​Time is a non-renewable resource. Once we spend it, we can’t get it back.
Where are you getting good leverage from your time. Where are you not?
One activity I have shared with many professionals over the years is that of a Time Tracker. Our memory is an interesting thing. We may think we’ve spent time one way, when in fact, we’ve spent it in other ways.

This week, you are invited to track where your time is going. Grab a notebook, or an app like TopTracker, or Toggl, to start noting where your time is being spent (in 15 or 30 minute blocks). You’ll want to note things like:

• Commute times
• Time spent on social media (you can now use your iphone to immediately see your usage on different sites)
• At work
• In meetings

At the end of the week, do a summary of where your time was spent.  Ask yourself:

• What’s surprising?
  
• What could be consolidated or changed?
• What’s the impact of spending time as it is?
• What changes do you want to make?
• Where do you want to be more intentional with this?

Tracking is key to productivity. The more aware we can become around where and what we are doing with our time, the better able we can make intentional choices about where this is spent. When operating in a lot of uncertainty (which is the context for many business professionals today, especially remote and virtual professionals) having more control over our choices around time, can help with focus and confidence.
If your year-end schedule is different than the

Best,
​Jennifer

As you consider your work or business right now, where are you getting your results?
The Pareto Principle asserts that you get a bulk of your results from a significant part of your work. It’s also known as the 80/20 rule, specifying that you get 80% of you results from 20% of your activities.
​
Activity:
Identify the key tasks and activities you undertake on regular basis. At this time of year you may want to identify the top 20 activities you have undertaken this week, or this month.

Looking at each activity at a time, which ones are giving you results?
Which activities are taking a lot of time, but not leading to results?

Be careful here as sometimes our actions do not translate into results right away. For example, speaking at an annual conference may not lead to immediate business, however, it could lead to some new connections with decision makers or visibility in your field.

Do a litmus test of what activities are important for planting the seed for longer term initiatives.

As you look at your list of high-impact activities, where are they scheduled?
As you look to lower yielding activities, what can you do to minimize them, outsource them or delegate them? These are activities which may need to be said NO to on the longer term.

As with any activity in time management, we need to put this into practice. What will you do to regularly review this?

Best,
​Jennifer

This week’s Effective Virtual Conversations Tip brings us to #74 in the series. Take a look back at other EVC tips here.

Teams which excel have strong relationships and are clear on what is important to them as a team. They are clear on their results.

An important part of building both relationships and strengthening results is that they have shared team practices or experiences which bring them together.

These will vary from team to team but could include:

• A Monday morning huddle
• An annual team picnic
• The year end holiday party or service activity
• The quarterly team booster shots.

What are the things you do consistently together as a team? What helps to boost your relationships and results?
Are there any additional activities you want to fit in?

Best wishes,
Jennifer

I’m really pleased to announce my latest publication, geared specifically for virtual and remote team members. On December 14th the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner for Remote and Virtual Professionals will be available for sale on Amazon.

Part workbook, part planner, it’s geared for virtual and remote team members, leaders and virtual businesses. Based on the success of the release of the Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner in July, I’ve adjusted the workbook for the virtual and remote team space.

It’s an analog, desk sized calendar, to reflect the importance of having one “Go to” resource to place your “To Dos”, project ideas, content plans and monthly reflections.

Divided into four sections, the workbook covers:

• Virtual and Remote Business Foundations – for teams and also businesses. This includes a series of skill checks and some of the latest stats on virtual and remote work.
  
• The Primer – Success tips and focus areas which you can integrate into your business, or further refine for a great prime.
  
• Marketing Essentials – Whether we are sharing what our virtual team is doing, positioning our services, or going out to promote on social media, the marketing essentials.
  
• The Ecosystem – At the heart of a successful virtual team, business or leader is ourselves. The Ecosystem section focuses on who YOU are as a leader – your strengths, values and opportunities. This section has evolved out of the Inner Business leader Virtual Retreats I have hosted for years.
  

