Done!

When your workday consists of meetings back to back, the tasks you manage to get done in between might only be the quick things that not necessarily have the highest priority. Then, the really important tasks will have to wait until later. In this episode, the 532th, though, I help you make better use of the brief moments you have between meetings. Do you have other tricks for making the most of t...

Have you ever put up a sticky note where you see it in order to not miss something, but end up seeing it so much that you after a while do not see it (and still miss the thing that was written on the note)? This is similar to what happens when you work continously on a task without taking breaks. In this episode, the 531st, I share why you should refrain from that and what you can do instead. How...

Some people tend to mark an email as unread after they have read it a first time, since they want to remember to get back to it and do something later. The 530th episode of Done! is about why that is something to avoid. How have you managed to keep your to-do list complete - despite new things coming in through many different channels? Write to me and tell me . I am curious to hear what you will s...

When you finally have time to do that thing that you have postponed a while longer than you wish, it is understandable that you want to get started immediately. But, today's Done! No. 529, is about a situation when it is actually wise to slow down and not act so quickly. Do you usually do something special before having a go at a task that has been on the to-do list for a long time? Do you check i...

Here is Done! No. 528. Today, I share a way for you to make sure that you spend your time at work wisely. If you log your time, what have you found or realized that you have not seen before? Write to me and let me know . Maybe you will give me an idea of something I should also look for that might help me. In the beginning of the episode, I mention this blogpost about how to update your to-do list...

Sometimes, we regret having accepted to do something a long time ago that we now, when the time is here, definitely would not prioritize. In Done! No. 527, I share a simple trick for saying "Yes!" only to the right tasks. What are your tricks for not saying yes to too much and sometimes the wrong things? Write to me and let me know . I love to hear about simple tricks like this, so I am curious to...

We all need to declutter our workspace from time to time. But, did you know that good structure can actually ease your cleaning burden?  In this episode, the 526th, I show you how. What are your tricks for avoiding clutter? Maybe you have a method or a rule of thumb you would like to share with me? If so, write to me and let me know. I'm curious to hear from you! In the beginning of the episode, I...

Even the best to-do list app might not support exactly the "thought model" you use for your structure. For instance, what if the app only lets you create groups containing projects consisting of tasks, but you want to divide the projects in sub projects before defining the tasks? In this episode, the 525th, I share an easy workaround that lets you work how you wish, even if the app actually doesn'...

Knowing that you should get enough sleep is one thing. Actually going to bed when you ought to is something else. What if you struggle getting the hours of good sleep you need?  In this episode, the 524th, I share how to use the built-in functions of your smartphone to sleep better. How have you used apps to help you get the sleep you need? Write to me at david@stiernholm.com and tell me about you...

Welcome to the autumn season and a new edition of Done! - the 523:rd counting from the start! I hope you have had a beautiful summer (in the northern hemisphere, that is), as I have. Apart from emptying my sold parental home, I got quite a few hot days lying flat on an islet in the sea close to home and even a nice trip to and around New England (we loved it!).  This week's edition is actually abo...

Sometimes there are just too many meetings. And, one have to ask: do you really need to attend them all? In this last episode for this season, the 522nd, I share a question that will help you decide.  How do you make sure you only participate in meaningful meetings? Write to me and let me know . Having many meetings and having meetings often seems to be something many have to deal with nowadays, s...

About six months ago or so (in Done! No. 500, to be specific), I addressed the issue of remembering to read, respond to, or in some other way acknowledge messages you and I receive in an increasing number of channels. I am referring to chat messages, direct messages, Linkedin messages, messages on other social media platforms, SMS, and of course also emails. The trick I described then that works v...

Microsoft Lists is a fairly new addition to the Microsoft 365 family, but for what can you use it? In this episode, the 520, I share four suitable uses for Microsoft Lists. Are you already using Lists? If so, tell me what you use it for. I am very curious to hear what use you have put it to, so write me a few lines, please . Here is how to search better in Outlook (and my three favorite search ter...

The less you get distracted, the better the virtual meeting is. But, in a digital setting, the possible distractions are plentiful.  In this episode, the 519th, I cover a common distraction in digital meetings that you might not have thought but that is really easy to get rid of. What else distracts you in digital meetings and what have you done to prevent yourself from getting distracted? If you...

When you are overwhelmed with work and things to do outside of work, a useful trick to feel less stressed (and thereby more productive) is to hide all things that might distract you.  But what things? In this episode, the 518th, I walk through a rather extensive handful of things to hide in these stressful situations.  How do you handle having too much to do and/or feeling overwhelmed by the sheer...

Naming files and documents in a good way is quite an art. A common mistake many people make is to name files and documents in a far too impractical way when they want to save different versions of the same document. In this episode, the 517th, I share how do it clearly and efficiently instead. How have you decided to name versions of files at your company? Write to me and share your method or synt...

Sometimes we get involved in a project or workgroup where everything is happening very fast. All participating colleagues are eager to get moving on what you decide to do and it becomes difficult to keep the decision-making contained to the regular, formalized meetings. So, you make decisions on the fly. But, what if you forget to inform the colleagues that were not involved in the decision what y...

"Storing" and "doing" are not the same thing. Still, confusing them often leads to a very common structural mistake I see many of my clients make. In this episode, the 515th, I share how to differentiate between "storing" and "doing" and what you will gain by doing so. If you are being honest, is your overview also a jumbled mess of both reference materials and tasks? If this used to be the case b...

Sometimes there is just not enough time. You have a deadline fast approaching, but what you need to do takes longer than you had anticipated - much longer. What do you do - and  could you do - when you are running out of time? In this 514 th episode, I share a model that has helped me plenty of times to feel less stressed and more in control on such occasions. And, if you want to, you can even dow...

Even if we work digitally most of the time we sometimes need to print things. It can be something that needs to be signed, something we need to bring, something you need to complement your hand-drawn sketches with, or something else.   But, we might not have a printer available at any given moment.   If it is not urgent you will have to wait until you are conveniently close to a printer, but then...

Some tasks you do again and again, week after week. Should you keep them in your to-do list as well? Or, do they belong in you calendar? In this episode, the 512th, I give you my best tips on how to structure these recurring tasks.  How do you manage your recurring tasks? How do you keep track of when they need to be done, and the next time, the time after that? Write to me at david@stiernholm.com...

When the tempo is high at work, we all need to prioritize among all the tasks on our list. One popular way to address the issue of what to prioritize is to determine if a task is urgent or not, then if it is important or not, and then put it in the right place in some kind of model (many people use a four-field matrix) or system. Generally, the tasks that contribute to the goals you are responsibl...

Welcome to the 510:th edition of Done!, about how to more easily choose the right thing to do right now.

Welcome to the 509:th episode of Done!, about how to more easily say no when you need to.

Welcome to the 508:th edition of Done!, about how to work more efficiently from home.