The Productivity Pro® Blog by Laura Stack - Time Management, Getting Things Done, How to Be More Productive

“Life is one big pitch, so you’d better start practicing.” — Dan Shawbel, personal branding expert

“What’s a brand? A singular idea or concept that you own inside the mind of the prospect.” — Al Ries, coauthor of The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

“All of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.” — Tom Peters, American business writer

Back in 1997, Tom Peters articulated a concept that had been around for decades: “Brand You.” In an influential article in the magazine Fast Company, Peters argued that it’s no longer enough to be quietly talented and hardworking in order to get ahead. While skills remain crucial, he noted, success in the modern global marketplace also comes from self-packaging.

In other words, to really get ahead, you have to become your own number one product. You must be uniquely you, the CEO of Me, Inc., selling yourself before you can sell anything else. You can no longer be defined by your job title; you have to be your own recognizable brand in all ways. In addition to your skill-set and knowledge base, which must constantly evolve, your personal brand must also include your appearance, attitude, and an active positioning strategy.

At first glance, this concept may seem to have little to do with productivity; but I think it does, at least in a wider “metaproductivity” sense. Brand You is a way of refining your focus so that you can maximize your ability to attract “buyers,” which in turn keeps you personally productive (and solvent).

Keeping ahead of the game requires frequent review and revision . Consider the pop singer Madonna. Love her or hate her, she’s been at the top of the music industry for decades, mostly because she’s been savvy enough to grow and evolve her personal style, reinventing herself as necessary. That’s a necessity in any business, even more so now than it was when Peters first called the trend to our attention. You have to remain focused on Me, Inc., or you’ll be left behind. It’s as much a matter of survival as success anymore.

Everything you do, from your domain name on the Internet to your personal business cards (and you should have both) must be about presenting yourself and your brand unapologetically to the world. In my case, I’m Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®. That’s Brand Me, from my perspective: instantly recognizable and entirely unique. What’s your personal brand?

If you don’t know yet, then you need to start figuring it out fast. The idea is to position yourself clearly in other people’s minds, so that you’re the first person they think of when they’re looking for someone with your skills. Here’s how you do that:

• Know yourself. What are your specialties, and what do you want to accomplish? How do other people perceive you? What do you want to be known for? Start with that raw clay and use it to mold Brand You. Be frank when assessing yourself and your abilities, accepting who you are and where your strengths lie.

• Create a personal style. This should start with a relaxed, professional appearance. Now, this is a difficult guideline to set hard-and-fast rules for, since professional attire varies from field to field. Do some research in your field, and choose a non-objectionable look that will attract attention without being overwhelming.

• Learn to sell yourself. Develop a brief, pithy pitch that conveys who you are and what you’re selling in just a few minutes. Imagine if you were in an elevator with someone, and had only a few minutes to sell yourself. You must be able to project credibility and authenticity quickly in order to sell Brand You.

• Provide fantastic customer value. It’s not all about you, you, you. A large part of Brand You is giving people so much more than what they ask for that they come back repeatedly. Even if you remain within the corporate structure, you need to establish a series of skills and behaviors that you’re famous for in the organization. Maybe you’re the go-to girl for Java apps, or the company-wide expert on database management.

• Get social. These days, the use of social media is absolutely necessary in order to publicize yourself. Become active not just on Facebook and Twitter, but also on professional networking sites like LinkedIn and Biznik. Start your own blog. If there are local professional groups in your field, join them and attend meetings religiously. Talk to people. Start aggressively developing your professional contacts, and never let up. You never know where the next gig will come from.

• Communicate your brand. Get your name known in your field in every way you can think of without being obnoxious. Post on message boards, forums, and discussion groups. Send out an electronic newsletter to your clients and prospects. Relentlessly hand out business cards. In addition to establishing your own self-named website domain, set up an email address is this format: firstname.lastname@you.com. Include a title that encapsulates your specialty in all of your communications, and if necessary, create a logo and use it liberally.

I realize that the advice I’ve provided sounds selfish—but if you want to maximize your likelihood of success (and survival), don’t you need to be selfish? It’s not like you’re building a clever façade to hide behind: your goal with personal branding is to present to the world the very best You possible.

