Deb Lee and Cris Sgrott are both leaders in innovative productivity methods and tools, and love sharing their knowledge with others. Join them as they share strategies, tips, real-life examples (and more!) on how to become more productive in your work and home environments.
In today’s episode, we discuss the necessity of meetings. Cris and Deb agree that not all meetings are particularly necessary and spending time in a meeting that’s not relevant to you when you could be doing something else is a sure-fire way to get nothing done. As the pandemic rumbles on and some of us are nearing our century Zoom call, we wanted to share some tips on how to maximize the productivity of a meeting.
Episode #14 - Book Club - Bored and Brilliant by Manoush Zomorodi
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In today’s episode, we discuss Manoush Zomorodi’s book “Bored and Brilliant – How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self” and talk about some of the interesting statistics and challenges around technology, how much we use our smartphones, and what this might be doing to our brains.
Manoush is the host of NPR’s TED Radio Hour and a co-founder of Stable Genius Productions. She is also the co-host and co-creator of ZigZag, the business podcast about being human. Last but not least, Maoush created, hosted, and was managing editor of the podcast Note to Self in partnership with WNYC Studios, which was named Best Tech Podcast of 2017 by The Academy of Podcasters.
Episode #13 - The "Poopy Plumber" Productivity Problem
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Today we go back in time to remember a moment where Deb felt like she went off the rails a little bit with her emotions after a particularly negative interaction with a plumber at her home during renovations.
We talk about what she did to deal with those emotions, both in that moment and throughout the minutes and hours after in order to remain productive. We also answer our very first listener question. Read More »Episode #13 – The “Poopy Plumber” Productivity Problem
Episode #12 - What's With The Need for Constant Reminders?
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We jump right into Cris’ recent close encounter with a major pet peeve: constant reminders! We also try to figure out why we, as a society, now need to be reminded about every appointment — often several times. We discuss the vicious cycle that seems to require multiple texts, emails, phone calls, and nudges all in an effort to get us to show up where we’re supposed to be when we’re supposed to be there.
Episode #11A - Mission Impossible: Did We Really Give Up Our Phones for The Day? (Bonus Episode)
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Today is the day! We are catching up and sharing how our “No Phone Sunday” challenge went. We both had a different experience and it may surprise you what we missed the most during our 24-hour phone fast.
While neither of us had a perfect day, we both walked away with a renewed sense of how important disconnecting from our screens is. At the same time, we also realized that these devices can serve a good purpose in our daily lives.
Episode #11 - The Home Edit: When Is Too Much Too Much?
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In today’s episode, we analyze another Netflix home organization show! We had great fun chatting about Marie Kondo’s Netflix show a few weeks ago, so we’re doing it again today with the show “The Home Edit.”
Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin are the dynamic duo behind this series and the founders of the home organization business behind it. They always end up with beautiful-looking homes and spaces – real eye-candy for us productivity lovers.
But is what they do organizing or containerizing? Do they help clients keep too much stuff? Does it matter?
We have all the questions! We also talk about the similarities and differences between this show and “Tidying up with Marie Kondo.” And we share our personal opinions on whether the method they use is sustainable or not – especially for people with kids.
In this latest episode, we share our thoughts on the KonMari method of organizing. This is the method that was conceptualized by Marie Kondo — the now famous, Japanese organizing queen.
She has gained much of her popularity, thanks to two best-selling books and starring in the Netflix reality series, “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.” And it’s this series that gets us chatting about how much of what you see is real, and how much is simply produced for entertainment value.
The premise of the KonMarie method is “Does it Spark Joy?” and we discuss how legitimate that is as an organization method theory. Read More »Episode #10 – Does It Spark Joy?
Episode #9A - Mission Impossible: Give Up Your Phone for One Day (Bonus Episode)
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Today we take on device addiction. We all have some level of addiction to our phones especially people like us who use our phones to help us be more productive.
We delve a little deeper into some of the reasons why reliance on our devices has become a problem. And acknowledge that we’re not immune!
Generally speaking, if you don’t mind us saying it … rules RULE! We love rules especially when they help us manage our time better. But we also know that if they are too restrictive, they can get in the way of productivity.
In this episode, we elaborate and build on a previous episode where we discussed the very strict rules of the Pomodoro time management method, and chat about a few of the rules that exist in the productivity field and the pros and cons of each.
(P.S. Yes, those are renovation sounds from Deb’s kitchen project that you’re hearing in the background!)
Episode #8 - Task Management Apps To Get Stuff Done!
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Today we get into the nitty-gritty details of a few of our favorite task management apps. We both share a great fondness for writing down things that we need to remember.
But having a digital version of “writing things down” that also includes a reminder when that task is due … well, THAT is just a Productivity Lover’s dream!
We chat about all the different apps we’ve used over the years and why we have stuck to some and why others just didn’t work. We also share some of the features we like so that you make an informed choice when choosing your next task management app.