“I know you’ve heard it a thousand times before. But it’s true – hard work pays off. If you want to be good, you have to practice, practice, practice. If you don’t love something, then don’t do it.”
― Ray Bradbury

How did they get so good? Were they born with some special talent? Do they have a secret formula?

High performers always make it seem so easy. How do they do it?

The answer is simpler than you might think. They practice. A lot.

“No matter how great the talent or efforts, some things just take time. You can’t produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant.”
― Warren Buffett

Let’s get back to basic productivity tactics. We all suffer productivity lapses, and these tactics can get you back on track fast.

Set goals. What are you trying to accomplish? Figure out the big picture and break it down into managable priorities.

Plan your time. Stop multitasking. You not good at it, and it slows you down overall. Instead, start batching your tasks and knocking out one group at a time.

Eliminate distractions. The text messages, emails, and phone calls can wait. The interruptions from your team can wait. Find a way to cut out everything pulling you away from the task at hand.

Take breaks. It doesn’t always feel like progress, but taking breaks can speed you up in the long run. Even better: go for a walk and take in some fresh air. You’ll thank me later.

Reward yourself. Remember those distractions we eliminated earlier? Some of those are great rewards for finishing tasks. Train your brain to associate rewards with accomplishments.

“The prudent see only the difficulties, the bold only the advantages, of a great enterprise; the hero sees both; diminishes the former and makes the latter preponderate, and so conquers.”
― Johann Kaspar Lavater

How do you find people for your team who are not only smart and skilled but also creative, adaptable, and resourceful?

Well, I ask this question: The zombie apocalypse just started. What do you do?

This question is a great way to gauge how a candidate thinks on their feet and solves problems. It reveals a lot about their personality, values, and motivation too.

I can get a great sense of what kind of person they are and what matters to them. Do they prioritize survival or helping others? Do they prefer to work alone or in a team? Do they have a sense of humor or a serious attitude?

Of course, this isn’t the most important interview question. But it’s an effective way to decrease stress, spark a conversation, and get to know the candidate better.

“Micromanagement is a tool, but it is not a permanent solution.”
― Jocko Willink

Micromanaging has a bad reputation, and for good reasons. It can be harmful to morale, productivity, and retention. But, as is often the case, there are two sides to every coin. In some cases, for brief periods of time, micromanaging can be an effective strategy.

Here are some examples of when you might want to micromanage someone on your team:

• When a team member is new or inexperienced. Micromanaging can help a new team member learn the ropes and get up to speed quickly.
• When a team member is struggling. If a team member is consistently making mistakes or not meeting expectations, micromanaging may be a helpful tool to get them back on track.
• When failure is too risky. Ideally, your team is prepared to handle high risk, high impact situations. But sometimes, especially with less experience teams, they’re not ready yet, and the stakes are too high to allow for mistakes.

Now, let me be clear. It’s always better to set clear goals and expectations, provide resources and support, and then get out of the way. This allows the individual team members to take ownership of their work and make decisions on their own.

So, you should:

• Set clear goals and expectations. Make sure your team members know what is expected of them and what they need to do to succeed.
• Provide resources and support. Give your team members the tools and resources they need to do their jobs effectively.
• Get out of the way. Once you set clear goals and expectations, trust your team members to do their jobs. Don’t micromanage them.
• Give feedback. Give your team members ongoing feedback so they can learn from their mistakes and successes and improve their performance.

Micromanaging is a tool that can be appropriate in some cases, but it’s never a good long-term solution.

“Figure out what to do, then take a nap.”
― Adam Carolla

Power naps are a simple and effective way to boost your performance.

That’s right. Sleeping — in the middle of the day — can help you be more productive. Power naps can help you increase alertness, improve memory, speed up learning, reduce stress and anxiety, and enhance creativity.

I’m not saying a nap should replace a good night’s sleep. No amount of napping will fix poor sleep habits. I’m also not saying you should take a two-hour siesta every day. Keep it short.

So, here are a couple of pro tips for power naps:

• Power naps need to be short. I recommend 10-15 minutes.
• Set an alarm. A 10-minute timer on your phone is perfect.
• Try to block out any light. I prefer to use a sleep mask.
• Avoid noise. Use quality earplugs if necessary.

Try it and see what works for you. A little boost can go a long way.

“When everything goes to hell, the people who stand by you without flinching ― they are your family.”
― Jim Butcher

Giving up on the people you love is not an option. No matter what happens, always remember that they love you and that you love them.

Even when they fail in monumental ways, you can’t give up on them. They need your love and forgiveness more than ever in those times. They’re worth fighting for, worth holding on to, worth cherishing. They’re the best gift life has given you. Never take them for granted. Never let them go.

“It is a good thing for an uneducated man to read books of quotations.”
― Winston Churchill

Sometimes, you need a little inspiration to help you through the chaos. I hope these help.

1. “Anxiety’s like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn’t get you very far.”
   ― Jodi Picoult

2. “Anybody can become angry – that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.”
   ― Aristotle

3. “Nobody can bring you peace but yourself.”
   ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

4. “Love may forgive all infirmities and love still in spite of them: but Love cannot cease to will their removal.”
   ― C.S. Lewis

5. “If you can’t you must, and if you must you can.”
   ― Tony Robbins

6. “It’s always something, to know you’ve done the most you could. But, don’t leave off hoping, or it’s of no use doing anything. Hope, hope to the last.”
   ― Charles Dickens

“Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves.”
― Dale Carnegie

First off, the title is a bit of an exaggeration. This technique won’t always get you more done in less time, but it will help you get more important work done sooner.