As Seamus Phan points out in his book DotZen, “The core of branding, beyond telling the truth, is to be true to yourself.” Do that in an honest, attractive way, and the world will beat a path to your door.

“Micromanagement is a personality aberration of insecure individuals.” — Susan K. O’Brien, organizational specialist

“One micromanager can do more damage to an organization than termites in the foundation of a house.” — Eric Boehme, IT professional

“Micromanagement doesn’t just suck the life out of the workers, it sucks the life out of the manager, too.” — Wally Bock, leadership expert

In recent months, I’ve received a flurry of responses to my articles about the evils of micromanaging. This doesn’t surprise me: according to the latest statistics, a whopping 75-80% of American workers have suffered under micromanagers at some point. One- third of us have changed jobs because of them.

My previous work on the subject has focused on the negative aspects of micromanaging, and why you, as a manager, should avoid them. But what if you’re the one forced to deal with a micromanager? How do you handle them on a daily basis, and keep them from absolutely destroying your productivity?

That’s a difficult question to answer; this is one of those situations where you have to tread carefully, tailoring any advice to your individual personality and situation. Various experts have taken differing approaches to the subject, suggesting numerous (and often contradictory) ways of dealing with micromanagers. The only thing they seem to agree upon is that you’re unlikely to change a micromanager’s ways, because they are more controlling than most.

Personally, I’m not sure that this is always the case. If you feel you’re being micromanaged, take a hard look at yourself first. Are you new to the job? How does your performance compare to that of others in your group? Do your co-workers feel they’re being micromanaged? As hard as it may be to admit, maybe you’re giving your manager legitimate reasons to micromanage you. First buckle down, and focus on your productivity, and see if things improve.

On the other hand, I agree that there’s a certain level of petty tyranny involved in some micromanaging. When this is the case, you have a few choices: you can find another job, adapt to the situation, or confront the behavior. Adapting may involve anything from appeasement to learning to manipulate your micromanager to your satisfaction.

I think appeasement stinks, and you shouldn’t even consider it unless your situation is desperate. A better option is to schedule a meeting with your manager, and politely but firmly point out that you can’t work effectively in an environment where you’re treated like an untrustworthy child. Emphasize your desire for a more empowered and professional work environment. You may find that your manager responds positively to your request. But if instead they start citing their personal strict standards, and how they can’t allow anyone the slightest bit of slack, then accept that you’re unlikely to ever get through to them.

It’s a bit manipulative, but you always have the option of micromanaging the micromanager: in other words, try to overwhelm them with the minutia they typically require until they’re sick of it. Find out precisely what they want, and get it to them ahead of time. Be relentless. Keep in constant contact. Play precisely by the rules, and be preemptive with deadlines. If they’re annoyed because you can’t get your work done, innocently remind them of all the things they require of you…and maybe they’ll stop.

Some authorities recommend trying to prove to the micromanager that you’re capable of doing your job. The idea is to take on a new role or project and roll it out perfectly, so they’ll see the error of their ways and back off. The problem is that this rarely works. Micromanagers are all about control and have an ingrained lack of trust. Even a minor mistake can be fatal: they’ll fasten on it as proof they were right to micromanage you in the first place, no matter how well you’ve done otherwise.

Whatever you do, document your interactions with the micromanager. Have them write down their requirements for you. Note down their orders in logs and journals, and be very specific as to dates and times. Carefully track everything you do to fulfill their orders. That way, when something goes wrong, you can pull out your notes and say, “Well, here’s what you told me to do on such-and-such a date.” While having to track everything this way may seem abysmally unproductive, in the end it may help you protect yourself—especially if they try to pin the blame for something on you.

If you absolutely can’t live with being micromanaged and can’t find a way to successfully manage your manager, you’re left with one choice: leave that toxic environment. Either transfer to another organization or quit outright. Some experts recommend against this, claiming that it’s self-defeating. Their argument is that since micromanagers are everywhere, you might end up working for another even after you change jobs.

I find this to be a bit like saying that if even your chickenpox is cured, you might just catch measles. True…but conversely, you might end up healthier and more productive than ever. If you need to leave to maintain your sanity, then leave. If you just can’t seem to escape the micromanagement trap even after changing jobs, consider starting your own business, so you never have to worry about being managed again— micro- or otherwise.

Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro(R) talks about using down times to catch up on tasks. (C) 2011 Laura Stack. All Rights Reserved http://www.TheProductivityPro.com

“A man would do nothing, if he waited until he could do it so well that no one would find fault with what he has done.” — Cardinal John Newman, British Clergyman

“I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won’t have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who aren’t even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you, and have a lot more fun while they’re doing it.” — Anne Lamont, American author and political activist

“People throw away what they could have by insisting on perfection, which they cannot have, and looking for it where they will never find it.” — Edith Schaeffer, American author

As Voltaire once pointed out, “The perfect is the enemy of the good.” Think about that. As I interpret it, here’s what he meant: while a desire for perfection is admirable, it becomes increasingly difficult the closer you get to the goal. At some point, you have to admit to yourself that you’ve done what you can, and accept that it’s good enough.

It may shock you to learn that I’m in agreement with Voltaire.

No, I’m not advocating laziness or sloppiness; never! I’ll be the first to admit that perfectionism has its good points. A desire for excellence sets a high standard for achievement , encouraging us to do our best in all things. This is absolutely necessary if you ever expect to achieve SuperCompetence.

However.
Perfection is the realm of the divine; it’s just not going to happen very often here on Earth. If you expect perfection in everything, you’ll never be happy—and you’ll never be as productive as you should be, because you’re hung up on getting it right instead of getting it done. Worse, a quest for perfection can paralyze you if you wait for the ideal conditions to get started. I’ve heard this called “paralysis by analysis.” Some people call it “vapor-lock”—just like you get with an old car.

Let’s check to see if you’ve let your inner perfectionist take over. Do you:

• Always run at 110% capacity?
• Leave no room for error?
• Criticize yourself constantly?
• Expect too much from others?
• Get depressed if goals go unmet?
• Feel a constant fear of failure?
• Get defensive when criticized, even constructively?
• Have low self-esteem?
• Wait until everything’s perfect before starting a task?

If most of these points describe you, then to paraphrase comic Jeff Foxworthy, you might be a perfectionist.

Too much perfectionism is dangerous, because it inevitably limits productivity. If you want to achieve true SuperCompetence and move up the ladder of success, you need to learn to control your inner perfectionist. Look: while sloppiness shouldn’t be tolerated, good enough usually is good enough — especially on the first pass.

Here’s what I mean. Any experienced writer knows that you never get a manuscript right on the first draft. It’s a fool’s errand to try: the purpose of the first draft is just to get the ideas on paper. If you go back and edit yourself after every sentence, you’ll never get anywhere. The real artistry comes during the rewrite, when the writer cuts here, adds there, reorganizes thoughts, and tweaks words until they approximate what she was trying to say in the first place. Note the word approximate. It’ll never be just right. Trying to make it so is another aspect of perfectionism, one that can be devastating to productivity. At some point, you have to let it go.

Here are some tips for taming the beast of perfectionism:

• Step back and take a look at the big picture. Quit focusing on individual pixels!
• Set realistic expectations. Realize that perfection is an option, not a requirement.
• Establish deadlines for yourself. You have to draw the line somewhere.
• Give yourself permission to be imperfect.
• Stop comparing yourself to other people.
• Accept yourself as a human being, who will make mistakes.
• Understand that no matter how well you perform, someone can always find fault.
• Give yourself credit for what you do right.
• Learn to accept criticism as it’s meant.
• Focus on what you’re doing now, not on past mistakes or future worries.
• Quit overanalyzing and waiting for the perfect conditions, and get started.
• Lighten up! Learn to relax.
• Ask for help when you need it.

It’s fine to shoot for the best that you can be. In fact, you should harness your perfectionist tendencies as a motivational tool—without taking it so far that it starts causing problems. Do your best within your time constraints; then, if you have extra time to work on something, go back and kick it up a notch. If not, stop worrying. Just keep reminding yourself: productivity is more important than perfection any day.

You won’t manage to rein in your inner perfectionist all the time; accept that, too. But you do need to immediately get back on the wagon when you fall off. Otherwise, you’ll alienate others, you’ll never be satisfied—and you’ll burn out before you get very far.

Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro(R), shows you how your standards may be holding others back from assisting you. (C) 2010 Laura Stack http://www.TheProductivityPro.com