Dear Justin, With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, I am up to my ears in work. I don’t know any other way to say it: I have too much to do, and not enough time. With the quarantine, kids at home, and clients cancelling, I have ten to fifteen new projects on my plate, on top …
Dear Justin, In the past week, our entire workforce has been sent home. I manage a small team and I’m feeling a bit at a loss on how to manage a remote team and keep them afloat, positive, and accountable given the new normal. Our team is used to working face-to-face and seems our success …
Dear Justin, Many tasks I work on involve getting info and answers from colleagues. I’ll initiate the contact and let them know what I need, then move on to my next task. And of course, as soon as I’m immersed in that next task, I’ll hear back from them. Here’s my dilemma: I can’t decide …
Dear Justin, I have always been a list-maker and over the years this has served me pretty well. I’m getting older and I’m finding that I’m making lists over and over so I end up with multiple lists. They’re on my desk, they’re in my pockets, they’re on my phone. What can I do to …
Dear Justin, I’m buried in email and I can’t seem to get it under control. Emails mean calendar requests, and calendar requests mean meetings. And meetings mean less time to respond to email. It’s a vicious cycle. If I’m lucky, I scan my inbox every few hours, looking for big issues. But here’s the kicker: …
Dear Justin, I am loving the impact of Getting Things Done® (GTD®) on my professional life. Not only am I getting things done, but I have a vision of where I want my work to take me. At work, I feel productive, energized, and excited about the next action items I can knock out. But …
Dear Justin, I have teammates (and even my manager, at times) who are inefficient and often unproductive. This is causing issues for me because I end up picking up the slack. I’m not perfect, but I’d like them to more effectively manage their workload. How can I handle this? Sincerely, Tired of Picking Up the …
Dear Justin, I have attended many courses that make use of skill models, including the VitalSmarts courses. Crucial Conversations, for example, provides a model that outlines what to do before, during, and after a crucial conversation. In Getting Things Done, I learned multiple steps for how to take control of my workflow, from capturing ideas …
Dear Justin, The two-minute rule often blows up on me. I frequently find that what I thought would be a two-minute task takes longer than two minutes. For example, I’ll open an email and think I can respond quickly by just confirming one thing, but when I check that one thing, I discover an issue …
Dear Justin, What’s the best way to say no? On a recent webcast, you mentioned the importance of declining requests and renegotiating commitments. So, I tried it. A coworker came to me with an emergency and I declined to help. I didn’t have the time and I said, “No, I’m sorry. I can’t help you …
