Top 11 Quotes To Get Your Creative Juices Flowing
Stuck in a creative rut? Here are 11 quotes from some of the most creative minds in history who've felt your pain and emerged victorious. May you find the inspiration to rise above your slump and free the genius inside your mind.
40% More Efficient: Wrike Customers On The Productivity Software Features That Help Them Do Their Best Work
What are some of the daily tools you use to be more productive? Whether it’s a simple pen-and-paper to-do list or an expansive work management software, we all have our go-to solutions for getting work done more efficiently. When it comes to achieving productivity goals, Wrike customers unlock their teams’ potential with features like in-context proofing, timeline and resource management, and workflow automation. As the global workforce has migrated to a more flexible, hybrid-focused way of doing their jobs, we’ve come to rely on software more than ever to help us get more done. There are many challenges to working in a hybrid model, including communication breakdowns, workflow silos, and challenges in keeping up with processes and best practices. With this in mind, we wanted to share the features our customers use to combat these unique obstacles. Who has Wrike helped to be more productive? Wrike has helped over 20,000 organizations worldwide address their productivity challenges and do the best work of their lives, all with our intuitive work management platform. Our customers include household names like Fitbit, Sony Pictures Television, and Nickelodeon, who have all used Wrike’s features in different ways to leverage their teams’ incredible skills. Let’s take, for example, Sony Pictures Television, one of the world’s leading television content providers, with teams in every region of the globe. With such a widespread workforce, Sony found it challenging to scale and manage projects between teams, searching for over a year to find a tool that was flexible enough to manage work across different time zones, work styles, and team structures. With Wrike’s unique features, such as real-time reports, personalized dashboards, and Gantt charts and table views, Sony was able to reduce project delivery times by 40% and reduce their email time by 90%. Which Wrike features can help my team be more efficient? Wrike’s features enable teams in any industry, anywhere, to work together as one — no matter their individual goals or working styles. Users can customize their dashboards and workflows to suit them, enabling teams to fine-tune their processes and get more done, quicker. Features like workflow automation and our 400+ app integrations increase efficiency by simplifying request intake processes and eliminating productivity killers like task and context switching. How much time per day does your team waste searching for a document in an email thread or transferring files between multiple platforms so that different people can add their edits? With Wrike, teams can work on projects in one accessible, centralized hub. Our in-context proofing features mean every team, from creative to HR, can add their insight, without losing any valuable information and feedback. Wrike provides 360° visibility instantly, which is invaluable for team leaders who feel like their workload may be spiraling out of control. Choose how you visualize upcoming projects, tasks and deadlines, and see each member of your team’s dashboards for their individual workloads — making it easier to delegate and streamline from the very beginning. Struggling with request intake across teams? Custom request forms gather details, auto-create, and auto-assign tasks to the right team member, every time — no more confusion over who should handle what. Resource management in Wrike is simplified, too. Shared team calendars allow everyone to see where deadlines and milestones lie, while time-tracking allows users to clearly show how their workload is distributed. Use Wrike’s advanced analytics to monitor progress and team performance, with real-time updates and insights as the project progresses. How can Wrike help me to communicate better with my team? Breakdowns in communication can be one of the most common and debilitating challenges that a team can face during a project. From endless emails to muddled chat threads, the stress of finding the right information, or being unable to reach the right person, can leave teams feeling a lack of motivation to do their best work. With Wrike’s collaborative features, this is a thing of the past. @mentions, real-time editing and updates, and email and chat app integrations allow teams to have one source of truth to communicate from. Rest easy with the knowledge that your project’s deliverables are all being worked on in one place, with input from every relevant team member clearly displayed. Focusing on clear communication allows teams to feel heard and valued, which leads to increased productivity and motivation. Just how much can Wrike help with my organization’s productivity? Need some numbers? We hear you. Check out the below infographic to find out just how much time and effort Wrike can save you on your future projects. Want to find out more about how Wrike can help your team boost its productivity? Take a look at our free two-week trial.
Try Wrike Free for 14 Days!
Improve your team's collaboration, enhance work visibility, and so much more.
