25 Productivity Tips From and For Busy Women – TPW025

In celebration of reaching the milestone of episode 25, I’m sharing 25 great productivity tips–some from listeners, some from special guests, and a few of my own. Thank you so much to all those productive women who contributed their great tips and suggestions for this episode.

25 Great Tips from and for Busy Women

1. Manage your mindset–understand the difference between have to and want to and remember that you always have a choice — from Allison Sheridan from the NosillaCast podcast.
2. Use a timer to motivate yourself — from listener Jackie Middleton.
3. Use the calendar to your advantage — from Melissa Marks of the Blended Family Podcast.
4. Simplify your finances by creating a spreadsheet listing all monthly/annual subscriptions and services — inspired by David Sparks on the Mac Power Users podcast.
5. Manage your stress by learning to say no — from Crystal Krachunis from Faith & Victory Church in Auburn, WA.
6. Pick 2 or 3 “MITs” (Most Important Things) to get done each day — from Lisa Druxman at Fit4Mom.com.
7. Focus on only one thing at a time — from Lisa Druxman at Fit4Mom.com.
8. Make your trips around the house do double duty: never walk from one end of your house to the other (or up or down the stairs) empty handed.
9. Use Evernote to keep track of your lists — from listener Monika Kristofferson, Professional Organizer & Productivity Consultant at Efficient Organization; Find Efficient Organization on Facebook.
10. Start every day with an intention, focus, or meditation. (Find more info about this and other great tips in “The 3 Habits Productive People Find Time for Every Day,” by Daniel DiPiazza on Entrepreneur.com.)
11. Forgo multi-tasking — from Crystal Paine, The Money Saving Mom.
12. Know who you are and what works for you, and don’t let other people’s expectations define you — from writer Karin Beery. (Hear more from Karin in episode 24 of The Productive Woman podcast.)
13. Avoid distraction by listening to instrumental music when doing work that involves reading or writing — from Marie Segares, the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur.
14. Get the whole family involved in creating a family “command center” to keep your family organized — from listener Peppers McBeth from Columbia, SC. For inspiration and ideas, here’s a photo Peppers shared of her family’s project (still in process, she says): the McBeth Organization/Command Center.
15. Remember there’s no tip or answer that works for everybody; other people’s solutions should be adapted to your lifestyle and needs — from Elsie Escobar, Holistic Digital Media Strategist, Dynamic Living Specialist, host of The Feed, and co-host of ShePodcasts. Elsie had more to say on this topic than we had time for in this episode (maybe I can persuade her to come back for a full episode soon!), so if you’d like to hear more of Elsie’s thoughts on this point, email me at feedback@theproductivewoman.com and I’ll be happy to send you the entire recording!
16. Improve your skills, efficiency, and productivity (personal and/or professional) through some of the 3,000+ high-quality video courses at Lynda.com (affiliate link). Thank you to Lynda.com for supporting The Productive Woman podcast and the Noodle.mx network.
17. Consider using a virtual assistant to buy yourself time to focus on the tasks you enjoy and are best at — from listener Monika Kristofferson, Professional Organizer & Productivity Consultant at Efficient Organization; Find Efficient Organization on Facebook.
18. Create a “Not to Do” list — inspired by, and more great tips found in, “10 Quick and Actionable Tips for Productivity” by Hunter Boyle on the Notesmartly blog.
19. Remember that you are the only you out there; outsource work to let yourself focus on what you bring to the table that’s unique and valuable — from Jamie Clark-Samples, CEO of Yellow Barn Media. (Hear more from Jamie in Episode 21 of The Productive Woman podcast.)
20. When you’re procrastinating on a project you want or need to do, just start. Pick one small piece of it, set a timer for 5 minutes, and just get started.
21. Tame the email monster by dealing with email in a smart and efficient way — from Crystal Paine, The Money Saving Mom. Find more great tips from Crystal on her blog.
22. Improve your rest–and therefore your productivity–by banishing your electronics from your bedside table.
23. Make a menu list for the week and shop with the list to be sure you have everything you need for that week’s meals — from listener Jackie Middleton.
24. Improve your focus by listening to the scientifically designed sound tracks at Focus at Will. Learn more about this by listening to Erik Fisher’s conversation with Focus at Will’s founder on Beyond the To Do List.
25. Maintain margin in your life – from Vanessa Hayes, Certified Professional Organizer at Get Simplifized and co-host of Simple Life Together podcast, author of Supermom vs Super Mom: Simplicity Tips for Busy Moms: A Simple Life Guide to Getting Organized, Finding Margin and Embracing Simplicity for Moms (Simple Life Guides for Less Than a Latte Book 1).

What do you think?

Which of these tips will you try? Let us know, or share your own favorite tips or tools for getting things done, by leaving a comment below.

Thank you for celebrating with me!!

Thank you to all the productive women who contributed to this celebration episode. Congratulations to Peppers McBeth and Jackie Middleton, winners in the drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card.

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