60 useful seconds with kalaboukis
60 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago -daily: a super short podcast with a single useful tip, trick, or technique to improve your life. Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
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Episodes
60 Always Go First
May 07, 2021 14:00 - 57 seconds - 910 KBGet it over and done with early - so you can relax support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
59 Work Yourself Up Ahead of Time By Using Extreme Overestimation
May 06, 2021 14:00 - 44 seconds - 711 KBI use this trick all the time when I have to complete a big project: I greatly overestimate the amount of time that I need to do something. For example, a few weekends ago I was dreading completing this PowerPoint presentation, thinking that is was going to take me three solid days of work to do. I had blocked off 3 full days, had already canceled other plans, and was ready to devote a large block of time to this presentation. Once I started, however, I realized that as I was whistling throu...
58 Worst First
May 05, 2021 14:00 - 37 seconds - 589 KBYou probably have a long list of tasks to do. Some say to do the easiest first, just get those over with. I say the opposite – do the worst first. Get them over with first, and the rest is easy. This is why I always want to be the first in line to do anything that I dread. Another trick when you are dreading something: focus on what you will do AFTER this thing that you are dreading. I used to hate going to the dentist when I was younger, but then when I focused and visualized my life in the...
57 Don’t Round Up – When The Meeting Is Done It’s Done
May 04, 2021 14:00 - 44 seconds - 710 KBWho says that meetings have to be some increment of 30 minutes? If you have completed what you need to do, feel free to end the meeting early. In fact, you should try to always end meetings early. If you can estimate better, try to shrink it even further. If you can have the meeting in 15 minutes, or 10, then do so. Sometimes when you are in the middle of a string of back and forth emails, a quick 10-minute call can be just the thing you need to get the answers you need. Don’t stick to the c...
56 Have A Consolidated List, Use It Or Lose It
May 03, 2021 14:00 - 55 seconds - 877 KBI use Asana for my personal and work todo lists and I religiously use that list, every day. Everything I need to do goes on the list. If it is not on the list it will not get done. Period. If someone wants me to do something, either they put it on the list for me, or I add it. If it’s not on the list, then IT DOESN’T EXIST. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
55 Mind The Gap – Have Something Ready To Read In Those Moments Of Free Time
May 02, 2021 14:00 - 55 seconds - 882 KBWe all have gap time – prepare for it by having something to read or constructive to do at all times. I don’t mean watching Netflix or dumb Youtube videos. Why not listen to podcasts, or motivational speakers, or read a book on your Kindle app. I’ve been told that Stephen King is such an avid reader that people have seen him walking and reading a book, waiting in a line at the movie theater reading that book, closing the book only when the movie starts, and then reopening it the moment the l...
54 Get Up Earlier, Or Stay Up Later…
May 01, 2021 14:00 - 56 seconds - 900 KBThis one is not fun for the night owls, but it works. In fact, this combines a bunch of ideas in one – get up early enough and no one will bug you, you will be working when no one else is, and you’ll love it when you’ve almost completed a full days work by the time everyone else is just getting up. I used to be a total night owl, and then I got a project where I needed to be up at 430 every weekday for an east coast client. I got more done in those four and a half hours before 9 am than I ev...
53 Set Timers
April 30, 2021 14:00 - 53 seconds - 854 KBYou can’t do it alone! We all need timers and reminders to do things. Setting a timer on a task (especially a large one which you are procrastinating on) will at least get you started on the task. When the timer goes off, you can decide to keep going or stop. Want to go for a 30-minute walk? Set a 15-minute timer when you leave and just keep walking straight ahead. When it goes off, turn around and head back. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this po...
52 No Comm Zones
April 29, 2021 14:00 - 42 seconds - 669 KBWhen you really need to focus on a task, create a “no communication” zone where you go to a place where you can work completely undisturbed by any incoming communications – whether it’s over your phone, computer, or in person. Block off the time, get into that cone of silence, and don’t stop until you get done what you need to get done. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
51 Peak Times
April 28, 2021 14:00 - 51 seconds - 819 KBEveryone has times when they are at their best and most focused during the day – some people are night owls and do their best work at night – others do it first thing in the morning. Most people don’t hit their stride until 10 am – what is your prime time? When are you most productive and alert? At what time of the day do you feel so energized that you can just keep going and going? Figure out that time of day and use it to your advantage – do your most important work then, and leave the dru...