5 Tips for Forming Productivity Habits in Your Team (PMI Presentation Recap)
This May 2014, I talked about the formation of new habits at a dinner for the Project Management Institute (PMI), Sacramento Valley Chapter and then again during a live webinar for the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter. Specifically, I shared 5 concrete strategies for forming team productivity habits, while also delving into the behavioral and psychological barriers that affect their success. Since 45% of our everyday actions are habitual, it’s important to make sure they are good ones! Project managers must cultivate the soft skill of knowing how to lead a team toward productive habits despite the staggering statistic that it takes anywhere from 66 days (on average) to eight months to learn a new habit, depending on the habit’s complexity. The 5 Strategies for Forming Productive Habits If you're trying to get your team to adopt productive habits, then here's a very brief rundown of those five strategies: 1. Lead by example: Define the behavior you want the team to exhibit, then practice what you preach. Your team will follow when they see you do it first, and when the benefits of this new habit are clear. 2. Share the power to change: In spreading the new habit, you may need the help of power users or evangelists — enthusiastic team members who can spread the new habit to the rest of the team and even the entire organization. 3. Apply horizontal or vertical rollout: Split up the habit into smaller actions and smaller parts, so that tiny steps can be made. Small wins can motivate the team to take it the rest of the way, no matter how difficult it may be. 4. Motivate your team: Influence the emotional side of your people, not just the intellectual. Give them incentives to practice this new habit. Make it fun. Be creative. 5. Blend new work styles into existing practices: Leverage any existing habits that are useful when trying to "write" new habits onto the team's repertoire. This makes the new habit feel more familiar and ensures a more natural transition. If you want a more detailed discussion on the strategies, watch a recorded webinar on this same topic. Reactions to Change, Reactions to Grief One particular slide which yielded the most conversation from both groups was the image of the classic curve illustrating people’s reactions to change across time: how any change is first met with denial before spiraling into anger, confusion, depression, crisis, then settling into acceptance, and finally new confidence. One of the attendees pointed out that the curve “mimics the stages of grief." It does resemble it very closely, sharing four of the five stages in the Kubler-Ross model (denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance) which are the emotional stages one goes through when facing death or the loss of a loved one. Which makes sense. Learning new habits is a figurative death of sorts: a death to old behaviors and the status quo of the past. In its place, a new habit is born, giving rise to internal friction as the new behavior fights against established habits for dominance. This provided a fruitful discussion about how implementing a new habit shouldn’t be taken too lightly. It should be done with requisite amounts of sensitivity, all while motivating the team to forge better, more productive, behavioral patterns. At the end of the webinar for the PMI San Francisco chapter, they polled the attendees and shared the results with me: 96% said they learned something new from the webinar! And 89% said they learned something new from the presentation that they could apply to their current job. Glad to be of service, PMI! Cartoon Image Credits: Tom Fishburne on Marketoonist
How to Set Up Your Workspace for Maximum Productivity (Infographic)
Take a moment to look at your desk. Are there piles of papers and scribbled notes? Crumpled granola bar wrappers? Photos of loved ones? Cold cups of coffee? Most of us have experienced firsthand how our work environment affects our ability to focus, but it can be difficult to know exactly how you should set up your workspace for optimum productivity. This infographic covers everything from color therapy and helpful music to desk-friendly exercises to help you create an ideal work environment. Check it out! Source: Davitt Corporate Psychology More Resources to Enhance Your Productivity Pick up more quick tips that will help you get things done in our infographic: 50 Productivity Tips to Boost Your Brainpower. Then start a free trial of Wrike to organize all your tasks and burn through your to-dos in record time. Read Next: Free eBook: What Doesn't Kill You Makes You More Productive 20 Top Productivity Apps for Your Mobile Device How Writing Down Your Goals Helps Increase Productivity
Conversations with the Work Apps You Love (& Hate)
When you think about it, today’s technology is pretty incredible. We can talk to anyone, anywhere in the world within seconds. We can access a near infinite amount of information in the blink of an eye. We can store countless documents without filing a single sheet of paper and access them instantly. But that doesn’t mean these apps solve all of our problems—in fact, they sometimes create new ones. These imaginary conversations exemplify the love/hate relationship we have with our favorite work apps. And while they can cause quite a few headaches, our fixes can help provide some relief! 1. Organization FIX IT: Finding the file you need shouldn’t be such an endeavor, but when attachments get buried in lengthy email threads or duplicated into multiple conflicting versions, trying to find the right one gets frustrating fast. Attaching work files directly to the related task in a work management tool keeps information organized and easily accessible. 2. Tracking & Reporting Work Progress FIX IT: Managing work through spreadsheets is time-consuming, overly-complicated, and needs constant attention. Use a tool designed for managing projects that updates in real time, so you don’t have to input changes manually or risk making decisions based on outdated, incomplete information. FIX IT: Use work management software that automatically creates visual reports you can easily share with execs, clients, and stakeholders, without messing with finicky tables and graphs. 3. Communication FIX IT: Clear communication is key to preventing misunderstandings, wasted time, and work that needs to be redone. Technical glitches and assumed intentions just lead to greater frustrations, so establish a formal channel for work conversations and feedback, and leave the informal chats and "watercooler" conversations to your instant messaging apps. 4. Remote Collaboration FIX IT: Anything involving live cameras and microphones is a recipe for awkward moments, which are not only embarrassing, but distract your team and derail productive meetings. A collaboration app keeps all team members aligned and up to date on work status and top priorities no matter where they're located, so you can skip the time-consuming video calls and status meetings. Fix Your Work Tool Frustrations for Good Know any great workarounds for these annoyances? Share them with us in the comments below! Then start a free Wrike trial to easily communicate, collaborate, organize, and track work progress with your team.
Customers Share How Much Time and Money They Save With Wrike (Infographic)
Wondering how much companies save when they choose Wrike? By empowering their teams with the most versatile work management platform, companies like Fitbit, Nickelodeon, Siemens, Aerotek, and Arvig see huge gains in productivity, project speed, and cost savings. An effective work management platform can do more than just help you manage your to-do list. Wrike customers are leveraging the power of automation, resource management, and 400+ integrations to embrace agility and scale across global teams and departments. Wrike saves companies thousands each year and hundreds of productive hours Wrike helps teams communicate effectively, collaborate from anywhere, and accomplish more in less time — but what does that look like in practical terms? For some of our customers across industries and sizes, that’s: 250% more projects managed (Arvig) $832,000 saved over three years (House of Design) 400 hours of meeting time saved (Fitbit) Wrike customers can amplify time savings, supercharge team productivity, and unlock speedier project delivery no matter their size or industry. Still need more convincing? Check out our infographic below to learn more about the ROI of Wrike and how companies save more, do more, and grow more with our flexible work management tools and features. Ready to discover the productivity benefits of choosing Wrike? Try our savings calculator to see how much you could regain in productive hours and money. Learn firsthand why 2 million+ users worldwide trust Wrike to help them do the best work of their lives. Try our free two-week trial and experience flexible, intuitive, all-in-one work management designed with productive teams in mind.
