What Google Headquarters Taught Me About Productivity

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Paula & Jay with Gopi at Google

Last week I decided to use the 4th of July weekend as an excuse to go on vacation. I have always wanted to go to San Francisco and figured now was the time. My husband Jay and I toured around the city — saw the Golden Gate Bridge, walked up Lombard Street, strolled along Fisherman’s Wharf and even tasted some amazing wine in Napa and Sonoma Valleys.

While there – we were amazingly lucky to get a tour of the Google headquarters in Mountain View, CA. That’s about 50 minutes south of San Francisco. Anyone can check out the grounds but to get a real look inside the buildings an employee has to take you around. I was lucky to be introduced to Gopi Kallayil by a mutual friend and he was our very gracious host. He’s the Chief Evangelist at Google for Brand Marketing — isn’t that the coolest title ever? Read more

Checklist to Finish What You Started

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finishI have loads of advice about how to get started with a big project on this blog. But what about finishing a task? Most people assume that when you’re in that final stretch it will all fall into place. However, sometimes finishing can be just as difficult! Especially if you’ve put all your motivation into getting started.

Here’s a checklist to help you finish what you started!

1. Stop asking for advice – My friend Terri wrote about this recently, she calls it an addiction to advice. When you’re addicted you become so wrapped up in getting all the best possible advice from the best people that you never get around to actually doing it. Sometimes you just have to get on with it! Plus once your project has started to take shape you will find yourself getting more specific feedback. Read more

Join Me For Tea!

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ProductiviTEA social media (1)People often assume that coffee is the most productive drink as it helps keeps you going. However while coffee makes you feel more awake, it doesn’t really help you think any better. If you want to get more out of your day I would recommend switching to tea. The lower caffeine content in tea keeps you alert but doesn’t make you jittery. Tea can really start off your whole day in the best way, there are so many different types out there for people to try such as black, green, herbal, matcha, the list is endless!

I also find that making a cup of tea perfectly fills a five-minute break, and gives you a chance to reflect on your work. There have even been studies that show drinking tea will make you more productive.

Join me for ProductiviTEA

To celebrate tea�s contribution to productivity – I am hosting a ProductiviTEA event in New York.

Get it? Tea plus productivity equals ProductiviTEA!

It will be held at Podunk Tea Room in the East Village. We will have a discussion and workshop on how to boost your efficiency, hone your own productivity style and harness the power of downtime.

There will also be a chance to relax and enjoy hot tea, iced tea and boozy tea with scones & jam too!

Tickets to the event are $25 each or $40 for two people. I�m excited to see you there and share a nice cup of tea!

Be More Productive With An Accountability Buddy

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friendsIn 1898 Norman Triplett conducted a study measuring the speed of cyclists. He noticed that when the cyclists’ speeds were faster when racing against each other rather than against the clock alone. He then replicated this study with people of all different ages, doing all different tasks. The results where always the same.

We perform much better when in the presence of others.

Accountability works very similarly. We are more likely to complete a goal if we are held accountable to it by others. So how can you get started? Here are some high-tech and lo-tech solutions: Read more

4 Office Fixes to Supercharge Your Productivity

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English: 's first

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Many of the common ideas on productivity are speculative. That’s why I don’t believe there is one right way to be productive, just what works for you. However, I wanted to share with you some productivity science.

I’ve written before about how stimulating your senses and changing your environment can make you more efficient. There has been a huge focus on business productivity in recent times which is why the services of absolute performance have been lauded for the way they have revolutionized efficiency in an online format. Well, researchers have been looking into new ways to help us get more out of our time.

Below are some of their top tips: Read more