Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: 12 Smart Habits to Save Time & Increase Productivity

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career and life development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

The video below from TopThink discusses 12 habits to increase productivity and save time, starting with putting a cap on your work week and the amount of time you devote to a specific task. Check out the video to learn more.

5 Strategies to Be More Productive and Focused at Work During the Holidays

Sometimes we find our workdays seem to run into each other and we're constantly working on yesterday's (or last week’s) to-do list. This can be a big struggle over the holidays.

When that happens, it’s time to step back and look at our routines and find ways to ease the stress and regain our focus.

Here are five ways to manage your workday more effectively and productively.

Focus on your health and wellness. You cannot underestimate the importance of daily meditation, exercise, healthy eating, and good and adequate sleep on your ability to be productive and successful. Incorporate these aspects of your life into a routine, as mentioned above, and you'll find yourself enjoying greater success. Start the day with a tall glass of water and some energizing food. You need energy and strength to be at your best and so it's important to hydrate with water when you awake and to eat something high in protein and low in sugar, in order to avoid a crash later in the morning.

Find an app. Many routine tasks we need to do in our lives and at work can be made simpler and more effective by using technology to help us. Often, we think of technology as enslaving us as we spend too much time on social media but look to find apps to make your life easier.

Eat the frog and tackle the most difficult task first. One simple strategy that will pay significant dividends for your productivity is to take on your most pressing task immediately and work to complete it before moving on to something else. Avoid getting bogged down by email early in your day. Save the email for the afternoon and attack your most important task of the day first You'll find that knocking out a difficult or dreaded item on your to-do list first thing motivates you to get more day and take on some of those things you really enjoy with more energy.

Work in short bursts followed by a short break. Focus more efficiently by working hard but briefly on your tasks. If you work for 45 minutes and follow that with a quick walk, you'll return to your work with more focus.

Plan for success. Your day should start the previous night or afternoon by identifying your top three priorities for the next day. You're more productive when you plan your day out, allowing you to more easily accommodate and integrate surprises into your schedule as they come up. Also plan to attack your email and clear out your in-box in the afternoon, once you've completed your most important daily tasks.

By implementing these methods your workday will be more focused and productive.

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: 7 Habits That Destroy Productivity

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career and life development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

In the video below, Brian Tracy discusses 7 bad habits that destroy productivity, including not planning your day. Check out the video to learn more.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 10 Tips to Make 2019 Your Year

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 10 Tips to Make 2019 Your Year:"In the YouEconomy, expertise is your chief commodity. Take an hour this weekend to list out all your areas of expertise, and brainstorm a few ways you can develop each of them further."

• What to do When You're Struggling to Get Motivated: "Instead, the problem usually boils down to confidence. For one reason or another, people don't believe they'll succeed, so they never get started."

• How to Deal with Office Conflict: "Addressing conflicts and working to find mutual goals, together, is the best way to handle clashes and even find ways to collaborate more deeply."

• 5 Books to Read if You Want to Be More Productive: "Sometimes the obvious solution is also the best: Delete the apps from your phone. If everybody did, we’d reduce an incremental creep that makes it harder and harder to resist social pressure."
• 5 Biggest Misconceptions about Remote Work: "the idea of remote work does not appeal to every individual and corporation, partially due to some persisting misconceptions about this kind of work arrangement."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: How to Identify Your Life Purpose & Leverage it in Your Career

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• Identify Your Life Purpose & Leverage it in Your Career:"each of us can identify a key, over-arching purpose of our lives and live from that knowledge, and doing so is helpful and positive. And I've seen that when we do, we open the door to experiencing more joy, peace, satisfaction and positive energy."

• 7 Ways to Maximize Your Workspace & Productivity: "Now that I’ve fully implemented the formula, I’m much happier and infinitely more productive. My desk is now my oasis. Adopting these seven habits made all the difference."

• How to Be Creative When You're Feeling Stressed: "f you still feel stuck and just can’t come up with something new, then you may want to give your brain more material to work with. This could look like reading on the topic, taking a field trip to a place where you can see other people’s creative solutions to a similar problem, or talking to experts."

• How to Stay Productive When You Travel A Lot: "People overvalue money and undervalue time. I have been willing to spend money to make sure I am fully staffed so that I can leverage my time better."
• 25 Lessons Business School Won't Ever Teach You: "You may learn negotiation strategies in business school, but the act of doing it in real time, in real life, is entirely different."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: How to Manage Workaholism

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• How to Manage Workaholism:"Whatever the definition, the results of an unhealthy work obsession has some pretty serious long-term consequences."

• How Taking Risks Can Lead to the Biggest Successes of Your Career: "in order to get the best out of yourself, you have to put yourself into positions where you're uncomfortable or vulnerable."

• 7 Income Streams that Generate Passive Income: "If you want to build wealth or achieve your long-term financial goals, you have to diversify your income sources with multiple streams of income."