Two More Ways to Easily Create Comments and Tasks in Wrike from Your Inbox
We’ve heard from many of you that forwarding your emails to Wrike and replying to notifications, as well as our unique Outlook and Apple Mail add-ins are extremely helpful in your day-to-day work. On our forum, you also shared some cool ideas for perfecting these features so that they suit your needs even better. As we are passionate about making you more efficient, we didn’t hesitate to bring them to life and generate new simple ways to create tasks and comments from your email account. We’ve heard from many of you that forwarding your emails to Wrike and replying to notifications, as well as our unique Outlook and Apple Mail add-ins are extremely helpful in your day-to-day work. On our forum, you also shared some cool ideas for perfecting these features so that they suit your needs even better. As we are passionate about making you more efficient, we didn’t hesitate to bring them to life and generate new simple ways to create tasks and comments from your email account.Emailing tasks into the required folder is now as easy as 1-2-3 There’s the good old way to email tasks into a particular folder by putting its name into the subject line, but what if there are several folders with the same name? To prevent any confusion or mistakes when emailing tasks, you can now use the folder’s unique ID number. Are you wondering how you will know the ID number? This is easy – go to “Folder info” and click on the permalink right above the folder name. Once you have the number, you can create tasks in this folder just by sending an email to [email protected], where 123 is the folder ID. If you add the folders that you use most often to your contact book, the process will be simplified to choosing a recipient.Add comments to tasks while skipping the “Re:” step Imagine the situation: you need to send an e-mail to your client and at the same time save it as an update to a task. In case you don’t want to confuse him with a long e-mail subject with brackets and other specific syntax, simply add [email protected] as a CC to your e-mail! To obtain the task ID, just copy it from the “Permalink” on the top left of the task pane. You then add the ID number into the address line, write your comments in the body of the email, and that is it! No need to dig deep into your inbox for a particular task notification in order to reply! We’d love to know what other things could make email integration even more convenient for you and are eager to read your ideas in our voting forum!
4 Weird Ways to Trick Yourself into Being Productive
Productivity is often times an internal struggle: The Lazy You vs. The Motivated You. The Lazy You says, "It's not due today, let's wait a few more hours to get started." The Motivated You says, "The faster you get this out of the way, the faster you can move on to something even more interesting!" For serial procrastinators, your lazy side can be extremely detrimental. Procrastinating leads to high stress levels, last-minute scrambles, and sometimes, missed deadlines. Improving your productivity is about learning how to fight back against your lazy impulses. And sometimes you'll have to pull a few tricks out of your sleeve to win. Try out these slightly strange suggestions and see if they help engage The Motivated You: 1. Talk to Yourself Musing out loud is a perfectly acceptable activity for the mentally stable worker. It can help build your self-confidence and calm your brain, and studies have indicated that talking to yourself can improve task performance. When you need to buckle down, encourage yourself with a little pep talk. "I start my day by asking these questions: 1) What would be the most fun to do? 2) What will make me the most money? 3) What will make me money right away? — If possible, I will start with the activity that gets all 3 taken care of first." —Sophie Mihalko, Facilitator of Consciousness, SophieMihalko.com Two things to remember when tricking yourself into being productive with private speech: 1. Switch up your pronouns. Address yourself in third person, or use "you" instead of "I" (e.g. "You did great today!"). Studies show it helps achieve better results. 2. Speak in positives. Negative words lead to negative mindsets — and that's not going to convince you to get more done. 2. Set Up Competitions: You vs. You This works especially well for competitive spirits, but can also work for the non-competitive. Challenge yourself to beat a personal record at work, or get things done faster than you expect. Got a boring task ahead? Give yourself an hour and race against your own procrastination. It might just keep you on track, so you don't feel tempted to check your social media accounts mid-task. "If I allot myself an hour to do something I'll see how fast I can get it done." —Jazmin Truesdale, CEO, Mino Enterprises Racing against the clock is one idea for self-competition, but that's not the only way you can compete against yourself: treat yourself to your favorite coffee drink when you finish a challenging task, or turn off your phone (nooo!) until you're done with a project. Share some of your other ideas in the comments! 3. Schedule Future Emails on Sunday... and CC Yourself If you're someone who starts work on Sunday to get a jumpstart on your week, you might actually be undermining your motivation. Completing several little tasks makes you feel accomplished and helps encourage your sense of "Don't stop now!" By doing all that work on Sunday, you've robbed yourself of little mood boosters throughout the week. But we're not suggesting you stop scheduling emails on Sunday — in fact, it's a pretty smart productivity trick if you can make it work for you. Instead, take this tip from Orun Bhuiyan at SEOcial: CC yourself on those emails so they show up in your inbox once they're sent. Seeing your own email will be a nice reminder of what you've already gotten done this week, and can give you that motivational nudge you need to keep up the good work. "Every Sunday I'll schedule emails to go out Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning (I CC myself so I can remember what I sent). It's amazing how watching my past-self email people invigorates my drive and motivates me to work, but it does. It's a tremendous boost when I'm having a rough day." —Orun Bhuiyan, Co-founder & Marketing Technologist, SEOcial 4. Smile at the Mirror "No matter what you do, always start your day at work with a smile. (I have tried it. When you frown and enter your workplace, nothing goes right.)" —Yuimi Vashum, Outreach Manager, WiseCalvin.com You've probably heard this one before: smiling, even when you don't want to smile, is actually beneficial for your mood. For all you naysayers who say, "But it's not real happiness! It's not the same!" True, it's not the same. But just because it is a different type of happiness doesn't mean it can't be helpful. In an interview with Harvard psychology professor Daniel Gilbert on the psychology of happiness, he says: "Let’s be careful with terms. Nylon is real; it’s just not natural. Synthetic happiness is perfectly real; it’s just man-made." So when you're tired, bored, or just fighting off The Lazy You, take a break to go smile at yourself in the mirror. Channel your inner 3-year-old and make funny faces at yourself. Do a little jig. Laugh at how absolutely ridiculous you feel — and if someone walks in on you in the middle of your "Thriller" reenactment, convince them to take the next two minutes and join the fun! You'll go back to work feeling rejuvenated, motivated, and a little bit closer to your new bathroom buddy. Be Weird, Be You, Be Productive No single productivity tip works for every person who tries it out; that's why we spend so much time talking about different options. So let us know, have you ever used any of these tips to be more productive? If these aren't your cup of tea, what productivity tips have worked well for you? Share your weirdest method in the comments!