50 Worst First
April 27, 2021 14:00 - 46 seconds - 734 KBYou probably have a long list of tasks to do. Some say to do the easiest first, just get those over with. I say the opposite – do the worst first. Get them over with first, and the rest is easy. This is why I always want to be the first in line to do anything that I dread. Another trick when you are dreading something: focus on what you will do AFTER this thing that you are dreading. I used to hate going to the dentist when I was younger, but then when I focused and visualized my life in the...
49 Delete It
April 26, 2021 14:00 - 38 seconds - 611 KBLook at the next task on your list. Do you really need to do that? Will it help you to progress forward towards your goals in life? Will it really take you to the next level? Is it something that you really need to do? If not, then you have full permission to just delete it. If you don’t have to do it, then simply don’t. Also, try not to spend too much time agonizing over your decision to do it or not – just make a judgment: is completing this task in line with my goals or not? If no, delet...
48 Have A Daily Standup With Yourself
April 25, 2021 14:00 - 50 seconds - 804 KBTorn from the pages of Agile Software Development, the daily standup is a daily team meeting where everyone goes around the room (typically first thing in the morning) and reports (while standing) three things: 1) what you did yesterday? 2) what you plan on doing today? 3) if there is anything stopping you from doing what you plan to do today? Do this with yourself, in the morning, in the mirror, as soon as you wake up. You’ll find that it’s a great way to reset your intention for the day. D...
47 50 Page Rule For Books
April 24, 2021 14:00 - 48 seconds - 768 KBJust learned this one the other day and as an avid reader, I am loving it. I don’t like not finishing books, no matter if they are fiction or nonfiction. Even if the book is not that good, I keep pushing through. Now, if I’ve read 50 pages of a book and I still don’t want to continue, it’s a natural place to stop. Most books today are oversized blog posts disguised as books anyways, they very rarely have enough content to fill their 200 odd pages and are full of filler. support the show: ht...
46 Return Any Gifts You Don’t Like For Ones You Like
April 23, 2021 14:00 - 43 seconds - 683 KBFrom the desk of Marie Kondo – your home is filled with gifts that you might feel like you don’t really want to get rid of, but the gift really was in the giving. The gift fulfilled its purpose of giving when it was given to you. If you don’t use it now, it doesn’t bring you joy now, then give it away to someone else. It’s just another thing you have to move (or walk around) while looking for something else. Return it, regift it, or Goodwill it. Let someone else get some joy out of it now. ...
45 Read Your Mail Over The Recycling And Trash Can
April 22, 2021 14:00 - 58 seconds - 926 KBEvery moment counts – why bring your mail in to read it when most of it is bound for recycling any way – save the trip. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
44 Get Up Earlier
April 21, 2021 14:00 - 56 seconds - 889 KBAs above, it’s the same for the AM. Try to wake up at the same time every day – don’t use snooze, and get out of bed and stretch. Try to create a morning routine as well – maybe including exercise, meditation, planning, journaling, etc. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
43 Go To Sleep At The Same Time Every Night
April 20, 2021 14:00 - 49 seconds - 786 KBI used to sleep in on the weekends and it really messes up your sleep schedule. Your body doesn’t really know the difference between the weekdays and the weekends. Do it a favor and try to go to bed at the same time every day. In fact, it’s probably a good idea to have a standard nighttime routine which cuts out all electronic devices at least 30 minutes before lights out. You can always read a paper book or Kindle for those last 30 minutes before you turn out the light. support the show: h...
42 Plan A Weekly Menu
April 18, 2021 14:00 - 59 seconds - 944 KBEveryone’s gotta eat: you can either grab fast food every day, or take a few minutes to plan and map out your week of meals, buy everything you need, and have it ready. Some people I know cook once a week, freeze their meals and eat over the course of the week. Or if that’s too much, subscribe to a meal service which can bring you healthy meals directly to your house. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/...
41 Everyone Uses Webmail – If You Want To Quickly Delete And Deal With Mail, Use An Application
April 18, 2021 14:00 - 51 seconds - 813 KBMost people use a web-based email solution, but those are terrible at mass deletion. Take my advice and if you are looking to perform mass cleanup of those emails, use a client. It doesn’t matter if you use Outlook, Thunderbird, Astro, or any other email client out there if you set up a client you should be able to rapidly delete a ton of emails. I use the “Sort By Sender” feature to very quickly group email into batches which then allows me to very rapidly determine if these emails come fro...
40 Use An Electronic Planner – Google Calendar, Calendly, And Other Tools
April 17, 2021 14:00 - 59 seconds - 943 KBWhile a paper planner is great, you also need an electronic one which you can use to book calls and meetings with others. I personally use Google Calendar, which has more or less become a standard. You can use add-ons like Calendly in order to send people your availability dates so that you can book meetings. ALWAYS book meetings. Even if your meeting attendees do not use Google Calendar, their own systems should readily convert a Google Calendar invite to whatever system they use. support ...