 
The planner section covers Annual, Quarterly and Monthly planning resources, along with a robust content planning section. Including more than 28 resources you’ll find :

• Monthly Trackers – to track different elements for your business
• Annual project planners
• Quarterly Reviews
• Monthly In Focus
• Monthly

The planner pages are undated so you will benefit from starting the resource at any time.

In addition to the workbook and planner, I also host regular virtual events around planning. Each month end I host a virtual reflection hour, and
The workbook is more than 285 pages and costs $29.95. You can pick up a copy on Amazon. 

If this is a topic you are interested in (and most people are at this time of year), do consider joining me for the 14 days of PlanDoTrack series, which includes a mix of live virtual calls (open to everyone), blog posts and some other special events. Check out the daily schedule here and download a copy.
​
Best wishes,
Jennifer

​This week’s Weekly Journaling Prompt is “If I could choose one resource to add for our current challenge, what would it be”? Consider the elements which would help you, individually or as a team, move forward.

If you haven’t joined us for other Weekly Journaling prompts, be sure to check out the Journaling Prompts from the last six months here. 

Why Journal?
“Writing in a journal reminds you of your goals and of your learning in life. It offers a place where you can hold a deliberate, thoughtful conversation with yourself.” – Robin S. Sharma[1]
Here are 10 reasons why journaling can be a valuable process:

1. A place to capture your ideas
2. Clarifying your thinking through writing
3. Reflective pause
4. Prioritization
5. Connecting one dot to another
6. Slowing down the pace
7. Reframing issues
8. Thinking things through via a variety of different perspectives
9. Summary of what’s going on
10. A clearing space to get ideas out of your head into a place you can review at a later date

Think about what benefits journaling would have for you.
​
Enjoy your writing!
Jennifer

[1] https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/benefits-of-journaling/, accessed 11.15.18

This week's #FlashbackFriday takes us back to Teams365 Blog Post #1432. Read it here or below:

"This week's weekend quote comes from Winston Churchill who wrote "Some people dream of success while others wake up and work hard at it". Is there a  project you have been wanting to complete for a while but haven't found the time? Would an extra hour a day move that project forward?

This past month I participated in NANOWRIMO for the third year. It's National Writing Month and by getting up early (a little more than an hour earlier than my usual) I was able to get on paper a new book for virtual team leaders and team members. While many hours of editing lay ahead, to know that it's there to be molded is a great feeling, and one that will let me rest this holiday season. I've come to appreciate the "focused push" I create for myself in a limited time window, so that important projects get attention, and don't swamp every day. Last year's NANOWRIMO project was my latest book, Effective Virtual Conversations. So stay tuned in later 2018 for the new, new book!"

Flashforward to end of 2018...what's interesting is that I've just wrapped up NANOWRIMO for the 4th year in a row. While the manuscript from last year is still in draft form, it spurred on two other publications this year -
The Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner AND
The PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner

I have been enjoying taking professionals of all kinds through 4 hour virtual retreats, supporting them in creating a pause of plan, tackle important projects and consider how they want to track it going forward. Join us for an upcoming PlanDoTrack Retreat and learn more about them here.

What project would you like to move forward? When might be a good time to do a focused push on this?"

Best,
​Jennifer

As we wrap up the year, it’s likely that you may be moving into some of your last team meetings before the holidays.

This week’s Team Building Tip asks you to consider the question “Our greatest impact this year has been….”

Think about the impact you had. You might consider:

• Projects
• Impact on customers
• Impact on internal stakeholders
• Impact on team culture

As you discuss what impact you have had also consider writing it down and having it visible in a place you all can view – ie. Your Intranet, ScreenSaver, or on your project management software.

Best,
​Jennifer

​Welcome back to the 2nd of 19 posts entitled 19 Productivity Hacks
Yesterday’s Productivity Hack #1 was to have a clear vision. Going hand in hand with this is knowing where you are getting your results. Since launching the Coaching Business builder workbook and planner in August, I’ve been hosting a series of month end reflection and planning sessions in a one-hour format. They are turning out to be a popular and focused way to create a pause real-time OR on-demand in a tight process. Learn more about these programs here (and join me for the end of December month end reflection session).

Productivity Hack #2 is about knowing clear of where you are getting your results.