Productivity Experiments that Shaped the Way We Work
As the Industrial Revolution swept America in the late 1700s to the early 1800s, managers started to become more interested in productivity. Over the coming decades, Congress passed safety regulations that sought to improve working conditions and put a cap on the amount of hours that employees could work each day. At the same time, sociologists began studying exactly what influences productivity — and their experiments continue to shape the way we work centuries later. All of this research has revealed some timeless insight into human behavior, motivation, and how these factors affect productivity. The Hawthorne Effect One of the most famous studies on productivity set out to pinpoint exactly which variables influence individual performance. Researchers began with two groups: a control group, and a group whose environment they adjusted. Over time, the researchers improved lighting, altered working hours, moved break times, and shuffled other environmental factors. What they found was that whenever they made a change, productivity increased — while the control group held steady. Perhaps more interesting was the fact that any change, whether positive or negative, led to greater productivity. This held true even when all the environmental factors were returned to their original state. As it turns out, worker morale was boosted by the simple fact that the company was interested in making changes and showed concern about their work environment and well-being. Even if employees didn’t necessarily like the changes, they were bolstered by the fact that managers were trying to make improvements, which directly improved their productivity. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs In 1943, psychologist Abraham Maslow published a paper that outlined a 5-level hierarchy of individual needs. The idea was simple: if a person’s simplest and most basic needs weren't being met, they wouldn't feel motivated to achieve at a higher level. You have to start at the bottom and meet every need along each rung of the ladder in order to encourage high performing employees. The 5 Levels Physiological: in the workplace, this means food, water, and a comfortable place to work. Safety: this goes beyond immediate safety concerns and also involves financial security, health, and well-being. Belonging: feeling connected to others in the workplace and forming friendships. Esteem: feeling confident in their abilities and respected by others. Self-actualization: feeling that they can achieve anything and reach new levels of success within the company. Addressing each level of this hierarchy creates a happier and more productive employee. Expectancy Theory The Expectancy Theory takes a close look at motivation and what drives workers to try and reach their full potential. In 1964, Victor H. Vroom theorized that people make choices based on whether they think the results of their behavior will lead to desired outcomes. Essentially, all our choices come down to three basic elements: Expectancy: the belief that the effort you put in will result in your desired outcome. This is often influenced by individual confidence levels and the perceived difficulty of the desired goal. Instrumentality: the belief that you will be rewarded if you meet expectations. Valence: how much value you place on the reward. Workers need to believe that they will be acknowledged and rewarded with something valuable if they meet or exceed productivity expectations. Employers have to determine what rewards employees truly want, clearly communicate what those rewards are, and be consistent in handing out rewards for excellent performance. Higher Pay Doesn’t Increase Productivity It would be easy to assume more money equals stronger incentive, increased productivity, and greater work satisfaction — and more recent studies tend to focus on that relationship between money, rewards, and happiness. Somewhat surprisingly, however, the research shows that while happiness does affect productivity, money isn’t a large part of the equation. Some compelling statistics to consider: 87% of workers are disengaged at work Unhappy workers are 10% less productive Unhappy, unproductive workers cost companies around $500 billion a year Happiness improves productivity by 12% So how can companies create happier employees — and boost the bottom line in the process? The answer is to invest money in employee support programs instead of just raising wages. We are seeing this trend across the nation as more employers offer benefits like paid family leave, unlimited paid vacation days, health and wellness centers, and work from home opportunities. Essentially, this is another example of the Hawthorne Effect at work. When employees feel like their well-being is a priority, they are more productive. All of these theories distill down to a single simple truth: workers, no matter what industry or century, want to feel safe and appreciated. If companies make an effort to invest in their workers' happiness and well being, they will improve productivity. Investing in better benefits, increased employee support, and improved workplace conditions rather than simply handing out raises yields a bigger return on investment, because time and time again, studies prove that happy employees are more productive employees. Author Bio: Mike Hanski writes for Bid4papers. His productivity secret is simple: do what you like. And ear plugs. In that order. You can find Mike on Google+. Productivity Tips for the Modern Workplace Browse our collection of research-backed productivity tips, then put them into action and boost your team's productivity with a free trial of Wrike. Related Reads: 50 Productivity Tips to Boost Your Brainpower (Infographic) 20 Top Productivity Apps For Your Mobile Device How Writing a Journal Helps Increase Personal Productivity
Silicon Valley vs. Beijing: Who’s More Productive? (Work Management Roundup)
Welcome back to the weekly Work Management Roundup where we collect and curate the week’s best reads in work and management. This week, we talk a lot about productivity. We lead off with an article on Beijing's workaholic startups and continue with discussions on busy work vs. productive work, and why we need new ways to measure the productivity of our workers. Read on for more!