39 Use A Paper Planner And Ink – Commit Yourself
April 16, 2021 14:00 - 39 seconds - 619 KBAs I’ve made in some of the points above, writing things into a paper planner and ink will help you to commit to tasks and follow through with them. Additionally, the added benefit of using all three sensory modalities in the writing process will help you to remember the tasks themselves. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
38 Work Where No One Else Is
April 15, 2021 14:00 - 51 seconds - 808 KBA corollary to the above, getting away from “people distractions” could take you away from the office or away from home (wherever your main workplace is) – go to a coffee shop or library – or somewhere where there are no other people around. Even a park might work, as long as you have a decent internet connection. Sometimes I find that the lobby of the city hall in your nearest town has great internet, and it’s not a bad place to have a conference call, and long as you are not too loud supp...
37 Work When No One Else Is
April 14, 2021 14:00 - 54 seconds - 870 KBThis is a holdover from the days when I used to run IT organizations. Usually, many of my colleagues at my clients would take time off over holiday breaks.I found that is the most productive time for me – as I mentioned in my 4 am post, one of the best times to work, is when no one else is working. It may be a sad commentary, but, paraphrasing Sartre, sometimes “time-wasting is other people” There is nothing like stepping into an almost empty office, and solidly focusing on work, with no dis...
36 Procrastinate Strategically
April 13, 2021 14:00 - 58 seconds - 926 KBThere are some cases where you will want to purposefully delay a task because you know that once you complete the task, then follow up work from that task will occur which will require a certain amount of work in response. For example, there is one colleague who I know will ask me for additional work once I contact him. So I ensure that I contact him when I have a window to perform the additional work. A strategically procrastinate in my response so that I will have free time right after I c...
35 How Do You Feel And What Do You Feel That You Can Tackle Right Now – Fit The Work To The Feeling
April 12, 2021 14:00 - 57 seconds - 913 KBFor this task – you need to try to sense yourself – to be in tune with what works best for you right now, and only undertake that task. For example, let’s say that like most people, you are most awake, aware, and alert at 10 am. If that is the case, don’t schedule some boring meeting at that time, schedule something more challenging or fulfilling. Use the best time of day for each task – don’t push your most challenging tasks to the afternoon when you are most tired. If you have to do random...
34 Stop Surfing Randomly
April 11, 2021 14:00 - 48 seconds - 773 KBWhile the internet has basically has been designed from the ground up for random browsing, try to detect when you have strayed from the productivity path which you have set for yourself, when you are browsing the net. The moment you open up an internet browser, you should kick your spidey sense into high gear: Is this important? Does this page help me with my research/core vision? I’m getting what I need? Am I wasting time? Basically, you need to take your mindfulness training and apply it t...
32 Always Have An Agenda And Stick To The Agenda
April 09, 2021 14:00 - 47 seconds - 744 KBAlways have an agenda for every meeting which you circulate at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. Give people enough information so that they can make a decision to determine if it is worth their while to attend. Feel free to cancel the meeting if you aren’t able to pull in the key personnel you need. Always come at meetings from a value proposition angle – is it really worth it to gather all of these people into this meeting for this length of time? Think of the time value of all of these...
33 Put Your Phone Away
April 09, 2021 14:00 - 54 seconds - 860 KBThere are times when your phone is an essential business tool, and there are times when it’s a huge time suck. If you are having trouble regulating your phone use and it is sucking up your productive time in non-productive tasks, just put the thing away. If you can’t do that, go ahead and delete all applications from your phone which suck up your productivity. Go on, do it now. I can wait. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podca...
31 Have Fewer Meetings With Fewer People
April 08, 2021 14:00 - 45 seconds - 713 KBMeetings are typically the biggest time wasters, and few are truly necessary. If you can do something about the number of meetings or the number of attendees or both – do so. Or even have shorter meetings – is there a real need for meetings to be exactly 60 minutes or exactly 30 minutes. Personally, I book the shortest possible meeting with the fewest possible people right in the middle of any other meetings that they might have in order to ensure that nothing runs long. If you are running t...
30 Get Enough Sleep
April 07, 2021 14:00 - 53 seconds - 846 KBSleep is the new thing – even though sleep has always been the thing. Even though our hard-charging culture constantly talks about superhero entrepreneurs who never seem to sleep, project teams, and work through every night and weekend, everyone waking up at 4 or 5 am and going to bed at 1-2 am is simply not the best strategy for productivity. The human brain needs rest and especially sleep in order to be as sharp and productive as it can be. Shoot for at least 7 hours of continuous sleep. ...