Let’s get straight to the secret: Do the tough stuff first.

Think about it. If you’re running a marathon, do you want to deal with difficult terrain at the beginning or the end of the race?

If you knock the hard stuff out at the beginning, it’s smooth sailing down the stretch. You don’t have the weight of a big task hanging over your head, stressing you out, and decreasing your effectiveness on the easier tasks.

Besides, your confidence gets a nice boost when you complete challenging tasks. You approach every subsequent task with a sense of invincibility. You know you can take on the world because you just did.

So, should you put ten super difficult tasks at the top of your to-do list?

No.

First of all, make sure this task is important. If it’s not, cross it off the list now. Don’t waste energy on stuff that doesn’t move the needle.

Second, try to break the big tasks down into smaller, more manageable chunks. I recommend limiting task sizes to about an hour, two max.

Now, pick just one big item. Make it the one you don’t want to do. Make it the one you’ve put off for days or weeks. Make it the one that’s holding you back and keeping you from progressing toward your major goals.

They didn’t build Rome in a day, and you don’t have to overcome every challenge in a day, either. Get a big one done today; tackle another big one tomorrow.

Finally, make sure you reward yourself for completing each difficult task. You want your brain to get that nice dopamine hit when you do the big, scary, important work. So, binge on a couple of YouTube videos, or take a break and relax. Maybe even eat a little dark chocolate. Train your brain to enjoy finishing the big things.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s get stuff done!

“Just like we couldn’t imagine a cell phone smaller than a toaster in the 1970s, some companies still believe that they can’t get great performance from their employees unless they show up at an office.”
― Pamela Slim

Why do some employers object to remote work? Are all these employers stupid? No. Are they old-fashioned? Maybe. Are the naysayers right? That’s the question.

Now, of course, not every job can be 100% remote. My plumber has a hard time unclogging my toilet remote. When I call the paramedics, I prefer them to show up on-site. The United States Marines didn’t fight at Guadalcanal over Zoom.

Ridiculous examples out of the way, we can now go through objections for the cases where remote work is possible.

Objection: Remote work is not productive.
Answer: Meaningful work requires quality stretches of uninterrupted focus. That’s hard to find in an office. When you control your environment, you gain more control over your outcomes. Remote workers can work where they’re most focused and productive. The data backs this up too.

Objection: There are too many distractions at home.
Answer: In the office, they need to worry about impromptu meetings, interrupting coworkers and bosses, unscheduled introductions, and more. There are distractions at home, but remote workers have more control over their environment and can adjust. That’s a big part of the productivity boost most remote employees experience.

Objection: Remote work is isolating.
Answer: Office jobs can be isolating. Employees often spend most of their time working alone in cubicles. They’re typically surrounded by negativity in the form of office gossip or complaining. For many people, especially those with disabilities, introverts, or people with a different cultural background, working in an office pushes them to the outside.

Objection: Remote work is tough to manage.
Answer: Human beings are tough to manage. The reality is people watch YouTube videos or scroll through Twitter or play games for hours in the office. How do you manage that? I start by trusting my people to act like responsible adults and quit babysitting them. If you can’t trust an employee, you have a different problem.

Objection: There’s no accountability for remote workers.
Answer: Is there accountability for office workers? If accountability means more than attendance and means results, then everyone is held to the same standard. In fact, remote work can increase accountability as it forces employees to take ownership of their work.

Objection: Remote work is not fair to in-office workers.
Answer: The easy answer is to let everyone work from anywhere if and when possible. Otherwise, it’s like saying that allowing the quarterback to throw the ball is unfair to the other players. On a team, everyone has a role, and as a leader, your job is to put each of them in the best place for success. That’s fair.

Objection: Remote work is not secure.
Answer: Are you dealing with nuclear secrets? If not, you already have the tools and technology to stay secure. Enforce some best practices like auto-locking, whole-disk encryption, and two-factor authentication, and you’ll be okay. Besides, if you’ve ever allowed an employee to take their laptop to an out-of-town conference, you likely exposed your data to much greater risk.

Objection: People communicate better in an office.
Answer: We have the technology to communicate through video conferencing, audio calls, and chat. Most communication isn’t urgent and can be written as an email or, even better, posted to a corporate wiki. In an office, quick chats become significant disruptions. Remote teams are naturally encouraged to be thoughtful and deliberate when they communicate.

Objection: You can’t have a strong company culture with remote employees.
Answer: A strong company culture starts with shared values and goals. You don’t need to be in the same place to achieve that, but you do need to give people trust and autonomy. Good company cultures are built by good teams.

Objection: People don’t mind working in an office environment.
Answer: Some people don’t mind some of the time. Most people just mind the commute, the lack of flexibility, the repetitiveness, the distractions, the poor work-life balance, the lack of autonomy, the boredom, the unhealthy environment, and the poor management.

“All I want to know is Christ and the power flowing from His Resurrection!”
― Francis of Assisi

May all who read this experience a holy Good Friday and a blessed Easter!