5 Inspiring Productivity Tips from the Book <i>Manage Your Day-to-Day</i>
With so many productivity books around and so many authors proclaiming themselves productivity experts, it's rare to find a book that dishes out really useful advice and inspires you to change for the better. The book Manage Your Day-to-Day: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus, and Sharpen Your Creative Mind (The 99U Book Series) is a collection of essays written by an array of thought leaders and productivity authors. Each section is a treasure trove of wisdom written as short, easily digestible blog posts (they all originally appeared as posts on 99U's website) or brief Q&A interviews. The book allows you to pick and choose topics that interest you, so there's no need to read it in chronological order — just pick a section and go. Note that this book was published in 2013, which may put off those of you looking for the latest greatest self-help tome. But trust me: the productivity tips and strategies laid out here are timeless. And the benefits are priceless for anyone willing to work more meaningfully in this world of information overload and constant distraction. Here are the top 5 productivity tips I feel are the most helpful from the massive amount of advice the book gives you: 1. Productivity Happens First Thing Both Mark McGuinness and Tony Schwartz suggest you do the most important things — the activities that add the most long-term value — during the first part of your work day. The first 60-90 minutes is especially crucial as this is when your energy is high and your mind fresh. Do all reactive work second, when your creative energy has been depleted and the ideas aren't flying as quickly. In my work as a copywriter, this translates to writing new articles in the morning and going through the editing jobs assigned to me in the afternoon. But if you're a nocturnal musician this might mean writing songs when you wake up at noon and answering email in the evenings. 2. Use Progression Markers to Display Productivity Dan Ariely presents the idea of using progression markers to list work that's been done. Especially for knowledge work where there is rarely any tangible evidence that you've done much, keeping a daily log or past iterations of your work is a great way to track all the tasks you've completed. A similar idea is the Anti-ToDo List, or what one of our readers calls his Ta Da List, where instead of listing todos, you list everything you got done that day. 3. Alternate Connecting and Unplugging Scott Belsky passionately advocates for balancing your life between being connected or "plugged in" to the deluge of information — our work emails, our Twitter stream, our Wrike notifications — and unplugging in order to be "more present." These windows of non-stimulation allow us to think, digest, plan, and create. It may sound fairly logical on the surface, but any modern knowledge worker knows how easy it is to lose yourself in the addiction to constant alerts, pings, and updates. This is why Cal Newport suggests you defend your creative time by blocking it out on your calendar just like a meeting. People are less likely to disturb you if you're booked, and you carve out a productive time for yourself. 4. Be Conscientious About Tech Habits Linda Stone argues that information overload isn't due to the availability of information. It's our fault for over-consuming! This overconsumption is leading to a host of very real, very physical effects: sedentary lifestyles, chronic stress, overconsumption of food, even screen apnea — the temporary cessation of breath when in front of a screen. We have to be conscious of the physiology of technology so that it doesn't negatively impact our bodies and our ability to be productive. And we have to work at being more active away from all our various screens. In a similar vein, James Victore says we're losing the capability to distinguish between urgent and important. By prioritizing all the external pings of unread emails or Facebook messages, we are choosing others' needs over our own. Plus we're leashing ourselves to our electronic devices, always at their beck and call. The solution is really to take ownership of our time and to better choose where we direct our attention. 5. Engage in "Unnecessary Creation" Possibly the most important tip of these five, Todd Henry advises that we engage in "unnecessary creation" — personal time to explore possibilities, accomplish side projects, learn new skills, and pursue experiments for the sake of self-expression. This isn't a suggestion either. It's a serious requirement for all knowledge workers and those who depend on creativity for their livelihood. Why? It allows you to find your voice and develop yourself. It also allows you to do risky projects that may not have an avenue within your workplace. And it fills up your well of creative energy so you can face your daily work tasks with renewed vigor. Start by writing "morning pages"— three pages of handwritten, stream-of-consciousness style journalling upon waking up. This technique, developed by writer and creativity coach Julia Cameron, allows you to do a brain dump and clear your mind of all its concerns so you can face the day fresh. It also allows you to play with new ideas. A good next step is to block out time on your calendar for quiet, creative time where you can engage in some unnecessary creation. What's on Your Reading List? Have you read any inspiring books on creativity and productivity recently? Tell us about it in the comments. Read next: 44 Productivity Hacks to Turn Procrastination Into Action How to Increase Productivity at Work: 6 Mind-Switching Hacks Creative Block? 5 Surprising Ways to Spark Creativity
5 Fixes for the Major Headaches of Working via Mobile Device