29 Carve Out Time For Your Passion
April 06, 2021 14:00 - 58 seconds - 927 KBWhile many of us spend a majority of our days working on things that may pay the bills, but not fire up our passion, it is essential to carve out some time every day to work on our passion project. Otherwise, you may literally go mad! There are so many people who, day in and day out, simply go through the motions of life. These people can survive, but can they truly live? This is why people turn to drugs (both non-electronic and electronic), alcohol, and binge-watching TV or YouTube, for som...
28 Declutter
April 05, 2021 14:00 - 46 seconds - 731 KBWe spend a lot of our time moving objects from place to place and looking for them. Unless you have a perfect photographic memory, without a way to organize things, you will always spend an inordinate time looking for things. In fact, a great organizational system can easily shave off a ton of searching time. Additionally, a cluttered desk can also cause you a certain level of cognitive stress. While there are tons of systems out there, any of which is right for anyone, I suggest you try a f...
27 Start Thinking About The Future – It’s The Only Thing You Have Some Control Over
April 04, 2021 14:00 - 32 seconds - 512 KBSpeaking of time frames – start seriously thinking about the future. If you are looking to increase your productivity gains, its important to at least partially plan your future. In order to plan your future, you must think about your future and where you what to be – to set goals – and to determine your success metrics when it comes to those goals. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulsecond...
26 Stop Wasting Time Thinking About The Past – It’s Done
April 03, 2021 14:00 - 32 seconds - 512 KBAs a corollary to the previous show point above, stop thinking about the past. Stop thinking “if only I’d” Stop regretting any decisions that you made in the past – since they were probably the right decisions at the time. The past is the past, there is nothing you or anyone can do about it. Sure, learn from the past, but never look back with longing or regret. What’s done really is done, and you can never ever go back. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Supp...
25 You Are A Role Model, Like It Or Not
April 02, 2021 14:00 - 56 seconds - 893 KBLike it or not, the mere fact that you exist in the world makes you a visible role model for others. As long as others can see and hear you, they can observe your actions, and make judgments on if you are worthy of following or not. Never mind if you are the boss, and people need to follow you to keep their job, you are still being observed in every social situation. For example, the other day, I learned that there was a whole company in the Philippines, which the CEO was having watch my vid...
24 Stop Complaining
April 01, 2021 14:00 - 42 seconds - 669 KBHow much time do you spend complaining about something that did not go your way? Since we cannot change the past, spending time complaining about wrongs, be they justified or unjustified, will not change what has happened. There is little upside to complaining, and many downsides in lowered mental states, time lost in complaining, and instead of a focus on how one can improve, the focus is on nothing that can be changed. Think back over your life – how much time have you lost complaining to ...
23 Stop Reading Reddit
March 31, 2021 14:00 - 48 seconds - 771 KBReddit is just like TV and any other feed. Empty, emotion-driven entertainment. You learn nothing. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/60usefulseconds/support
22 Stop Reading The Paper Or Following Politics
March 30, 2021 14:00 - 38 seconds - 608 KBThink of the paper as a paper version of the “feed” I described earlier. Do you need to spend your time reading other people’s opinions designed to drive your emotional engagement, either stroking or enraging you? Life is too short. Same for politics. Does the fact that you follow this political party or another contribute to your productivity in any way, shape, or form? Does being outraged by Donald Trump help you get new customers, or complete that report, or write that book? Does being of...
21 Stop Going To Movies
March 29, 2021 14:00 - 49 seconds - 776 KBThe Last Jedi was over 2 hours long. Add in getting to the theater early, finding parking, buying tickets, popcorn, soda, watching the trailers, watching the movie, grabbing food, finding your car and going home, you are talking most of if not more than HALF A DAY of your life. Now, seriously, do you think that is the best use of your precious time? Unless you need to see the film for your job, then it’s not that important. Ask yourself, do I need to spend so much time watching movies? supp...
20 Stop Watching TV
March 28, 2021 14:00 - 40 seconds - 636 KBSeriously. At last count, there are studies out there that say we consume up to 3+ hours a DAY just sitting back and watching TV. What do you get out of that? Sure we say that we might like to “relax” and “veg-out” in front of the TV, and it might have some benefits in allowing us to relax and de-stress. But 3 hours a day? Think about all of the time that you are wasting doing this instead of writing a blog post, emailing a potential client, reading a book, or watching a YouTube video to lea...
