October, 2012 | List Producer

Sniff This to be More Productive

October 23, 2012/0 Comments/in Boost Memory, Fellow List Producers, Health, Home, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, List Making, Reduce Stress, Saving Time, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

Lavender (Photo credit: Iakobos)

Turns out certain scents will boost your productivity power. I’ve never tried it but it’s worth a shot especially because these smells are pleasant. Entrepreneur.com checked in with Beverley Hawkins, owner of the Vancouver-based West Coast Institute of Aromatherapy for her favorites:

Lemon
Lavender
Jasmine
Rosemary
Cinnamon
Peppermint

Aromatherapy is an ancient practice that can help relax, destress and empower, through the use of products such as a Scentsy Scent Circle, room sprays and essential oils.

There’s no need to go over the top and spray down the entire office. Just put a few drops of any of these essential oils on a cotton ball and sniff.

For more on why these scents will have you finishing up your work in no time — check out the original article here.

Track Packages and Spending With Slice

October 22, 2012/2 Comments/in Apps, Holidays, Increase Productivity, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Shopping, Technology, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

Life just got so much easier for me. I’m constantly buying things online — especially now that I’m in full on holiday shopping mode. Sometimes its hard to keep track what I’ve bought and when the deliveries will be made. I don’t have a doorman and if there is alcohol in the package then an adult has to be home to sign for it. And that isn’t always possible so either my husband or I end up stalking the UPS or FedEx truck. But no more!

I’ve discovered Slice.com. It’s the perfect away to keep on top of all your shopping and save money too. You can link it up with your email so the website and app will find all of your recent purchases and organize them for you.

Slice will tell you when the package is expected to ship, when it actually ships, where it is currently and when it’s supposed to arrive at your door. There’s even customer service numbers and return policy information attached to each order.

Your history will show all the items that you’ve purchased and categorize them for you so you can track your spending. (This is useful eventho it’s a bit scary to see where all your money actually goes.) And the coolest feature of all — you will be alerted if an item you bought went on sale and that merchant will issue a price adjustment if you ask. That alone is worth signing up for Slice.com.

It’s free to sign up on the website and the app is also free. I’ve been singing it’s praises ever since I found it. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Best Places for Writing Lists?

October 16, 2012/13 Comments/in Benefits of List Making, Boost Memory, Decision Making, Fellow List Producers, Increase Productivity, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

Lists help to make you more efficient, save money and time, boost your memory and aid in decision making. But how do you make your lists? I’ve found that doing a combination of things has helped me to be more organized. Maybe it will work for you too.

1. Handwritten: For me, I feel like it’s not really a to-do list unless it’s written out. I also write out my packing lists and my pros v. cons lists. Read more

Making an Ignore List

October 15, 2012/4 Comments/in Uncategorized/by Paula Rizzo

L is for Lists (Photo credit: Swiv)

Sometimes even more important than a to-do list is an ignore list. I just made one this weekend actually. I wrote down all the to-dos that I wanted to accomplish. Then I reevaluated this list.

Sure I wanted to finish the slides for a presentation I’m doing in December…but it didn’t need to get done right now. Doing that task would push other more important tasks to the bottom of the pile. So I added it to my ignore list. This doesn’t mean I’ll never get to it – it just means that I don’t need to get to it right now. So I’m ignoring it this weekend.

Doing this will help you to prioritize and really look at each to-do individually. If you don’t have the drive, resources or time to complete that task right now — don’t. Put it on your ignore list. Eventually you can move it to your to-do list and get it done.

Evernote: An App to Organize Your Life

October 8, 2012/7 Comments/in Apps, Benefits of List Making, Boost Memory, Decision Making, Holidays, Home, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, List Making, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Technology, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

I basically tell anyone who will listen to me about how amazing Evernote is. It’s an app and website that keeps track of nearly anything you want it to. A friend who is also obsessed with it once called it an “extension of her mind.” I think that’s pretty accurate. Anything you want to keep track of but might forget — should go into Evernote.

Here’s how I’m using it: Read more

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