So many of us rely on our smartphones to get work done during commutes or to check in on important projects after hours. But as convenient as mobile devices can be, they weren't designed for work productivity. Respondents to our recent mobile productivity survey identified their top stressors when working via their mobile devices. Read on to discover some of the biggest obstacles to mobile productivity, along with some effective remedies to help you get more done on the road. 1. "It's difficult to do detailed work or long-form writing." We all know squinting at a smartphone screen and clumsily thumb-typing our way through a complex thought or long set of instructions is a headache. So why insist on trying? Instead, use the annoyance of typing on a mobile device as motivation to keep email messages, directions, and feedback actionable and to the point. Use the constraint to your advantage, and instead of trying to compose an entire project or presentation on your iPhone or Galaxy Note, focus on creating a tight outline and logical plan that you can flesh out when you're back on your laptop. If you really need to expand an idea, invest in a good Bluetooth keyboard so you can type longer stuff anywhere. 2. "I'm often interrupted by incoming calls or message notifications." Luckily, most smartphones now have a Do Not Disturb function that can block incoming calls and notifications with the toggle of a switch. On both iOS and Android, you can set a timer on Do Not Disturb so you can work uninterrupted for an hour or two, then automatically receive your recent notifications and attend to any missed calls or messages. 3. "It's difficult to use multiple applications at once." Use an app like Workflow or IF by IFTTT to connect apps and automate multi-step tasks. Instead of opening several different applications to record and upload a voice memo to Evernote, for example, you can create a workflow to accomplish the same task with just one tap. Better yet, browse the workflows other people have created for inspiration and to easily grab the most useful shortcuts. 4. "Spelling issues & autocorrect slow me down." Instead of trying to type complete thoughts and long paragraphs on a tiny mobile keyboard, use a handwritten note-taking app to jot down ideas in your own handwriting, without getting tripped up by autocorrect. Try Notes Plus for iPad, or Squid for Android, Windows phones, and Kindle. If your handwriting is as illegible as mine, however, you might opt for a dictation app like Dragon Dictation instead. 5. "I'm distracted by other apps like Instagram or Candy Crush." Apps like Focus block a set of chosen apps (social media, personal email, games, etc.) for a set period of time so you're forced to stay on task. Plus, you can always use the lure of your favorite mobile game as motivation to complete an important task and reward yourself for a job well done. Boost Your Mobile Productivity Get more done at the office and on the go wth Wrike! Start a free trial and download the free mobile apps for iOS and Android. Read More About Major Mobile Productivity Trends Affecting Work Interested in other insights on mobile productivity? Download the full report of results from our survey to discover just how much we rely on our mobile devices for work, the surprising impact on our work-life balance, and how current mobile work trends will impact how we collaborate with colleagues in the coming years.
What You Need to Know About Work Order Management
Offices aren’t exempt from needing work done every once in a while. Maybe you’ve needed the printer repaired, made a standard maintenance call such as an air filter replacement, or appliances in the breakroom stopped working suddenly. These are just a few examples of times when a work order — the connecting communication between you as the customer, the work that needs to be completed, and the vendor — comes in handy. We’ve pulled together everything you need to know about work order management and how a work order management system can help your business thrive. What is a work order? A work order (sometimes referred to as a WO) is a document that describes in detail the work between a customer and a contractor. It’s the bridge between a customer’s needs and the work they want to have done to get them from where they are to where they want to be. Contractor work orders are the backbone of service and maintenance industries. Generally speaking, a work order includes a description of the job, with cost estimates that include labor, materials, and other applicable fees. Special instructions or other agreed-upon terms may also be included depending on the type of work, along with customer information for invoicing purposes. These documents are useful in scheduling and assigning work and for managing resources and deploying them to execute the work. You may be most familiar with work orders for maintenance requests — think about when you’ve needed a maintenance service, such as work completed by a mechanic on your car. But work orders come in handy for other industries, especially for facility management, maintenance technician requests, computer services, and ultimately any other work completed by general contractors. Who receives work orders? Once a work order gets created, whether by hand or through an automated system, it gets assigned to a technician or contractor who will be executing the work. The person or team responsible for completing the job receives a work order, accepts it, and then schedules or assigns the job out as needed. Using maintenance requests as an example, a technician generally receives work orders from a maintenance supervisor or manager. This is how work gets assigned to the right people. Once assigned, the technician can prioritize the work order against their current list of requests. In some cases, the work order might not be sent outside of the organization if the request was created internally and is going to be fulfilled by someone with the organization. Think of the IT team as an example. Perhaps an employee needs assistance with their work equipment that the IT department can provide. In this case, your organization should define who should be responsible for receiving work orders and assigning them out. Are there different types of work orders? Not all work orders are the same or serve the same purpose, and there are a few different ways to think about work orders based on the job that needs completing. Let’s break down some of the types of work orders you might encounter based on the need. But keep in mind, work orders can be flexible based on the industry and type of work. Where is the work coming from? Internal work order: The request originated within the organization and will also get assigned to someone within the organization. Your contractor, in this instance, is another direct employee rather than an external contractor. Internal resource planning is key for this type of work order. External work order: The request originated outside of the organization. If the request originated outside of the organization, you may or may not be aware of the issue beforehand. Was the problem planned for? Planned work order: The work was planned for and may deal with preventative maintenance or a recurring schedule of work. Routine maintenance checks in the office, such as testing fire alarms, would appear on planned work orders. Unplanned work order: The work was unexpected or unknown in advance. In