“9 Steps to Work Less and Do More” by Stever Robbins (St. Martin’s Griffin, $14.99).
Multitasking destroys focus and productivity. Without focus, productivity falls and stress increases. The more stuff you try to juggle, the farther behind you get. What’s the remedy that marries productivity and peace of mind? Robbins’s “9 Steps”.
1. “Live on purpose” — Define what’s important at work and at play. Ensure your actions honor what’s important. Learn to distinguish between activity (which fills time with thin value) and progress (which gets you closer to your goals).
2. “Stop procrastinating” — Break time into baby steps. Think 10-minute chunks. When you know there’s an end time to working on a task, it heightens your focus on getting as much done in the allotted time.
3. “Computer technology” — Manage it or it will turn you into Pavlov’s dog responding to every ping, ring and vibration. Check your voicemail and e-mail at specific times each day. And temper your compulsion to respond immediately. Just because someone (unless it’s the boss) wants information doesn’t mean that you have to drop everything to satisfy their requests.
4. “Beat distractions to cultivate focus” — Establish boundaries by learning to tactfully say “No” [i.e. “I’m up against a deadline (you should always have your 10-minute deadline), I’ll have some availability … ”]
5. “Stay organized” — File so you can find it. Don’t always think paper files; technology can help here — and you can search for documents easily. Devise forms that help organize your day; part topic, part calendar and part notes expands “to do” lists.
6. “Stop wasting time” — Identify the 20 percent of your tasks that make up 80 percent of your performance measurables. Keep your 20/80 in mind as you evaluate adding new tasks.
7. “Optimize” — create a “learning log” to remind you of what has worked and what hasn’t. Minimize your blind spots by sharing knowledge and asking for input.
8. “Build stronger relationships” — Networking harnesses the strengths of others. People on the same page help one another turn the page.
9. “Leverage” — It’s a numbers game. The more people in your network, the more assistance you may receive when asking for information. Quickly retrieving information from your files provides at-your-fingertips leverage.
Robbins’ bottom line: It’s up to you to stay on mission.
“The Laws of Charisma: How to Captivate, Inspire and Influence … ” by Kurt Mortensen (AMACOM, $21.95).
Mortensen believes that charisma, while innate in some, can be learned by all. The first step (ironically it’s the last chapter) involves what kills charisma. “Talking too much” heads the list. You can’t learn about others by talking about yourself. The gift of listening trumps the gift of gab.
Next is “Showing how much you know.” Trying to show people that you’re the smartest person in the room indicates insecurity, not charisma. Trying to prove how smart you are usually involves one-sided stories and exaggerated details. “Telling” lends no credence to the ability of the audience to respond and execute. The smartest people knows that “they don’t know what they don’t know” and rely on others to fill in their blanks. Charisma holds hands with collaboration.
“Getting too friendly, too fast” makes the don’t-do-it list, too. Relationships can’t be rushed. You have to earn trust and respect by what you do, not by buddying-up with small talk and smooth talk. Relationships build upon satisfied needs and wants. Getting “personal” takes a backseat to understanding what the other needs.
What happens when you kill charisma? You don’t even realize it died; your audience simply ignores you.
Jim Pawlak is a nationally syndicated book reviewer.
