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Mike M. was a senior manager for one of my large corporate clients, butyou wouldn't know he was on the fast track if you looked at his office. Heworked long hours, felt pressured, and was always playing catch up. Mike wasunresponsive to requests and missed key deadlines. His company's uppermanagement had reached the end of its patience, so I was called in to helpMike with his productivity. It didn*t occur to him that he could lose hisjob; he thought his past successes would carry him through. It took us threemonths to turn a potential disaster into a triumph. It's three years later,and Mike still sends me a thank you note each year on the anniversary of ourturnaround sessions.

This situation is not uncommon. I work with hundreds of companies andthousands of individuals every year. My hands-on coaching experience-plusthousands of interviews and email surveys-has enabled me to identify the tenmain factors affecting personal productivity in the workplace. The firstletter of each factor spells the word *PRODUCTIVE*:

1. P reparation-This competency relates to how well you*ve planned andlaid the foundation for your daily activities. If you excel in thiscompetency, you are PROACTIVE, rather than REACTIVE. Most people don*t havewell-articulated goals. Perhaps you don*t know how to set them. Perhapswriting goals down seems like too much effort, or you simply haven*t takenthe time to write them. It's worth the work to create a plan, because thegoals you set will provide direction for your life and focus youractivities. You must translate your lofty, long-term goals into actionabletasks you can work on today.

2. R eduction-This competency has to do with how well you eliminate timewasters in your daily activities. If you excel in this competency, you areASSERTIVE, rather than PASSIVE in allowing people to dictate your schedule.With a finite amount of time available, if you wanted to get more done, thetemptation is to go faster and work more hours. However, productivity is notabout squeezing more into your days. You must reduce *speed bumps*-thingsthat waste your time. Speed bumps exist at organizational, departmental, andindividual levels. They could include administration, too many meetings,unnecessary levels of bureaucracy, too much red tape, or unclear priorities.YOU can also be a speed bump-the causal factor in wasting precious time. Youmust eliminate speed bumps, so you can create the space to accomplish theimportant.

3. O rder-This competency relates to your level of organization. If youexcel in this competency, you have SYSTEMS, rather than PILES. You can findwhat you want, when you want it, in thirty seconds or less. How well do youcontrol the paper, email, reading material, and inputs into and out of youroffice? Order is your ability to sort, filter, and process this informationeffectively. It's how tidy your work areas look, inside and out. Beingorganized will give you more control over your life and time. You must findthe time and the self-control to start achieving more of the things you wantto do through proper systems.

4. D iscipline-This competency refers to your ability to maintainconsistent, productive behavior. If you excel in this competency, youcomplete what you MUST do, rather than what you WANT to do. Are youpersistent in completing your high priority tasks, without getting sidelinedby menial activities? Do you put your nose to the grindstone each day, or doyou only work hard when you*re in the mood? Do you have a set of *rules* foryourself that govern your behavior and activity? Everyone has an *off day.*But if you*re self-disciplined, you exhibit consistent focus in yourday-to-day work. Learn to do what needs to be done and exercise restraintover your own impulses, emotions, and desires. Sometimes working on theright thing doesn*t mean doing the fun thing. You must focus on high-valueoutput, as defined by your job requirements, and learn to stopprocrastinating.

5. U nease-This competency refers to your ability to handle stress well,so that it doesn*t impact your performance and productivity. If you excel inthis competency, you focus on VALUE, rather than VELOCITY. You*re notrunning around in a harried frenzy all the time. According to nationwideoffice productivity study conducted by Xerox and Harris Interactive in 2003,most people work over 60 hours a week total, and over 33 percent work onweekends. The *faster, cheaper, do more with nothing* approach has created aworkplace where workers are always in high gear. This work style reducesproductivity and increases stress. Stress is also a known factor in 70percent of all diseases, so people must learn to reduce tension. You must befamiliar with stress-reduction strategies, so you can recover when pushed tothe limit every day.

6. C oncentration-This competency refers to your ability to stay ontarget and focus on the task at hand. If you excel in this competency, youare PURPOSEFUL, rather than DISTRACTED. As a child, I remember sitting forhours at a time, absorbed in my favorite books. My mother would enter theliving room asking, *Didn*t you hear me call you?* I would look at her,confused, as I came back to reality, and answer honestly, *No, mommy I didn*t.* And that was the complete truth! That level of concentration is veryhard to achieve today. With noise, interruptions, instant messages, andemail, so many things competing for our attention in the workplace that it*soften very difficult to concentrate. You must be able to achieve a state of*flow* and work without breaking focus.

7. T ime Mastery-This competency relates to how well you manage youractivities throughout the day. If you excel in this competency, you focus onQUALITY of your activities, rather than the QUANTITY. Some people spend moretime planning their vacations than their time. With good time managementcomes the rewards of results, recognition, free time, clarify, and focus.Effective time management brings purpose in life, structure to your day,direction, reduced frustration, and a sense of accomplishment. In addition,it reduces stress, since it gives you much more control over your day. Youmust run your life, rather than allowing your life to run you.

8. I nformation Management-This competency relates to how well you handleall the information coming at you. If you excel in this competency, you areDECISIVE, rather than TENTATIVE. We*ve become dependent upon computers,email, voicemail, the Internet, Blackberries, PDAs, cell phones, and pagers.These devices connect us to the world of work. Today, you must betechnologically savvy and make choices quickly. You also must choose thebest method and medium of communication for the particular message you wantto convey. Technology can undoubtedly improve your productivity, but it canmake you LESS productive if you*re not careful. You must use the latesttechnologies to your advantage, without letting technology take advantage ofyou.

9. V itality-This competency refers to your wellness. If you excel inthis competency, you TAKE CARE of yourself, rather than IGNORING yourphysiological needs. How healthy are you? How much energy do you havethroughout the day to accomplish the things you want to do? Do you sleepenough? You have the potential to dramatically impact our productivity bypaying closer attention to our behaviors around health. In other words, weeat too much, drink too much, don*t exercise enough, work too much, and don*t sleep enough. No wonder some people can*t be productive! Some studiessuggest that upwards of 70 percent of doctor visits are prompted by our ownchoices in these areas. You must practice proper self-care, so that arephysically capable of performing at your matchless best.

10. E quilibrium-This competency refers to the proper mix of activitiesin your life. If you excel in this competency, you feel BALANCED, ratherthan UNBALANCED. Balance is tough to achieve, because you have a realcommitment to your job and to your family. You love your work life and yourpersonal lives, often with equal vigor, and don*t want to give either oneup. Professionals find it difficult to participate fully in one arenawithout sacrificing the other, but successful people know high performancedepends on both personal satisfaction and professional achievement. You mustpractice lifestyle tactics and make the proper choices that help you to workat a realistic level.

The more solidly you feel you demonstrate each one of these competencies,the better the chances that your habits support personal productivity:

* If you said a resounding, *That's me!* after each one, you*re probablya Productivity PRO!

* If you can identify with some but not all of the traits, you may be a*middle of the road* employee, which means you*re not the most productiveperson, but you*re not the worst. Ouch! Who wants to be average? Really workon kicking it up a notch!

* If you just shook your head, select one competency every three weeksand work on systematically improving your productivity. If you are low in aparticular area, reading the corresponding chapter in my book Leave theOffice Earlier will give you specific tools and exercises to improve in thatcompetency.

Make it a productive day! *