19 Use GTD – If It’s Less Than 2 Minutes, Do It Now. Otherwise, Book It.
March 27, 2021 14:00 - 48 seconds - 767 KBI love the Getting Things Done methodology – when it swept Silicon Valley, I got swept up in it as well, and it is still a very valid way of doing business. Simply put, if a task comes across your desk, which you can complete in less than 2 minutes, just do it. Suppose you can’t then schedule a time to complete the task on your Calendar. Very useful for most things. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/sh...
18 Plan Your Work And Work Your Plan
March 26, 2021 14:00 - 41 seconds - 662 KBHow many of you have no plan at all? I’m all for going through life in an agile way, after all, I’ve written such doozy’s as “Stop Planning Now” and other posts which talk about getting rid of planning altogether (in some cases is it warranted), but if you want to be productive, you still need to figure out what it is that you want to produce! If you don’t know that, how will you know if you are successful? At least spend some time every day planning your work, then work your plan. support ...
17 Put Together A “Work” Soundtrack And A “Focus” Soundtrack
March 25, 2021 14:00 - 44 seconds - 704 KBThis may or may not work for you, depending on how music affects you – I use music to speed up and focus – whenever I need to focus on powering out a set of blog posts or a report I take my writing device, my noise-canceling headphones, put on my blogging playlist, zone out and power out my writing. I then go back later and edit it, but when it comes to pure pushing it out of my head and onto the paper, nothing beats a hard-driving beat. For you, it might be a more chill soundtrack – I use S...
16 Go Elsewhere – The Library, Coffee Shop
March 24, 2021 14:00 - 41 seconds - 652 KBSometimes wherever you happen to be is the distraction – if you are at work, most people are in open offices with people always milling about – if you are working at home, maybe you see all of the housework that you need to do. Pick up your stuff, throw it in your car on or your back and head to the nearest coffee shop or library and work from there. Studies show that switching locations not only improves productivity; it can also enhance creativity. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60us...
15 Eat The Same Breakfast Every Day (Also A Good Weight Loss Plan)
March 23, 2021 14:00 - 51 seconds - 810 KBDo you need to think about every meal? Some meals can just be sustenance – why not just eat the same thing, day in day out? For example, your go-to AM meal could be oatmeal or Greek yogurt or a spinach omelet. Think of the time and cognitive cycles you will save by eating the same meal every day. Sure it might be boring, but if you always have the ingredients in, then you don’t need to spend time and cycles thinking about it, thus saving that time for other more important things. support th...
14 Wear The Same Clothes Every Day
March 22, 2021 14:00 - 50 seconds - 807 KBJobs did it, Zuckerberg does it. You should do it too. Instead of wasting your cycles trying to figure out what to wear each day, just come up with a “uniform,” some set of clothes that you look good in, and just wear the same damn thing every day (except for specific occasions). If you are jeans and hoodie guy, then get a bunch of those and wear them every day. If you are a white shirt, jeans, and jacket guy, do that. Just pick one single outfit and wear it all the time. support the show: ...
13 Automate As Much As You Can
March 21, 2021 14:00 - 46 seconds - 732 KBWe all have hundreds of little things we do every day, week, month, and year. If you can figure out a way to automate those things – do it. Automate your bill pay, automate your lights, automate absolutely anything that you can. Automate your shopping – if you know how much milk you go through in a week, then have it auto-delivered. Look at your entire life and see what can be automated, then do it. support the show: https://anchor.fm/60usefulseconds/support --- Support this podcast: htt...
12 Kill Your Feed
March 20, 2021 14:00 - 45 seconds - 714 KBThose apps which “feed you,” like Facebook and Instagram? Think of them as time-sucking drugs that are constantly feeding your emotions and sucking you in. They are continually reading what you are looking at and giving you more and more addictive content the more and more you use them. The best way to use those apps is not to use them at all. Remove them from your phone, and if you must use them, use them sparingly and, most importantly, set a time to make you stop. support the show: https...
11 Use Every Spare Moment Available To Work
March 19, 2021 14:00 - 45 seconds - 721 KBWhy are you watching TV? Why are you watching a goofy YouTube Video? Every moment that you spend doing something unproductive IS A MOMENT LOST FOREVER. You simply cannot “make up time.” Time is just gone. That’s it. No matter how hard you try, you can never get that moment back. So stop wasting time and get back to work. With the technology at our fingertips, you can work at any time of the day or night, from anywhere. Can’t sleep? Get to work. Are you waiting for the doctor? Get to work. On...