• 5 Mistakes to Remove from Your LinkedIn Profile: "It's no secret that if you want to get a job, hire great talent or network with the best, then LinkedIn is a solid place to start.."
• Office Design Tips That Will Increase Employee Productivity: "Sometimes the secret to getting work done—and motivating your employees to do the same—is in our environment.... Warm temperature, a certain level of ambient noise and natural lighting seem to increase productivity."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 3 Ways to Stay Sane When You Have a Workaholic Boss

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 3 Ways to Stay Sane When You Have a Workaholic Boss:"For better or for worse, bosses are role models in the office, setting the pace and establishing the culture. When they’re also workaholics, it can make things difficult for employees."

• How Competition Affects Your Brain, Motivation & Productivity: "These lighthearted, unrelated to work performance competitions are a great way to inject some element of competition into the workplace without making it about work, avoiding any resentment building up between coworkers or competitors."

• 10 Tips to Succeed in the Business of Life: "This month, keep track of how many hours you work and what you got done. There’s nothing wrong with putting in a lot of time at the mine, but if you see lagging results, you’ll know when to recharge."

• Why You Should Apply Entrepreneurial Thinking to Every Decision: "By reputation, entrepreneurs will chase opportunities even over a cliff. In fact, successful entrepreneurs carefully assess conditions to judge when enough factors are propitious to launch."
• How to Tell When It's Time to Quite and Move On: "While the right answer in any individual case will vary, there are some common circumstances in which leaving or shutting down a business you’ve built might be the prudent course of action."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: The Top 5 Ways Work Changed in 2016

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• The Top 5 Ways Work Changed in 2016: "In April, New York and California both enacted legislation to progressively raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next few years. That proposal gained prominent support on the campaign trail."

• 9 Things to Do When You're Feeling Burned Out: "Part of the high level of stress and burnout that we currently experience is the intense connectivity and demand for attention placed on us by the supercomputer in our pockets. By checking emails, social media and text messages every few minutes, it’s easy to burn out"

• 7 Ways to Live With Job Stress That Isn't Going Away: "Recognizing the first signs of on-the-job-stress is crucial to finding ways to cope with it. Focus on your core goals, organize yourself correctly and establish a routine of calming your nerves so you can be sure to keep anxiety in check."

• 3 Ways to Increase Productivity While On a Team at Work: "recognize that what feels 100 percent correct and true to you is no more important than what feels 100 percent correct and true to someone else – even (or especially) when the truths are not the same."
• When You Want to Be #Boss (and Beyond) Reach for These 10 Books: "But the thing I wish someone had told me sooner is that you can learn a lot about being a leader today from reading books."

High Five Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 11 Secrets of Irresistible People

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 11 Secrets of Irresistible People: "Whether interacting with their biggest client or a server taking their drink order, irresistible people are unfailingly polite and respectful."
• 4 Ways to Overcome Digital Distractions and Be More Productive at Work: "Being highly productive and achieving beyond the mediocre level can still be done — it just requires two companions: presence and commitment."
• 5 Ways to Make Enough Side Money to Eventually Quite Your Job: "Nearly everyone dreams of quitting his or her day job, whether it's tomorrow, next year or in the next decade. However, there is a wide chasm between 'dreams' and 'action'."
• 5 Habits of Creative Working Parents: "Yes, spending time with your kids is important, but so too is finding space in your life for the people who help energize you about your creative work."
• 6 Character Traits to Consider Before Becoming an Entrepreneur: "Jumping into entrepreneurship isn't something to take lightly, as there are many things to consider before you do. At some point, you have to stop the questioning and business planning to take the plunge."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 6 Habits of Ambitious People

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

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• Stop Trying to Find a 'Real' Job: "Times have changed and will change even more. So why not use this time to re-invent yourself, do the work that matters and create a career that actually makes you stand out and be the remarkable you that you can be?"


• 6 Habits of Ambitious People: "Find role models. Befriend and learn from mentors. Make friends with people smarter than you and more successful in fields you are interested in."


• 6 Ways to Be More Productive at Work: "If your office allows you to take breaks during the day, take advantage of it, even if you only take five minutes instead of 15. Get up, walk around, go outside and get some fresh air."


• How to Answer the Interview Question 'Tell Me About Yourself': "These days we’re all consultants. A job interview is a great place to sell your consulting services, even if you’re going after a salaried job!"


• Overcoming Mental Barriers to Success: "To be a standout success you must be radical enough to make up your own rules, be willing to rise above the status quo, and have the willingness to take great risk to secure your unique place in the business world."

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: How to Succeed? Get More Sleep

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

In this video, Arianna Huffington , co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post, a nationally syndicated columnist, and author of thirteen books, shares a small idea that can awaken much bigger ones: the power of a good night's sleep. As she explains, adequate sleep leads to increased productivity, happiness, and smarter decision-making.

Learn more in the video below:

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: Increasing Productivity

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

In this video from Fast Company, entrepreneur Sarah Kauss suggests that journaling for 5 minutes a day can help you to be more productive.

Learn more in the video below:

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Career Lessons from Dad

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• 9 Tips for Boosting Productivity at Work This Summer: "If you’re not productive simply because things around the office are slow, use the time to get a jump start on upcoming projects, or to catch up on many lose ends that have accumulated."