This week it could be useful to do some stock taking of your year. Consider these questions:

• What were your key successes this year?
• What key learning did you undertake?
• What were key relationships which helped you to do your work?
• What accomplishments do you want to note?
• What helped you with your work?
• What metrics do you want to note?

Today I would invite you to grab a pen and notebook and take stock of your ideas. If you prefer to use a device, go ahead, AND note that things are retained differently when done by pen, rather than digitally. Put your reflections in a safe space so you can refer back to them at a future date.

Best, 
​Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), Coaching Business Builder (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Coming December 14, 2018 – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Pre-order a copy today on Amazon
Join us for a year-end virtual planning retreat!

​As we round out 2018 and get set up for 2019, I’m dedicating Tuesday and Wednesday posts to a series I’m entitling 19 Productivity Hacks for 2019.

As some of you may know, support around performance improvement – on the individual, team and organizational level – has been a significant part of my work and our focus here at Potentials Realized since 2004. This takes us into a range of conversations from a focus on team effectiveness to discussion around work-life issues to support to project management.

In these 19 posts over the Tuesdays and Wednesdays in December 2018 and January 2019 I will be lasering into 19 discrete focus areas which can be looked at step-by-step or independently. Depending on how you work and what your style is, you may want to look at each one of these daily or on a weekly basis.

1. Have a clear vision.
The starting point for our 19 productivity hacks for 2019 starts with the big picture. What’s your vision? As Seneca wrote during the times of Ancient Greece,
“To the person who does not know where (S)he wants to go there is no favorable wind”

In other words, without a clear vision it’s hard to get where you want to go.
Creating a vision at this time of year is not just a nice-to-do activity, it is an essential productivity measure as it gets us clear on where we want to go.

Visioning work doesn’t have to take a long time, in fact, you might only dedicate 10 -15 minutes to the activity. Since 2014 I’ve offered up a short 10 minute vision audio for leaders, entrepreneurs and other professionals to listen to. Grab a pen and you can listen in here.

If you prefer to free-style it, set your timer to write and complete the statement
It’s December 31 2019 and……

Provide details about what you are doing this year, what you are focusing on, what’s working and what’s not.

You might also want to use these questions as a prompt.  Consider these questions

It is December 31, 2019 and you are reflecting back on the year that was.
Note:

• What your successes have been?
• Where your focus has been?
• What products or services have you been focusing on offering?
• Who have you have been working with?
• What’s been happening?
• What have you taken a stand for?
• What have you become known for?
• What have been the major milestones?
• What goals have you achieved?
• What’s your vision for the new year? If you haven’t had time to think about it, now’s the time?

I hope that you will find a few minutes in the coming days to reflect on what your vision is for 2019, WRITING it down and possibly posting elements of it around you. Some of my clients have been creating visual reminders on their phone, through vision boards and other elements.

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), Coaching Business Builder (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Coming December 14, 2019 – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner 
Join us for a year-end virtual planning retreat!
Pre-order a copy of the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner for Virtual and Remote Professionals on Amazon (Available December 14). Check it out here.

As we move into the 73rd Effective Virtual Conversations tip, we’re looking at another success factor for high performing teams. This week brings us to number two of six in the ingredients which make up high performance – Shared Performance Goals.
In a virtual team it is really important to be clear on what the performance goals are, so everyone knows what they are aiming for, how things fit together, and what success looks like.
The danger in a virtual team when these things are not clear are:

• Lack of alignment
• Lack of understanding of how one goal fits with another
• Competing Priorities
• Differences in terms of quality of output, if end results are not clear
• Spending time clarifying goals, and what success measures are, are critical when team members do not see each other, and may be reporting to multiple matrix teams at any given time.

Goals are the heart of any team, and it is important to spend time with the team in discussion around this. You may want to dedicate an upcoming team meeting to this and have discussion around:

• What are your key goals?
• How do goals fit together?
• What does success look like around each one?
• What are the standards for work on this team?
• What are the minimums in terms of response time?
• What needs to be communicated, when?
• What are the best channels/appropriate ways to keep everyone updated with respect to their goals?

Enjoy your conversations!
Jennifer