regular work sessions to speed progress and give the team time in between to elevate their work product.
• For changes that will be repeated - a simple guided process with forms that gather all necessary information,  create clear ownership over each step, and ensure checks and balances is a great way to drive quality and efficiency. 

A Well Played Game

Mastery of the Game

1. Know the rules of the game  
2. Know the players  
3. Analyze all strategy styles and find what works best for you; continue to improve
4. Go all out
5. Enjoy

Highlights of Stealing Fire

This book was an intriguing journey through achieving states of peak performance and experience. 

Ecstasis

Ecstasis is a state of mind that is described as being in “the zone”

• Plato described ecstasis as an altered state where our normal waking consciousness vanishes completely, replaced by an intense euphoria and a powerful connection to a greater intelligence.
• In this state, the conscious mind takes a break and the subconscious takes over. The conscious mind is a potent tool, but is slow, and can only manage a small amount of information at once. The subconscious is far more efficient. It can process more data in shorter time frames.
• As this occurs, a number of performance-enhancing neurochemicals flood the system. These chemicals amplify focus, muscle reaction times, and pattern recognition.

There are four signature characteristics of ecstasis (STER): 

• Selflessness – inner critic goes offline, get out of own way, expanded thinking
• Timelessness – sense of deep now, temporal processing energy is reallocated to focus
• Effortlessness – pleasure chemicals propel us past our usual limits of motivation
• Richness – our brain’s pattern recognition abilities amp up opening fresh perspectives 

Why It Matters

·        People have been found to be up to 500% more productive in these flow states.

·        The information richness of a non-ordinary state affords perspective and allows us to make connections where none may have existed before.  We can see more pieces of the problem we’re trying to solve.

The Four Forces of Ecstasis

Accelerating developments in four fields are providing greater access to and understanding of non-ordinary states of consciousness.

• Psychology – We have a better sense of our own development and, with it, the space to move beyond a socially-defined identity.  Clearer frameworks and data-driven models help navigate formerly obscure terrain.
• Neurobiology – Advances have clarified our understanding of what is happening in our brains and bodies when we experience a range of mental states, clarifying the mechanics of transcendence. Now, more than ever, we understand the knobs and levers being tweaked in the brain to obtain optimal states of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best. Stress chemicals are replaced by performance-enhancing, pleasure-producing compounds.
• Pharmacology – By treating the six powerful neurochemicals that underpin ecstasis as raw ingredients, we’ve begun to refine the recipes for peak experience and can access them on demand. Mind-altering substances deactivate key parts of the brain including the default mode network (“ego disintegration”) and create highly synchronized connections between far-flung areas of the brain (“mind expansion”).
• Technology – Bringing access to scale, experiences can be shared by huge groups, generating more data, and firmer conclusions with much less risk. Innovation provides wider and safer access to altered states.

The Sandbox of the Future

Non-ordinary states can heighten trust, amplify cooperation, and accelerate breakthroughs, fundamentally disrupting business as usual.  We can speed learning, facilitate healing, and provide measurable impacts in our lives.  Organizations like the Navy SEALs and Google utilize these developments to take a different approach on high performance and pursue ecstasis with a degree of precision that was not possible even ten years ago.  Throughout history, there have been attempts to “steal fire” and reach these states.  Finally, we can kindle the flame ourselves.

From the book: Stealing Fire - How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work by Steven Kotler & Jamie Wheal

My Purpose Statement

I was just at the Conscious Capitalism Conference this week and realized I have never quite nailed down a personal purpose statement.  Here's my current draft:

I build systems that bring people together to create opportunities for growth, optimize experience, and drive progress.

Filling Your Cup

There are things that make you feel deeply excited or renewed.  They can be anything from cars to massages to games.  There are specific instances of these things that fill your cup.

Notice what they are and prioritize them in your life.  Balance out the things that drain you.

Make sure your cup is full enough to share.