• Do You Know What Signals You're Sending at Work?: "If you watch the clock and leave every day at 5 p.m. on the dot, prepare to be seen as someone not especially committed to work, and only putting in what's absolutely required."                                                      
• Don't Waste Your Time Applying to Job Postings: "Jobs in the hidden market are filled based on internal promotions, referrals and recommendations, with candidates being assessed on their past performance and future potential. For job-seekers who aren’t perfect matches on skills and experience this is great news, but to get the chance to be evaluated this way you need to be recommended by someone in your network."


• The Smartest Leaders Make Their Own Opportunities: "If there's an initiative you'd like to see at your company, offer to head it up. And if there's a skill set you'd like to cultivate, don't be afraid to make a lateral move ... if you know it will serve the long-term interests of your career."


• Career Lessons from Dad: "When you let fear stop you, you open the door to regret. You have to trust and believe in your own capabilities. That doesn’t mean taking stupid risks, of course. But recognize that fear is an inevitable consequence of learning and growth, and without it, you’re doomed to stand still." 

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• 8 Things Productive People Do During the Workday: "It may be hard to swallow, but there’s nothing productive about piling together a slew of tasks in the form of a checklist. Take a less-is-more approach to your to-do list by only focusing on accomplishing things that matter."

• 6 Tips for Working the Room at a Networking Event: "Be attentive. Networking is about active listening to learn about other people. Ask about how they got to where they are today, their accomplishments, current situation, challenges and needs."                                                         
• Are You Working "In" or "On" Your Career?: "[C]areer success also comes from paying attention to the amount of time we spend working "on" and "in" our careers. When we don't find the right balance, we struggle, or even worse, we have professional set-backs."


• For a Good Job, Learn How to Spell: "Your email, cover letter, application and résumé are often the first impression you make. Spelling and grammatical errors suggest you don't care enough about the job to double check your work, or worse, that you lack attention to detail."


• Is This Bad Habit Draining Your Energy?: "Next time you are tempted to show up at your boss’ office with a list of demands, which need to be paid in full before you can do you job, think hard about what you can do to change your own performance – despite the circumstances." 

Three Ways to Stay Productive when Spring Fever Hits

Most likely, wherever you live, there are signs of spring and the upcoming summer season all around you. Here in Arizona, the days are longer, the sun is shining, our pools and lakes are warm enough to go swimming, and there are beautiful flowers everywhere you look. I don't know about you, but I am having a hard time staying focused on my to-do list.

Unfortunately, my to-do list will not take care of itself, so I have been struggling with finding ways to stay focused. I thought I would share some of these ideas with you this week. So, when you find yourself staring at your list and saying "I don't wanna!" much like I have been doing this week, maybe these strategies will help you focus.

Bring spring into your indoor work life

This is the time of year when it feels like cruel and unusual punishment to have to be indoors all day long. Give yourself a break and boost your energy at the same time by taking some time to enjoy the beautiful weather. 

• Walk to a nearby lunch spot to enjoy the weather and get some energy from exercise at the same time. Sit on the patio of your favorite lunch restaurant to enjoy the fresh air.
• Keep fresh spring flowers on your desk.
• If you don't have a window you can open in your office, try to relocate to a conference room or location with a window at least once during the day.

Refocus your efforts and re-prioritize your to-do list

It is a proven scientific fact that our serotonin levels rise in the spring which can lead to giddiness, enthusiasm, and a boost in energy levels. We become distracted much easier, so it is important that we are as focused as possible.

• Establish the next day's priorities before you go home each day. Try to realistically clarify how much time each action will take and create a detailed schedule.
• List your activities in order of importance on your written list. You will feel such a sense of accomplishment and focus when you get to cross each task off the list.
• Evaluate whether your priorities are actually essential. In other words, give your to-do list and your priorities the "spring cleaning" treatment.

Take a break

When all else fails, seriously consider taking a few days, maybe even just a long weekend, to recharge your batteries. Plan a low-cost short vacation that allows you to be outside, enjoy the weather, and not think about what is on your to-do list Most likely you will come back to work with your batteries charged and be ready to take action! 

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Relax, Showing Up, and Boosting Your Cred

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• Relax! You'll Be More Productive: "[T]he energy employees bring to their jobs is far more important in terms of the value of their work than is the number of hours they work. By managing energy more skillfully, it’s possible to get more done, in less time, more sustainably."


• 10 Strategies for Boosting Your Online Cred: "[E]mployers are researching you online during their review process. What will they discover? You can play a significant role in creating the right first impression online if you take a proactive approach."


• The First Secret of Success is Showing Up: "But never forget that chance plays a role in finding opportunities ... It's important to be in the right place, preferably at the right time. And it's impossible to get started without first showing up."


• 20 Reasons Gen-Y Should Not Work Free: "Many employers don’t give internships any credence at all when reviewing your resumes. They figure, 'she worked for free; this job doesn’t tell me whether she was good enough to be hired'."


• These 5 Workplace Habits Are Making You Look Amateur: "When you exhibit a professional image, you increase your own confidence while simultaneously boosting the confidence others have in you and your capabilities. It's a win-win."