these instances, we can think about things like a laptop crashing and needing repairs or replacement. How is the work going to be scheduled? Manual work order: As the title suggests, this type of work order is scheduled manually, often following a work request. This might require making a phone call or reaching out via email to set up a timeframe to complete the work. Automatic work order: These work orders can be automatically scheduled using work order software. If you know when the next work order will need to be planned or collect data that could indicate that it’s time for another work order to be placed, scheduling software can take the manual scheduling off your hands. Free work order template Work orders don’t need to be overly complex. In fact, keeping your work order simple and straightforward is the best way to go. So, what should you include in your work order? Here are the nuts and bolts sections that an effective work order needs. Company contact information: All work orders should include the company name, address, phone number, email address, and other critical contact information. This is especially important if your work order will be sent to an external contractor. Work order number and title: Designate a unique number to assign to the work order. This is key for organizational and reference purposes. You can also add a title for an added layer of description. Key dates: Include all of the dates associated with the work — meaning when the work is expected to start, finish, and space for the actual completion date when the work order is closed out. This helps prevent deadline issues or confusion about when work should be completed by. Priority level: When handling multiple work orders, assigning a priority level can help determine which contractor work orders take precedence over or have dependencies on others. Setting a priority can be helpful for the contractor assigned to the work too. They’ll need to know if your request is urgent, and they should bump your work order to the top of their to-do list. Who is performing the work: Name the assignee, vendor, or internal team member responsible for finishing the job. Job description: Arguably, the most important part of your work order is the description of the job. Lay it all out in this section. Describe the work that needs to be done, requirements needed to complete the job, materials required, and the total cost. Don’t forget to add in labor charges, taxes, and fees. You can also include billing and payment information as you see fit for invoicing purposes. Location-related details: If applicable, include the location where the contractor or vendor should complete the work. Perhaps the work needs to happen in a specific office space, for example. Include the office number to ensure the work occurs in the right place. Work order best practices Work order management can be inefficient and ineffective if the right processes and systems aren’t in place. From how to organize work orders to prioritizing requests accordingly and everything in between — establishing work order best practices ensures you’re setting your team up for ongoing success. Here are some best practices to keep in mind when building out your work order processes in your business. 1. Designate approving authorities for various types of work orders It’s important to identify staff members who can approve work orders and for all team members to have a clear understanding of who the approving authorities are. Especially for contractor work being completed by an outside vendor, having approving authorities in place can help prevent bottlenecks in work not being completed on time. 2. Establish priority definitions for your work orders and categorize them accordingly Work order prioritization helps ensure that any critical issues are taken care of prior to any other work, preventing them from getting lost in a backlog. If your organization handles a lot of internal work orders, prioritizing these requests will also allow you to guide your team’s workload and allow you to better manage your internal resources. 3. Assign tasks to appropriate team members If you’re pushing work orders through your organization and your team is fulfilling requests, be mindful when assigning the work orders out. Learn and know your team’s strengths and weaknesses so that you can use their capabilities to your advantage, making the entire work order process more seamless. 4. Organize all of your work orders for quick reference Once you close your work order, it should be stored with other files in an organized system. Maybe you store your work orders by request type, vendor name, or by month of completion. No matter what method you choose, ensure that all work orders are closed out and stored accordingly. 5. Automate your work orders to reduce human errors and improve efficiencies Managing work orders the old-fashioned way on paper and spreadsheets leaves room for human error and inefficiencies. Centralizing the entire process using work order software or a work order management system helps ensure that your team is highly productive, efficient, and accurate. What to look for in a work order management system Gone are the days of traditional work orders. Written requests on paper are subject to getting lost or misfiled. Spreadsheets can be helpful, but they still require a great deal of manual entry and aren’t always ideal for moving quickly. What’s a work order management system, and how can it help? Put simply, it’s software that can help you organize your work orders and streamline processes for your teams. Known for enhancing operational practices, work order management systems are finding their place within organizations. Research suggests that the work order management systems market is expected to reach $836 million in 2026 as the demand for these systems continues to increase. These systems vary in capability, which means you can choose one that works best for you and your organization. Not sure where to start? Here are a few things to think about when selecting a work order management system. Is the system easy to use? Remember that the purpose of implementing a work order management system is to streamline processes and create efficiencies, which means the system should be user-friendly. You want to manage work orders with a few simple clicks, not a lengthy process that will bog your team down. What information are you looking to house in your work order management system? Clearly define your goals and expectations of the system before you begin your search. Know what your non-negotiables are, such as having