Roll with Change

Change is the one constant in life.  The feeling of being “short-changed” or on the losing end of change can be overwhelming and incredibly painful.  It can bring the intense emotions of disappointment, sadness, and regret.  The changes that can hurt us the most are those that we never expected.  The more love, hope, and energy we invest into something, the harder it hurts to let it go.  Letting go is the only way to deal with changes we can’t control. 

The greatest growth, accomplishment, and achievement often come from changes that seem impossible to overcome.  These challenges bring opportunity.  They create a new foundation to build something better than before.  Listening to feedback from people that care about you and have different perspectives helps to open the mind to new possibilities that may be blocked by fear or limited thinking.  While the entire path ahead may be hard to see, the next step is usually not too hard to figure out.  It’s up to us to open up, be flexible, and keep putting one foot in front of the other.  

Getting into the Mode for Optimal Performance

There is a state referred to as "flow" which describes that feeling when we are completely engaged in what we are doing.  While in this mode, we experience “energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity”._A1 Some call this “being in the zone”. 

Achieving this state can be tricky.  By understanding what conditions allow us to reach it, we can ensure that we are experiencing it regularly and maximize the amount of time we spend in it.  A flow state can be entered while performing any activity, although it’s most likely to occur when we are seeking to learn new things and challenge ourselves; when we feel the challenge will require us to stretch but is within our reach.

By getting “out of our heads” we can really have fun with this.  There is a part of the brain that self-edits which is called the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (also known as the inner critic or the monkey mind).  When this part of our brain is active, it can lead to over-thinking and self-doubt.  There are periods of time when this is very useful, but there are times when it doesn’t serve us.  Shutting down this part of our brain during periods of creativity can help us reach a new level by letting us really dig into ideas and separating the limiting thoughts to a second round. 

When we can create our own perfect blend of control and surrender, we can truly get beyond ourselves.  A well-controlled environment allows us to truly surrender.  When we find this balance, we can shut down conscious processing, stop worrying about how we will be perceived, and induce altered states of consciousness where ideas blend together.  Pattern recognitions are increased and we’re hurled into the present moment.  By getting into this un-edited creative state while also experiencing the state of flow, it allows us to probe an idea in real-time with fresh thinking.  We can discover new ideas and solutions in real-time.

The best way for me to get there is to have a certain level of pressure to accomplish something but also have a window of time in which I can advance on it.  A timebox creates the excitement to play with figuring it out and helps me tap into a higher level of thinking.  Knowing this, I’ve built writing sessions into my schedule to allow me to continually explore new challenges, process thoughts in the way I enjoy most (writing), and take ownership of the final output.  During the creative sessions, I experience a sense of “plugging in”.  I feel a deeper level of awareness, see things in a new light, and realize how I want to apply these new understandings.  It’s what fills my cup.

By using this method, I am able to turn thoughts around and come up with great clarity. The more time I spend with a thought and thinking of various scenarios around it, the higher the level of genius I can bring to it.  Multiple reviews with a mix of creative and editing sessions, result in my highest quality output.

References:

·        Wikipedia - Flow (psychology)  _A1

·        Jason Silva on the Art of Charm Podcast

·        Wikipedia - Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

Organization Tip - Optimizing Use of Your Browser

Set up your browser to inspire you when it opens and help you find what you need very quickly.  This exercise takes about 10 minutes and saves you tons of time from searching around.

• Set your start page to open up to the tools that you use to drive your progress.  Have the first page be the site that adds the most value for you to stay tuned into.  My screen opens up to a high level action plan that shows me the critical items happening across all projects.  This helps me stay aware by seeing the team's progress and encourages me to add in any missing updates.

• Organize your key sites in folders on your bookmarks bar that are sorted in an easy-to-find manner.  Figure out the main categories of bookmarks that you need, create folders for them on your bookmarks bar, and then sort your bookmarks in them in a way that works best.  Get familiar and friendly with your bookmarks manager until you find out the perfect setup for you.   The folders I find helpful are: Tools, Requirements and Outlines, Action Plans, Reports, Repositories, Reference Sheets, and Misc.

