ProdPod, a Productivity Podcast

The late Dr. Stephen R. Covey wrote in his 1989 best-selling book,  The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People  [  http://amzn.to/15mtOXK  ], Independent thinking alone is not suited to interdependent reality. Independent people who do not have the maturity to think and act interdependently may be good individual producers, but they won't be good leaders or team players. They're not coming from t...

Veteran social psychology researcher and professor at Florida State University, Roy F. Baumeister, with journalist John Tierney, joined forces to write  Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength  [  http://amzn.to/1eTrs7h  ]. This is supposed to be a definitive guide on self-control, which many consider the heart of personal productivity. If you can control your self, then performance i...

Over the past decade I have heard people talk about their rising stress levels. More information, more responsibility and the same 24 hours a day to get it all in and done, respectively. What I don't see many people doing is distinguishing the unhealthy stress from the healthy stress. Much of what positively motivates us is stress not its absence. As Barry Lenson writes in his book,  Good Stress,...

Most days I awake feeling gratitude for having another day to be alive and that alone is motivating to get my day going energetically! However, there are days when things just don't go well. You've probably had those days, and will in the future. The opera of family, professional and personal life mess with our productive and contented mindsets. Well, in this episode, I'd like to offer three steps...

In this episode, I propose a three-phase approach to assessing our digital clutter…an initial step to understanding that just because we don't see it, doesn't mean it isn't there and isn't affecting our personal productivity. === In Episode 43, I talked about digital clutter, and the reality that we are compounding digital information about ourselves on our computers, laptops, mobile devices and t...

You know the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would like have done unto you. Well, I think it needs an update for a modern era. Enter the Diamond Rule: do unto others as they would like done unto themselves. === I frequently throughout my youth heard about the Golden Rule. This universal dictum that said to do unto others as you would have done unto you. Of course, this adage, also known as the...

In Episodes 53 and 54, I gave a brief overview of my "Pull Method" for more productive relationships. And, in the last episode I discussed Collecting Data for More Productive Relationships. So, in this episode, I am covering some thoughts and questions on analysis and synthesis of productive relationship data. Full Transcript===> In Episodes 53 and 54, I gave a brief overview of my "Pull Method" f...

In Episodes 53 and 54, I gave a brief overview of my "Pull Method" for more productive relationships, so in this episode I am going to outline how I collect and analyze data to make sure I know how the people around me affect me. In this episode I'm going to discuss Collection. And, in the next episode, I'll cover Analysis. Full Transcript==> Did your parents ever tell you that you were hanging ou...

In this episode, I give you some food for thought on how plants' productivity is relative to your own and can help us be more productive. Enjoy! Extended transcript==> If you'd like to be more productivity, it behooves you to eat well, of course, to nourish your body's energy stores. But, as I recently realized, if you pay attention to plants not just as food or landscape design elements, as livin...

In this episode, I explain my "calculation" of what I call life-work balance (because I work to live) and therefore life proceeds work, but perhaps not in the way you think. Note: I'll add this one final thought credited to my fellow productivity enthusiast and journalism professor Kenna Griffin (who you can find blogging at profkrg.com ) who coined life-work balance instead as "Work-Life Negotiat...

The blogosphere is not a new invention, although it was only recently embraced by media and the general consumer public in the late 90s. What does this mean for you and me? Well, it is likely a cornucopia of potentially amazing (and maybe not-so-amazing) content for us. So that reading all this great blog content doesn't become unwieldy, overflowing and overwhelming in our lives, I've put together...

In episode 60, I presented an introduction to a personal development plan, but for your personal life, called the Personal Life Action Negotiation (with the acronym, PLAN). In this episode, I'll cover three guidelines for an effective PLAN. Show notes: SWOT Analysis: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swot_analysis MindTools provides a "Personal SWOT Analysis explanation and worksheet": http://www.mindt...

I'm developing a personal life planning tool called the Personal Life Action Negotiation (with the appropriate acronym, PLAN). In this episode, I explain the reasoning and overview. In episode 61, I give the general guidelines for creating a PLAN that works for you. Enjoy!

I came across this poem (who's author is unknown to me) several years ago and I think it's definitely worth sharing. If you haven't yet listened to Episodes 12 to 15 on habit development, go check those out after listening to this episode. Enjoy! HabitI will push you onward or drag you down to failure. I am completely at your command. over to me and I will do them - quickly and correctly. Show me...

Google and several other companies have recently convened the Paperless Coalition [http://paperless2013.org] to help you "take the paper out of 'paperwork!'" In this episode, learn about the Paperless 2013 and go paperless in 2013! According to their website:Why should you go paperless? If you do the quick math, that's conservatively two billion sheets of paper used every year just in the United S...

This is about the time of year (end of February, beginning of March) when you realize that your New Year's resolution/s aren't going to happen, or you've forgotten that you've actually made them. So, in this episode, I offer a solution: banish making New Year's resolutions! Here's how.... Every time you don't make a NYR happen, you feel like a failure or worse, you don't remember you made the NYR....

Here's a quick overview of the amazing capabilities of my personal productivity software, Remember The Milk . What's your favorite personal productivity software? Let me know in the comments, contact form or via email! One of the most important principles of any productivity system to which you will be externalizing your memory is your ability to rely on the tool/s you select. I hear most often fr...

In this episode, I define "personal productivity system." How do you define your personal productivity system? I'd love to hear from you in the comments or via email. There was a time when I started first studying psychology and its relationship to my personal productivity when I thought  my "productivity system" meant automation. Boy, was I sadly mistaken! It took me a long time (18 months to be...

In the last episode, I discuss why I developed a "pull method" for more productive relationships along with the first phase. In this episode, I'll cover the next two phases. 2. Now that you have your relationships list, go down the list and mark each person with symbols representing whether you feel good or not when they come into mind. I use + or - signs, or :-) :-| or :-( , for my symbols. Not g...

In this episode, I introduce you to my relationships management technique I call the "pull method" and explain the first of three phases. In episode 54, I continue with phases two and three of the pull method. Enjoy! The human mind can keep approximately 150 social connections in their conscious mind at any given time. This median average comes from Dunbar's number named after the British anthropo...

An overflowing inbox is something that we have all probably experienced at some point in our personal and professional lives. Unexpected life circumstances happen and as well we sometimes get lax in our discipline to manage our email traffic on a regular basis. In this episode I give a simple strategy for managing this email overload and some email services that are handy to help manage your email...

The Four-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss mentions the Pareto Principle (which I explained in Episode 49), so I figured I would highlight the book's key points in this episode. At its core, the Four-Hour Workweek is about creating a lifestyle that works for you, not vice versa. If you haven't listened to Episode 49, it defines the Pareto Principle (aka the 80/20 rule) as Ferriss implemented in his own...

For ProdPod's 50th episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing fitness/nutrition expert, Noelle McKenzie (CEO of Fitness a Way of Life - fitnessawayoflife.com ), about some productivity tips for getting your workout / exercise optimized in under 10 minutes! Enjoy!

In this episode I discuss the Pareto Principle of Productivity, so 20% of the next two minutes contains 80% of its productive value! ;-) Enjoy! At a very young age, we understand that some things are more important than others. As soon as we're born, we learn that the scent of our mothers is important for our survival as the source of our nutrition. As we get a bit older, we realized quickly that...

I had the pleasure of interviewing the author of 25 Tips for Productivity Success ( bit.ly/25t4p ), Augusto Pinaud (augustopinaud.com), before # Prodchat on January 9th (See transcript:  sfy.co/fDDm ). He highlights two of his book's tips for us. Enjoy!