the ability to track all work orders, no matter what type. Perhaps you’re looking to run certain kinds of reports. Specific requirements identification will set you on the right track to finding the best system for you and your team. How necessary are customization and flexibility for you and your team? No two organizations manage and organize work orders in the same way, and no two work order management systems are identical either. There are a variety of systems available, and some come with more customization and feature options than others. Consider your short and long-term plans to determine how flexible a system you need to fit your team’s current needs and potential future needs. What’s your budget? Understanding all costs associated with a work order management system will help you determine whether it falls in your budget or not. Learn about the cost to purchase the system, whether there are individual licensing charges, training fees, support costs, and any additional monetary considerations that need to be accounted for. It’s important to know who will be using the system now and how that might grow and affect future costs. Understand the ROI of implementing a system versus manual work to manage the work orders. How to organize your work orders with Wrike For teams that are looking for a work order management software that is flexible and easy-to-use, Wrike is a great option for streamlining and organizing processes. Wrike makes it easy to set up request forms that both internal and external teams can use to submit project or work requests. Those forms are easily customizable so that you can get all of the information you need. The best part? Wrike can automatically create a templatized project from that request form, meaning that you and your team can spend less time understanding the work request or order — and more time working. R
How to Stay Motivated at Work: The Science of Productive Breaks [INFOGRAPHIC]
When you are feeling overloaded, instead of pushing harder, a wise thing to do might be to take a short break. As we discussed in one of our previous posts, short breaks can revive your productivity and decrease tension. We looked deeper into the matter and put together some interesting facts, as well as practical advice on how to stay fresh and productive throughout the day. Here’s a guide to productive breaks in our new infographic! What kind of break works best for your productivity? Do you have your own motivational song? Are short breaks supported in your organization?
They've Already Tried the New Wrike. Have You?
nathanelliott @itsChance I'm loving @wrike for online collaborative project management / timeline. You should check it out.bradmcdiarmid Looking for an alternative to Microsoft's SharePoint? Check out the easy to use Wrike at https://www.wrike.com/r/1L3IU motherlake_jp Have you tried the project management tool "Wrike"? It's really nice. Like Basecamp + Gantt chart. https://www.wrike.com/r/5XIGVvarithk PM SOFTWARE Wrike works fine for merareplay > Allows you to share plans and work on them together: https://www.wrike.com/ StephGeyer Have started using wrike.com for project management. Use this referral link if you want to check it out, too. https://www.wrike.com/r/D2RFCbionicturtle our essential virtual business tools are @wrike (PM), @xero (accounting), @dropbox (files), @diigo (link, research collab)bionicturtle i am liking the new @wrike betalauraschulz Playing with my newfound toys at #w2e: Wrike.com (proj man.), iPlotz (wireframing), raven cloud (process design).harrymahardhika Project Management Software, Project Planning Software, Time Tracking Software: Wrike https://ff.im/jnry9tinyrooster @cherylprolapse activecollab is full-featured but pricey! I liked wrike the best of ones you mentioned, looks easy to use and not overkillAchint Glad to be Finally moving up from Excel for our Project Mgmt. Love the visual time-lines of Wrike Thanks for spreading the word about Wrike! To keep up with all our news and recent updates, follow @wrike on Twitter.
10 Workplace Productivity Tips From People Who Actually Use Them (Video)
What's more annoying than sitting around in an unproductive funk all day? How about trying to get yourself in the mood to work by trying out productivity tips that have never actually helped anyone? No thanks! (Last week I did a handstand against a wall in the office to "get my blood flowing." It just made me dizzy.) So we did some research at Wrike HQ to see what our coworkers are doing to stay focused in the office. Their first suggestion was to stop doing handstands. And then they shared some insightful advice from their own tried-and-true productivity arsenal, including: Color-coding your calendar by activity type Starting off your day by helping your colleagues with their work Looking around at your desk space — and fixing it up to make it a better space for focusing Watch our quick three-minute video to hear ten pieces of advice that are actually helping office workers get more done, straight from the mouths of our most productive Wrikers: What productivity tips have you tried? Are you a productivity junkie? Have you tried every productivity tip you could find online, along with a few of your own homespun concoctions? Let us know what has helped you focus during a long day in the office (and what doesn't help at all) — we all want to learn from your experience. Here's to a more productive workplace for all! Related Reads: 16 Simple Motivation Tips to Get More Done (Infographic) 6 Reasons Your Marketing Plan Isn’t Working (+ New Welcome to DroneCo Comic) 4 Problems with Virtual Meetings that You Can Fix
Tip of the Day: Assign Tasks with Drag-and-Drop
Here’s another handy tip to save more of your precious time. If you like Wrike's drag-and-drop support, don’t forget to use it when you assign tasks.Here’s another handy task management tip to save more of your precious time. If you like our drag-and-drop support, don’t forget to use it when you assign tasks. The ability to assign tasks with drag-and-drop is particularly helpful when you create tasks for yourself. Instead of typing your name in the search field, just drag your picture from “Author” to the “Assigned” area, drop it into the yellow spot and – voilà! The task is assigned to you. The same trick also works if you need to reassign a task to one of the past assignees or to people with whom the task is shared. Pretty nice if you have dozens of users and collaborators on your team, isn’t it? Watch our screencast to see exactly how it works and try it right away in your workspace! Managing tasks will become so much easier!