If you ever catch yourself taking more than 20 seconds to locate something, think about how you can improve that.  An easy way is to organize your browser bar.

Timeboxing to Optimize Output

Timeboxing is a time management technique that has been proven to increase productivity.  This method allocates a fixed time period, called a time box, to each planned activity.

Organizing activities this way helps some people more easily enter a state of flow or to be "in the zone".  In positive psychology, flow is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity.

I use time boxes to design my daily activities.  Once per week, I break my current projects into bitesize tasks and allocate them into a framework which consists of windows of time.  This practice enables consistent movement forward and a great sense of clarity.

I've found that these blocks of time facilitate a better output as well.  They allow me to dive into the topic at hand and think creatively on a deeper level about it.  Over time, I've learned how to really elevate the quality of thought I can produce by working on the placement of the boxes in particular sequences.  I've got a few time boxes that are my favorite part of my week every week.

When I use time boxes, it often silences the critical part of my brain, which enables real-time discovery when probing ideas.  I highly recommend using timeboxing in your electronic calendar to design your days.

References:

• Evidence of Maximal Adaptation to Task Constraints
• 4 Scientifically Proven Ways To Boost Your Brain Productivity
• Ultradian Rhythms in Prolonged Human Performance
• For Real Productivity, Less is Truly More
• Wikipedia: Flow (psychology)
• Wikipedia: Timeboxing

My Favorite Time Management Trick: Timeboxing

The key to my effectiveness of time management is my use of electronic calendars.  I use calendars such as Outlook or Google to create blocks of time to make progress on everything I want to (see Timeboxing to Maximize Output).

Over the years, I've developed a lot of methods to elevate my effectiveness with these tools.

Best practices for using electronic calendars as a basis for effective time management:

1. Plan your week ahead.  Once per week I do an organization session to get touch base on everything currently going on, prioritize, and set up weekly activities based on evaluation of my action plans.   
2. Build in time for goals.  Anytime I have a larger goal that may expand over a period of a few months or longer, I carve out two to three blocks of time per week as a recurring series.  I set up each block for a couple of hours.  This makes sure that I get a couple of solid windows of time to dedicate toward driving my goals forward consistently.  Being selective of what goals you focus on is key.
3. Schedule recurring tasks. For minor tasks that recur at a certain frequency, I'll block out a half hour or hour in the calendar so that I don't forget to do them.  I add in any helpful notes and/or links right into the invite so that I don't have to rethink how to do it every time.  

Tips:

• Using colors for specific types of meetings and/or reminders can be very helpful too.  For example, self-reminders can be gray.  Big meetings that you run can be green, etc.  Colors make it easier to see where things are intuitively as you start to associate topics with them.
• Be flexible and move things around as needed.  Schedule working sessions for yourself as "tentative" status so that others can still schedule time with you.  When you do have a conflict, simply drag the time block over to an open space. 
• Recurring appointments can be set to repeat every week day or on the last Friday of the month, for example, so set them in a way that is most effective for you. 
• Carve out 5 minutes every morning to plan your day.  Even though you have already scheduled everything out, you want to evaluate if it's the best use of your time before you get started.  You may want to move some things around based upon things that come up or drives that you have.  I have a workbook where I pick out what my key focus will be, note what little tasks I need to accomplish, and plan how I want to grow each morning.  I love writing those types of things on paper, noting ideas about them, and checking them off as I finish them.

Setting up my calendar this way brings me great peace of mind to know that everything will happen before it needs to.  It's one of my favorite and most essential life hacks!

Other Favorites:

• My Favorite Life Hack
• My Favorite Organization Trick
• My Favorite Trick for Feeling Truly Fulfilled
• My Favorite Daily Mindset Practice