Productivity

Two Productivity Hacks Worth Trying Today

By Ron Pereira Updated on November 3rd, 2016

snip20161103_4Producing a weekly podcast takes a lot of work.  We have to find guests, figure out what we’ll talk about, schedule the interview, do the interview, edit the episode, write up the show notes for the episode before, finally, releasing the episode to the world.  By the way, if you love continuous improvement and want to share your story with the lean world on our podcast hit me up!

In order to make this weekly show happen we’re constantly seeking out ways to streamline the process.  And while there are many technical hacks we’ve figured out related to things like microphones and mixers… these aren’t what I want to focus on today.  Instead, the two things I want to share with you are quite simple.  In fact you can experiment with these two things minutes from now.

Email Signature

First, I used to waste a lot of time typing introductory emails to guests.  Eventually, I realized I basically said the same thing to everyone so I simply typed the email out, copied it, and saved it as an email signature.  Now, anytime I need to initiate the podcast process with a guest I simply select my “podcast” signature and hit send.

So, if you ever find yourself needing to say the same thing over and over save that message as an email signature or template in your email client and call it up whenever you need it.  Whatever you do… don’t type it out each time!

Calendly

The second thing I’ve wasted a lot of time on is scheduling the actual interview.  This used to take 2, maybe 3, email exchanges before finally settling on a date.

So, in an attempt to improve this terrible process, I’ve recently begun to experiment with something called Calendly.  This online tool syncs up with my Calendar and allows our podcast guests to choose the day and time they’d like to do the interview.  I can, and do, block out certain times of the day I need for other work.  And Calendly also sees when I’m busy with other meetings and simply doesn’t show those time slots as available.  It’s a slick, very streamlined, process.

My guess is there are many other calendar booking services like this out there… if you use one please share it in the comments section below.  I’d also love to hear your thoughts on my email signature hack.  Do you do something similar?

Other Hacks

Do you use any other productivity hacks similar to what I’ve shared above?  If you do, please do share them in the comments below so we can all learn from each other.


  1. Steve Pleasant

    November 4, 2016 - 9:37 am
    Reply

    In a previous role, I sent out RFPs and bid correspondence, so I created a template that contained everything I needed. Using a signature seems really quick and simple. Thanks for sharing that idea.

    • Ron Pereira

      November 4, 2016 - 10:09 am

      You’re welcome, Steve. Thanks for reading!

  2. Claire Everett

    December 11, 2016 - 5:52 pm
    Reply

    I’ve never thought of using the signature like that, but it’s a really good idea. In the past I’ve recorded macros as templates for things I need to send out on a regular basis, but the signature would be easier.

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