by Kate Evert | Jul 19, 2018 | Human Capital, Productivity, Work Place
Our third entry that draws inspiration from this year’s travels is a video from the BBC Idea’s Habits of the Highly Successful video series. I probably would have missed this video if I were in the US, but one of the many perks of traveling is being exposed to different new stories. In this three-minute video, “Why You Should Always Wear Trainers to Work,” Justine Roberts, founder of the website for parents, Mumsnet, shares four important tips to help you make the best of your career.
Roberts’ advice is a great reminder for daily lives and careers. One of her insights applies not only in the office, but especially when traveling. When talking about running your own business, Roberts says, “It’s almost impossible to fit in everything you want to,” and the same is true of travel. You have to be willing to appreciate the fact that nothing is perfect, and sometimes you have to be willing to “embrace the chaos” around you. Read More Here
p.s. her advice ties in with an article we shared about what do women wear in a casual work environment. Read More Here
by Kate Evert | Jun 27, 2018 | Human Capital, Productivity
Returning from vacation, it only seems fitting to produce something profound on the merits of vacating, being idle, and staring up at the ever-changing clouds. Luckily for me Brian O’Connor, a professor of philosophy at University College Dublin, wrote a significant essay about this very thing for Time while I was away in …Ireland.
He includes a favorite vignette of mine often used in stories on productivity and efficiency. The original, published in 1963 by German writer Heinrich Böll, tells a fictional story of a visitor to a small fishing village somewhere in the West of Europe. In the story the precursor of an efficiency expert thinks he has a way to help this fisherman find more leisure. We were in a fishing village in the most western part of Europe, as I practiced being idle. Yet the pressures of productivity are waves that keep lapping at the shores of modern Ireland. On our last day we met a fascinating artist and entrepreneur. She told us of a movement in Ireland to slow down and have a cup of tea as a way of checking in with people; to see how they are really doing. So perhaps these words in O’Connor’s essay remind us of the ROI on idleness: “…yet Böll’s story captures a recognizable time when work was considered a necessary evil, second in value to other goods like friendship, rest and community.” Read More Here
by Kate Evert | Jun 27, 2018 | Human Capital, Productivity
Returning from vacation, it only seems fitting to produce something profound on the merits of vacating, being idle, and staring up at the ever-changing clouds. Luckily for me Brian O’Connor, a professor of philosophy at University College Dublin, wrote a significant essay about this very thing for Time while I was away in …Ireland.
He includes a favorite vignette of mine often used in stories on productivity and efficiency. The original, published in 1963 by German writer Heinrich Böll, tells a fictional story of a visitor to a small fishing village somewhere in the West of Europe. In the story the precursor of an efficiency expert thinks he has a way to help this fisherman find more leisure. We were in a fishing village in the most western part of Europe, as I practiced being idle. Yet the pressures of productivity are waves that keep lapping at the shores of modern Ireland. On our last day we met a fascinating artist and entrepreneur. She told us of a movement in Ireland to slow down and have a cup of tea as a way of checking in with people; to see how they are really doing. So perhaps these words in O’Connor’s essay remind us of the ROI on idleness: “…yet Böll’s story captures a recognizable time when work was considered a necessary evil, second in value to other goods like friendship, rest and community.” Read More Here
by Kate Evert | Aug 24, 2017 | Productivity, Work Place
There are many people that find it hard to get in a work groove during the summer; this can be even harder if you work remotely. But the second that September comes along, there seems to be a “back to school” mentality that grabs everyone, even if they are not in school!
Here is a great piece we ran across about how remote workers can hunker down and be more productive, but they apply to lots of us! I really like #11, the Fitbit reminders, so that I take my eyes off of the spreadsheet and go get a few steps in … and often this little walk is enough to help me solve that issue I’ve been turning over and over in my head. One of my colleagues swears by #6, #8 is a non-starter with my allergies, and along the lines of #2, I just found some inspiring filing products made by Semikolon!
Read More Here